Somali supermodel, author, activist attacked in Vienna

[miles-militis]

 

Supermodel author, activist attacked by stalker in Vienna, police say

 

WILLIAM J. KOLE, Associated Press Writer

Wednesday, March 10, 2004

 

(03-10) 12:52 PST VIENNA, Austria (AP) --

 

A stalker beat Somalia-born supermodel and bestselling author Waris Dirie in her Vienna apartment, and police on Wednesday arrested a 26-year-old Portuguese suspect.

 

Dirie suffered minor injuries in Tuesday's attack, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Dirie could not be reached for comment, and her agent in New York did not immediately return a phone message.

 

The attack occurred just a week after Dirie had moved from Britain into an apartment in Vienna, the Austrian state broadcaster ORF and the Vienna newspaper Kurier said.

 

Dirie, a prominent model and a women's rights activist who has campaigned against the practice of female genital mutilation in some African countries, is the author of the bestselling autobiography "Desert Flower," and two sequels, "Desert Dawn" and "Nomad's Daughter."

 

A former goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Population Fund, Dirie appeared in "The Living Daylights," a 1987 James Bond film. She has modeled in Chanel perfume ads and has appeared on numerous magazine covers.

 

Harald Hofmayer, a Vienna police official, told the Austria Press Agency that the suspect, identified only as Paulo A., was under the illusion that he had a relationship with Dirie and had stalked her for the past six months. He showed up at her door on Tuesday, he said.

 

"She was so frightened and in shock that she let him in," Hofmayer said. Dirie suffered minor injuries when her assailant struck her and threw her to the floor, police said.

 

Hofmayer said the attacker left by a taxi, only to return later on foot and smash a ground-floor window to the building. He was arrested when neighbors called the police.

 

The suspect was being detained but had not yet been charged, police said.

 

The suspect met Dirie about six months ago, when his brother was doing some work at her previous residence in Britain, the police official said. He later broke into that home and stole items of her clothing, the official said.

 

Dirie has spoken out frankly about being a victim of ritual genital mutilation at age 5 in her native Somalia.

 

When her father, Dahire, arranged for her to marry an elderly man in exchange for five camels, she ran away from home. Just 13 years old, the skinny girl walked 300 miles across Somalia to the capital, Mogadishu.

 

She moved to Britain, where an uncle served for four years as Somalia's ambassador, and was discovered by a photographer and hired as a model for Revlon, Inc.

 

Bond girl attacked by stalker

By This is London

11 March 2004

Former Bond girl-turnedhuman rights campaigner Waris Dirie has been attacked by a stalker who tracked her across Europe.

 

The 40-year-old author was left shocked by the assault, which came a week after she and her seven-year-old son moved to Vienna from Wales.

 

A 26-yearold Portuguese man is in custody. Ms Dirie starred in the 1987 Bond film The Living Daylights and now works for the United Nations as a campaigner for women's rights in her native Somalia.

 

Police said the stalker, believed to be the brother of her former handyman in Cardiff, had been pursuing her for six months when he knocked on her door.

 

She was so scared she let him in. The man ran off when she cried for help but was caught later by undercover officers who staked out the flat, waiting for his return.

 

Ms Dirie wrote the best-seller, Desert Flower, about her life as one of 12 children born to desert nomads. At 13, she escaped being sold into marriage for five camels and fled to Britain, where she got a break as a model after being spotted in McDonald's. She later appeared alongside Naomi Campbell.

[Senora]

She was so scared she let him in

 

:confused: :confused:

[Reality Check]

Princess,

 

Its not uncommon you know. She probably thought she had no control over the situation. Who knows?

[MAN ABOVE THE LAW]

Originally posted by Samurai Warrior:

 

Supermodel author, activist attacked by stalker in Vienna, police say

 

WILLIAM J. KOLE, Associated Press Writer

Wednesday, March 10, 2004

 

(03-10) 12:52 PST VIENNA, Austria (AP) --

 

A stalker beat Somalia-born supermodel and bestselling author Waris Dirie in her Vienna apartment, and police on Wednesday arrested a 26-year-old Portuguese suspect.

 

Dirie suffered minor injuries in Tuesday's attack, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Dirie could not be reached for comment, and her agent in New York did not immediately return a phone message.

 

The attack occurred just a week after Dirie had moved from Britain into an apartment in Vienna, the Austrian state broadcaster ORF and the Vienna newspaper Kurier said.

 

Dirie, a prominent model and a women's rights activist who has campaigned against the practice of female genital mutilation in some African countries, is the author of the bestselling autobiography "Desert Flower," and two sequels, "Desert Dawn" and "Nomad's Daughter."

 

A former goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Population Fund, Dirie appeared in "The Living Daylights," a 1987 James Bond film. She has modeled in Chanel perfume ads and has appeared on numerous magazine covers.

 

Harald Hofmayer, a Vienna police official, told the Austria Press Agency that the suspect, identified only as Paulo A., was under the illusion that he had a relationship with Dirie and had stalked her for the past six months. He showed up at her door on Tuesday, he said.

 

"She was so frightened and in shock that she let him in," Hofmayer said. Dirie suffered minor injuries when her assailant struck her and threw her to the floor, police said.

 

Hofmayer said the attacker left by a taxi, only to return later on foot and smash a ground-floor window to the building. He was arrested when neighbors called the police.

 

The suspect was being detained but had not yet been charged, police said.

 

The suspect met Dirie about six months ago, when his brother was doing some work at her previous residence in Britain, the police official said. He later broke into that home and stole items of her clothing, the official said.

 

Dirie has spoken out frankly about being a victim of ritual genital mutilation at age 5 in her native Somalia.

 

When her father, Dahire, arranged for her to marry an elderly man in exchange for five camels, she ran away from home. Just 13 years old, the skinny girl walked 300 miles across Somalia to the capital, Mogadishu.

 

She moved to Britain, where an uncle served for four years as Somalia's ambassador, and was discovered by a photographer and hired as a model for Revlon, Inc.

 

Bond girl attacked by stalker

By This is London

11 March 2004

Former Bond girl-turnedhuman rights campaigner Waris Dirie has been attacked by a stalker who tracked her across Europe.

 

The 40-year-old author was left shocked by the assault, which came a week after she and her seven-year-old son moved to Vienna from Wales.

 

A 26-yearold Portuguese man is in custody. Ms Dirie starred in the 1987 Bond film The Living Daylights and now works for the United Nations as a campaigner for women's rights in her native Somalia.

 

Police said the stalker, believed to be the brother of her former handyman in Cardiff, had been pursuing her for six months when he knocked on her door.

 

She was so scared she let him in. The man ran off when she cried for help but was caught later by undercover officers who staked out the flat, waiting for his return.

 

Ms Dirie wrote the best-seller, Desert Flower, about her life as one of 12 children born to desert nomads. At 13, she escaped being sold into marriage for five camels and fled to Britain, where she got a break as a model after being spotted in McDonald's. She later appeared alongside Naomi Campbell.

[MAN ABOVE THE LAW]

Originally posted by Samurai Warrior

what a shame ?..........ppl u know this girl has illegal child from her boy friend and she came 2 party in australia while she was pregnant with her boy friend (allah indh adaga) ...... i hope she die and all somali models

[Rokko]

She should be jailed in Baadiye. She is a shame to the Somalis na'mean. Any gaalo lover is.

[Som@li]

^^^ i agree

 

. At 13, she escaped being sold into marriage for five camels and fled to Britain,

waa lay iibsaday kulahaa

[x_quizit]

Hey, this is not about her private life...its about someone being attacked viciously for no apparent reason, no matter what road they choose in life, they do not deserve this..let God judge..

[Som@li]

^^^Qoftu dhaqankii,,sharaftii soomalida bay meelkaga dhacday,,,Geed Quudhaanjo leh in lagu xiro bay mudan tahay....

[Curly]

I might not agree with the way she chooses to live her life but I would never want what happened to her to happen to anyone!

I don’t think that we should even judge her because at the end of the day it’s Allah who will judge her…so who are we to condemn her and treat her any differently for just expressing herself?!

 

I’m sure you lot are more concerned about the way she has portrayed the Somali nation than the fact that she was brought a very important issue to light that needs to be addressed. Because what she wrote in her book is true! I know this because she’s not alone, I’ve spoken to many people who have also had similarly hard lives.

 

I know my own aunty was married at the age of 14 to a bloke way older than herself and lets not lie to ourselves about FGM because it still happens to this day. So it’s wrong to be selfish and ignore it just because it didn’t happen to you!

 

Anyway I have to say that she might have gone the wrong way about it but its thanks to her that people are now aware of what goes on in Somalia and I’m sure that there are girls out there who now are able to talk about it more openly because now it’s seen as acceptable to discuss.

 

So I think you lot should be a little more respectful of the woman, she's been through a lot and she's not the first Somali woman to give birth out of wedlock, because as hard as it maybe to believe boys, sex and lust was not invented by "The West”!

[Rokko]

This is a picture of Weris and her son Aleeke with a dude she works with.

 

 

 

[LadyMo]

Damn its funny wat a couple of slaps of make-up can do 2 a face! Just compare de 2 pics above its unbelievable. I swear I kno plenty of 40yrs old Somali women out there without make-up that look even better than she does! Also hav u noticed de naxariis de hijab brings to her otherwise horrid face above??

 

My pride is one thing nobody can take away from me-for ANY price! Im just wonderin where she 4got about and left her pride, probably sumwhere along wiv her sense of rightious judgement and morals==> sumwhere far away (maybe on her 300miles work to Moghadisho)

 

Howeva I hav to rate her for speakin about FGM althou it cud b argued she was soo scared she had to do it under de protection of the UN and dat she wud neva hav said anythin like dat if she resided in Somalia.

 

Howeva I rate de mothers out there who said 'NO' to havin their daughters circumsised while they were in Somalia, more than anythin-& I kno they DO exist althou they were far and very few inbetween durin de early 80's the few who didnt let non-religious traditions control their way of life (although a majority of Somalis did) they are de ones who should b applauded!

[Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar]

Salaan...

 

Police said the stalker, believed to be the brother of her former handyman in Cardiff

I didn't know she lived in Cardiff, Wales, because when I visited there last year, I too would have knocked {err, "lectured"} her down--to bring her back to Soomaali fold.

 

When her father, Dahire, arranged for her to marry an elderly man in exchange for five camels, she ran away from home. Just 13 years old, the skinny girl walked 300 miles across Somalia to the capital, Mogadishu....

 

Ms Dirie wrote the best-seller, Desert Flower, about her life as one of 12 children born to desert nomads...

 

She moved to Britain, where an uncle served for four years as Somalia's ambassador

What are these inconsistencies?

 

Her father is a "nomad" who wanted to "sell" her for some five camels. Her uncle, supposedly from her paternal side, is an ambassador to Great Britain.

 

Don't you guys notice the discrepancies?

 

As the Soomaali culture we know {families helping to full causes}, I don't think her father would have remained a nomad "selling" his children for some camels whereas her paternal uncle served as an ambassador. Her father would have lived a villa somewhere in Soomaaliya.

 

A good fairy tale for a book, but anaga sheekadaas mana marsiin karto, ha ula tagto anjabiga.

[LadyMo]

Originally posted by Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar:

A good fairy tale for a book, but anaga sheekadaas mana marsiin karto, ha ula tagto anjabiga.

I must say I agree!

[Senora]

As the Soomaali culture we know {families helping to full causes}, I don't think her father would have remained a nomad "selling" his children for some camels whereas her paternal uncle served as an ambassador. Her father would have lived a villa somewhere in Soomaaliya.

I dont know where the paternal uncle part came in, but either way it doesn't matter.....its not

unusual to hear about family members who just don't communicate with one another...and i have personal experiences with that, so lets not rule that part out.......

 

Princess,

 

Its not uncommon you know. She probably thought she had no control over the situation. Who knows?

Your right, i guess i was trying to imagine the situation for myself, and i couldn't imagine myself doing something like that.....but i would never know..