Legalising rape within marriage – Enshrined in Afghanistan’s new Shia Family Law
Two weeks ago, President Hamid Karzai has signed a controversial Shia Family Law that dramatically rolled back the rights of women in Afghanistan.
The bill contained numerous provisions restricting the rights of women, such as giving their husbands priority in court; requiring the husband’s permission when seeking work, education or doctor’s appointment and when leaving the house; and reserving the custody of children to male relatives (only fathers and grandfathers are granted custody of children under the law).
One of the bill’s most contentious measure is that a man has the right to have sexual intercourse with his wife every four days, even if she says “no” except in the event of illness. The United Nations and women’s groups have highly condemned the legislation arguing that it is equivalent to spousal rape.
Rev the Hon. Dr Gordon Moyes who has raised awareness of the growing incidence of rape within marriage in New South Wales Parliament was dismayed by the decision of the Afghani President. Dr Moyes said: “The abhorrent legislation which passed both houses of the Afghan Parliament is a brutal measure which degrades the rights of women. Hamid Karzai has turned his back on the equality of women and has taken Afghanistan into a primitive era.”
Opponents believe that the President gave his support for the legislation in order to increase his popularity among Afghanistan’s Shia population ahead of an upcoming election in August. While the Afghan constitution guarantees the equal rights for women, it also allows the Shia community (representing 10 percent of the population) the right to settle family law cases according to Shia law. It has not yet been made clear if the new law applies to all Afghans or the Shia population only.
Dr Moyes said: “This law has undermined the role of women in Afghan society. The status and position of Afghani women has deteriorated as both the Government and the Taliban seeks to further erode their rights in the public and private spheres. Afghani women cannot turn to their Government as their President has signed and approved legislation that treats them as second-class citizens. It is an abominable act.”
Last year, Dr Moyes asked a question to the Minister for Police in Parliament regarding the reporting of rape within marriage:
“Is the Minister aware that one of the most common forms of violence against women is that perpetuated by a husband or an intimate male partner?
Is the Minister also aware of recent research conducted by Women’s Health Goulburn North-East Victoria, which found that “only one in five police officers treated seriously reports of a woman being raped by her partner”, and that “the victims felt that they had nowhere to go and no one to tell when they were being raped by their partners”?
Can the Minister indicate what proactive programs will be established to educate New South Wales police officers to protect and support women from a debilitating and soul destroying assault, which is often referred to as rape within marriage?”
Please click here for the Minister’s response.
The Shia Family Law has not been publicly released and human rights organisations and women’s rights campaigners have been unable to see a copy of the approved bill. According to the Afghan Ministry of Justice, it will not be published until “technical difficulties” had been overcome.