Karzai's "Abhorrent" Law to Be Reviewed
The Law Legalising Marital Rape in Afghanistan Will Be Re-Examined
"I ordered the justice minister to review the law, and if there is anything that would contravene the freedom our constitution gives to Afghan women, there will be changes in it". Under intense pressure from the international community, Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai had no other choice than ordering a review of the "abhorrent" law.
The New Law Denying Afghan Women's Rights
Earlier this month President Karzai had signed a new law that regulates the personal status of Afghanistan’s minority Shi’a community members, including relations between women and men, divorce and property rights. Western leaders, including US President Barack Obama and UK's British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the United Nations, non-governmental Organizations, activists and some MPs heavily condemned the new law which is said to effectively legalise marital rape in the Shi’a minority.
The new law seeks to regulate personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and sexual relations among the Shi'a minority. By doing that it denies Afghan Shi’a women the right to leave their homes except for "legitimate" purposes; forbids women from working or receiving education without their husbands' express permission; explicitly permits marital rape; diminishes the right of mothers to be their children’s guardians in the event of a divorce; and makes it impossible for wives to inherit houses and land from their husbands – although husbands may inherit immoveable property from their wives.
Particularly the controversial article 132 requires women to obey their husband's sexual demands and stipulates that a man can expect to have sex with his wife at least "once every four nights" when travelling, unless they are ill.
"It is one of the worst bills passed by the parliament this century," said Shinkai Karokhail, a woman MP who campaigned against the legislation. "It is totally against women's rights. This law makes women more vulnerable." said Shinkai Karokhail, a woman MP who campaigned against the legislation. "It is totally against women's rights and makes women more vulnerable."
The new law is widely seen as a political move by Karzai to win support from conservative Muslims in presidential elections scheduled for August. The bill lay dormant for more than a year, but in February it was rushed through parliament.
Senator Humaira Namati, a member of the upper house of the Afghan parliament, said the law was "worse than during the Taliban". "Anyone who spoke out was accused of being against Islam," she said.
The Shi'a Minority in Afghanistan
The Afghan constitution allows for Shias to have a separate family law based on traditional Shi'a jurisprudence. However the constitution and various international treaties signed by Afghanistan guarantee equal rights for women.
The Shi'a community makes up about 10% of Afghanistan population and is composed mainly of the Hazara minority. The new law has the active support of some of the Hazaras' male leadership although it has been strongly opposed by other Hazaras and Afghan human rights activists in the country. The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights confirms it under its website www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/Media.aspx .
“When the Taliban went I thought things were getting better for women,” said Paween. “Now I think it won’t change for a long time”. One of the country’s leading actresses, Paween is among a number of prominent Afghan women who have been forced to leave the country in recent months due to the worsening of women's rights.
Karzai complained that western media had mistranslated one part of the law, which appeared to restrict a woman’s right to leave her home. However, he did not mention article 132 of the new law that regulates sexual relations between Shi’a men and their wives, which the the UN accused to legalise rape.
An Afghan woman covers her face with the burqa
|
What do you think about this article?
More in Politics & Society
Latest Articles