The Campaign against the Lebanese rape-marriage law Article 522, officially known as "A White Dress Doesn't Cover the Rape", was launched by the Lebanese non-governmental organization Abaad MENA in December 2016. Its aim was to abolish Article 522 of the Lebanese Penal Code, which allows a man to avoid punishment for rape if he produces a valid marriage contract with the victim. [1] The campaign included street protests, the hashtag #Undress522 in social media, and a video of a raped women covered in bruises turned into a bride.
A month before the launching of the campaign, the NGO [2] executed a country-wide plan to raise awareness on the article, to which only 1% of Lebanese population were discerned of. [1]
It is not the first time that Lebanon repeals a law considered to be against human rights. [3] Article 562 of the penal code was amended in 1999, [4] which legalized honor killings whenever a man found his spouse, sister, ascendants or descendants in a situation of unlawful sexual intercourse. [5] Furthermore, on April 1, 2014, the parliament passed a law with the aim to protect women against domestic violence. [6] There are no accurate figures about sexual assaults on women since most women do not report due to the sensitivity of the topic. [7]
Within the first few weeks of the campaign, influential figures expressed their support for the movement against Article 522; for example, Prime Minister Saad Hariri did so on his Twitter account. [8] Despite the fact that Lebanon ratified the 1979 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, [9] and other international treaties such as the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, which supplements the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, [10] the country used to maintain what it has been described as ‘crimes of honor.’ [11]
In 2017, Lebanon abolished Article 522 and declared reexamination of Articles 505 and 518. [12]
During the Ottoman Empire, Lebanon was a region subject to Ottoman legislation, which was inspired by the French Penal Code of 1810. [13] After World War I and the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon was established in the country. During this period, the Ottoman law continued to be applied until the creation of the Lebanese Penal Code in 1943, which was drawn from the French Penal Code of 1810. [14]
Article 522 of Lebanese Penal code allowed men, who had been convicted of sexual assault, abduction, or statutory rape against a woman, [15] to avoid penalty of no less than five years of hard labor if a valid contract of marriage could be provided. Article 522 was officially admitted to the Lebanese Penal Code in February 1948. Its original form stated: "If a valid contract of marriage is made between the perpetrator of any of the offenses mentioned in this section, and the victim, the prosecution is suspended. If judgment was already passed, the implementation of the punishment is suspended." [16]
In December 2016, the Lebanese Parliamentary Committee for Administration and Justice made the announcement [1] that an agreement had been made to repeal Article 522 from the Lebanese penal code. For the law to be repealed, the parliament has to confirm the committee's decision.
On August 16, 2017, Parliament abolished Article 522. [17]
"A White Dress Doesn't Cover the Rape" did not only aim abolishing Article 522, but it also defended the right of victims who refuse to marry their rapist. The campaign also intended to eliminate stigmatization and shaming regarding rape. The campaign sought to gain cooperation by raising awareness of the distinction between rape as a crime and what society views as honor. It also stressed that forced marriage legitimizes sexual assault against women. [1]
On November 13, 2016, Abaad MENA [18] organized a flashmob coinciding with the 14th edition of the Beirut Marathon. Dozens of girls and women marched wearing white T-shirts that read in Arabic and/or English "Abolish #522." The participants had their heads covered with white boxes and held pink balloons with the slogan "الإغتصاب جريمة" (rape is a crime). The activists were led by participants while playing drums and a banner in Arabic with the same slogan on their T-shirts and balloons. [19]
Abaad MENA was founded in 2011 in Beirut, Lebanon. They work on gender equality as a sustainable economic and social development in the MENA region. Abaad MENA seeks to promote women's participation through policy development. It has a network of activists, social workers and lawyers who work on issues which marginalized groups encounter in the Lebanese society [20]
On November 30, 2016, a woman dressed like a bride with bruises covered in blood stained bandages stood in front of the Parliament of Lebanon in Downtown Beirut, where the Administration and Justice Committee was discussing the draft law to abolish Article 522. [21] Abaad MENA organized a similar public protest on December 6, 2016, in which around a dozen of women gathered in front of the Parliament wearing white dresses and bandages around their eyes, hands and knees stained with fake blood. The activists held banners that read "الأبيض ما بيغطّي الإغتصاب / White won't cover rape," "نعم لإلغاءالمادة 522 / Yes to abolition of Article 522," and "ما تلبسونا ٥٢٢# / #Undress522."[ citation needed ]
A week before the street protest on December 6, Abaad MENA released a video directed by Danielle Rizkallah and according to the director, the video was conceived to start with a rape and finish with another one. [22] The video shows a naked woman on the ground dragged by different hands that cover her bruises with white bandages until she ends up dressed like a bride. In the end, there is a message displayed in Arabic that reads "Article 522 of the Lebanese Penal Code exempts the rapist of its prosecution if he marries his victim." Finally, the model screams and another two messages in Arabic appear, the first reads "White doesn't cover the rape" and the second "#Undress522."
The campaign also activated #Undress522 on Social media. The same hashtag has been employed to set up a petition webpage against Article 522. The supporters of the campaign can sign the petition to abolish the law.
In March 2017, the sculptor Mireille Honein hung 31 wedding dresses in Beirut's Corniche to denounce that every day women are raped and forced into marriage. The dresses were made of paper and hung from nooses between four palm trees. [23]
Although the Lebanese Forces MP Elie Keyrouz had suggested the annulment of law 522 in July 2016, [24] the media specifically focused its attention on the campaign after the Abaad MENA's public demonstrations. The NGO's first public appearance on November 13 went almost unnoticed, as well as the protest carried out by one activist in front of the parliament when the MPs were discussing the draft law. [21] An increased attention of both national and international media arose when Abaad MENA organized the protest of around a dozen women in front of the Parliament in December when the video directed by Danielle Rizkallah was released. Furthermore, local media such as The Daily Star (Lebanon) reported other related aspects of the campaign like the declarations of MP Robert Ghanem, chair of Parliament's Administration and Justice Committee before the Parliament's examination of the law, [25] the declarations of a lawyer working in Abaad MENA once the Committee guaranteed the reviewing of the article, [26] and the reexamination in February 2017 of the so-called "Assaults on Honor" from Articles 503 to 522. [21] Moreover, the French-language daily newspaper L'Orient-Le Jour conducted an interview with Danielle Rizkallah shortly after the video was published on social media. [22] The newspaper also reported the deputies' statements regarding the reviewing of the article and their participation in the protests launched by the NGO. [27] The newspaper reported the amendments of Articles 503 to 521 along the two exemptions to which Article 522 are still applicable. [28]
International media such as the CNN, TV5Monde, and BBC extensively drew attention to the street protest carried out on December 6 and the content of Article 522. [29] [30] [31] Other media publications also reported about the declarations inside the Parliament while reexamining the law such as The Independent, which published on MP supporters of Article 522 who argued that the Article allowed families to repair the damage done to their honor. [32] On September 6, 2016 Al Arabiya informed that during the Lebanese Democratic Women's Gathering centered on the abolition of Article 522 and the impossibility for Lebanese women to pass on citizenship rights to their children. [33] Kataeb MP Elie Marouni declared "[i]n some cases, we need to ask if women play an active role in pushing men to rape them." [34] During the meeting, a journalist and co-founder of women's rights group FE-MALE accused Marouni of offending all women in the room. On September 7, 2016, the Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel condemned Marouni's comment and the following day Gemayel tweeted that the rapist is the only one accountable for the act of rape. [34]
On February 15, 2017, the Committee for Administration and Justice of the Lebanese parliament declared the abolition of Article 522. [35] However, the Article is maintained in two situations. [36] In Article 505, when the sexual assault is practiced with a girl between 15 and 18, given that the girl had given her consent prior; [37] and in Article 518, when the sexual relation is practiced with a girl between 15 and 18, given that a promise of marriage had been made prior. [37] In both cases, a valid marriage consented by the minor and her parents would prevent the imprisonment of the male. [37] Moreover, after the marriage, a social worker has to submit a report concerning the psychological conditions of the woman every six months for the first three years. [37] Furthermore, the Parliament announced that same day that amendments were being implemented from Articles 503 to 521 [36] in order to reinforce the penalties in case that the sexual act involves a girl under 15. [37]
Article 516 has been repealed and its dispositions are included in Articles 514 and 515. [38] Article 514 states that the person who abducts a female minor or a female adult with the intention of marrying her commits an offense [39] and can be imprisoned up to three years. [40] Article 515 states that the person who kidnaps a man or a woman with the purpose of debauchery [39] can be sentenced to hard labor for at least seven years. [40] Article 516 permitted the person who committed acts described in Articles 514 and 515 not to be condemned if the acts were committed without deception nor violence on a person under 15. [41] After the abolition of Article 516, Articles 514 and 515 state that the person who has committed the acts can be sentenced even if the acts were committed without deception nor violence on a person under 15. [38]
During 2016, several NGO's held different events and activist campaigns to raise awareness towards what they believe to be a "Rape Culture." This activism was a result of episodes of sexual assault where there has been no repercussions or conviction against the perpetrators. [42] According to Nay el-Rahi, “It’s (rape) normalized and people just don’t do necessarily anything about it. Unless it’s something as flagrant as this (above) case”. [43] The concept of “rape culture” is related to both sexualization of women, sexual assault on women and men, domestic violence, and the normalization of objectification of the other gender. [44] The awareness of and anger towards the Lebanese "rape culture" rose after the Lebanese MP Elie Marouni stated “In some cases, we need to ask if women play an active role in pushing men to rape them", in relations to the abolishment of Article 522. [45]
Several human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch, [46] and the United Nations Human Rights High Commission [47] have strongly criticized laws like Article 522 in other parts of the world. These organizations have been working towards abolishing this kind of laws, and in several cases they have been successful.
"Rape marriage" law, as it is popularly named, has its roots in Roman law about Raptus, [48] and further in Medieval law. [49] Though the laws can be formed in different ways, they all share the characteristic that it ceases persecution in the case of a marriage contract can be provided. Laws of this nature are still practiced in several different countries, such as Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, the Philippines, Syria and Tajikistan. [50] [12]
In Iraq, article 398 of the Penal Code No. 111 of 1969 allows the perpetrator of sexual assault to avoid punishment by marrying the woman for at least 3 years. [51] Only if the husband decides to divorce his wife in a period inferior to 3 years would the proceedings for investigation of the sexual assault be undertaken again. In this case, the public prosecutor, the ex-husband, the divorced woman or any person interested in the proceedings is eligible to request an investigation for the events. [52] [53]
In Kuwait, Article 182 states that persecution will be dropped in cases of sexual assault if the assailant married the woman, with the permission of a guardian. [54] In Afghanistan, Article 26 was adopted as recent as 2014, [55] which provided a ban on relatives of an accused person to testifying against them. Though this does not specifically effect rape or marriage, there has been cases in which this was the outcome. [56]
Some victims of rape or other sexual violence incidents are male. Historically, rape was thought to be, and defined as, a crime committed solely against females. This belief is still held in some parts of the world, but rape of males is now commonly criminalized and has been subject to more discussion than in the past.
Sexual violence is any harmful or unwanted sexual act—or attempt to obtain a sexual act through violence or coercion—or an act directed against a person's sexuality without their consent, by any individual regardless of their relationship to the victim. This includes forced engagement in sexual acts, attempted or completed, and may be physical, psychological, or verbal. It occurs in times of peace and armed conflict situations, is widespread, and is considered to be one of the most traumatic, pervasive, and most common human rights violations.
Marital rape or spousal rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent. The lack of consent is the essential element and doesn't always involve physical violence. Marital rape is considered a form of domestic violence and sexual abuse. Although, historically, sexual intercourse within marriage was regarded as a right of spouses, engaging in the act without the spouse's consent is now widely classified as rape by many societies around the world, and increasingly criminalized. However it is repudiated by some more conservative cultures.
Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), is violent acts primarily committed by men or boys against women or girls. Such violence is often considered a form of hate crime, committed against persons specifically because they are of the female gender, and can take many forms.
The legal age of consent for sexual activity varies by jurisdiction across Asia. The specific activity engaged in or the gender of participants can also be relevant factors. Below is a discussion of the various laws dealing with this subject. The highlighted age refers to an age at or above which an individual can engage in unfettered sexual relations with another who is also at or above that age. Other variables, such as homosexual relations or close in age exceptions, may exist, and are noted when relevant.
The age of consent in Africa for sexual activity varies by jurisdiction across the continent, codified in laws which may also stipulate the specific activities that are permitted or the gender of participants for different ages. Other variables may exist, such as close-in-age exemptions.
Rape is a type of sexual assault initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, under threat or manipulation, by impersonation, or with a person who is incapable of giving valid consent.
Statistics on rape and other acts of sexual assault are commonly available in industrialized countries, and have become better documented throughout the world. Inconsistent definitions of rape, different rates of reporting, recording, prosecution and conviction for rape can create controversial statistical disparities, and lead to accusations that many rape statistics are unreliable or misleading.
An honor killing, honour killing, or shame killing is a traditional form of murder in which a person is killed by or at the behest of members of their family or their partner, due to culturally sanctioned beliefs that such homicides are necessary as retribution for the perceived dishonoring of the family by the victim. Honor killings are often connected to religion, caste, other forms of hierarchical social stratification, or sexuality. Most often, it involves the murder of a woman or girl by male family members, due to the perpetrators' belief that the victim has lost her innocence by bringing dishonor or shame upon the family name, reputation or prestige. Honor killings are believed to have originated from tribal customs.
The timeline of women's legal rights (other than voting) represents formal changes and reforms regarding women's rights. The changes include actual law reforms, as well as other formal changes (e.g., reforms through new interpretations of laws by precedents). The right to vote is exempted from the timeline: for that right, see Timeline of women's suffrage. The timeline excludes ideological changes and events within feminism and antifeminism; for that, see Timeline of feminism.
Rape in the Philippines is considered a criminal offense. In Philippine jurisprudence, it is a heinous crime punishable by reclusión perpetua when committed against women. Rape of males is also legally recognized as rape by sexual assault, which is penalized by imprisonment of six to twelve years.
Women in Lebanon are treated according to patriarchal norms although the legal status of women has improved since the 20th century. Gender equality in Lebanon remains problematic. Active feminist movements exist in Lebanon which are trying to overcome the legal and sociopolitical discrimination enshrined in law.
People of the Palestinian territories—the West Bank and the Gaza Strip—are bound by differing laws that handle marital unions on the basis of the couple's national status and religious affiliation. After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the Palestinian residents of the Jordanian-annexed West Bank and the Egyptian-occupied Gaza Strip became subject to Jordanian marriage law and Egyptian marriage law, respectively. After the 1967 Arab–Israeli War, which saw Israel capture the Palestinian territories from Jordan and Egypt, those original laws largely remained in place.
Since the December 2010 revolution in Tunisia and protests across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) began, Tunisian women have played an unprecedented part in the protests. Habib Bourguiba began instituting secular freedoms for women in 1956, such as access to higher education, the right to file for divorce, and certain job opportunities. Women in Tunisia enjoy certain freedoms and rights that are denied to women in neighboring countries, although the social norms have shifted since 2011.
On 10 March 2012, Amina El Filali (1996–2012), a 16-year-old girl from Larache, Morocco, committed suicide by taking rat poison, after she was forced by her family to marry a man who had raped her when she was 15. According to Article 475 of the Moroccan penal code, the rapist was allowed to avoid prosecution by marrying his victim. This incident drew much attention to Moroccan law, and many people expressed a desire to have the law changed. Local human rights groups also called for the repeal of Article 475 of the Moroccan penal code, which de-criminalises a rape if the rapist later marries their victim. Two years after the suicide, the parliament decided to modify Article 475; it was edited in 2014.
Rape is the fourth most common crime against women in India. According to the 2021 annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 31,677 rape cases were registered across the country, or an average of 86 cases daily, a rise from 2020 with 28,046 cases, while in 2019, 32,033 cases were registered. Of the total 31,677 rape cases, 28,147 of the rapes were committed by persons known to the victim. The share of victims who were minors or below 18 – the legal age of consent – stood at 10%.
A marry-your-rapist law, marry-the-rapist law, or rape-marriage law is a rule of rape law in a jurisdiction under which a man who commits rape, sexual assault, statutory rape, abduction or other similar act is exonerated if he marries his female victim, or in some jurisdictions at least offers to marry her. The "marry-your-rapist" law is a legal way for the accused to avoid prosecution or punishment.
Marital rape generally refers to non-consensual sexual intercourse between married spouses. In Singapore, there used to be a partial immunity for marital rape first introduced during British colonial rule because it was deemed not a criminal offence except when the wife is below 13 years of age or when any of the specific circumstances provided under section 375(4) of the Singapore Penal Code are satisfied. Since 1 January 2020, the law was repealed and its immunity lifted under the Criminal Law Reform Act 2019, criminalising marital rape.
This article provides an overview of marital rape laws by country.
Sexual consent plays an important role in laws regarding rape, sexual assault and other forms of sexual violence. In a court of law, whether or not the alleged victim had freely given consent, and whether or not they were deemed to be capable of giving consent, can determine whether the alleged perpetrator is guilty of rape, sexual assault or some other form of sexual misconduct.
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