Law legalises spousal rape

To me, this looks like putting the woman alongside the man's object of use, something that is his to pick up for use, then drop down afterwards, waiting for the next time of "use". I'm thinking out loud...

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LIFE IN AFGHANISTAN
President Karzai orders review of controversial law

KABUL — Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Saturday rejected Western criticism that a new law imposes Taliban-style restrictions on women but ordered a review and vowed to correct anything of concern.

Mr Karzai has come under heavy fire from his allies, including the United States, Canada and France, for signing a law that Western media reports say means Shia women cannot refuse to have sex with their husbands or leave the house without their spouses’ permission.

The law, signed by President Hamid Karzai last month, is intended to regulate family life inside Afghanistan’s Shia community, which makes up 10-to-20-per-cent of the country’s 30 million people.

Under one article legislating the frequency of sexual relations between Shia husbands and wives, husbands have the right to sex every fourth night unless the wife is ill. The United Nations Development Fund for Women has said the law “legalises the rape of a wife by her husband”.

US President Barack Obama criticised the new law and said it was a key topic of conversation at Nato’s 60th anniversary summit in Strasbourg.

“I think this law is abhorrent,” Mr Obama said. “We think that it is very important for us to be sensitive to local culture but we also think that there are certain basic principles that all nations should uphold, and respect for women and respect for their freedom and integrity is an important principle.”

The UN human rights chief in Afghanistan, Mr Navi Pillay, on Thursday urged the Afghan government to revoke new legislation, saying it was “reminiscent of the decrees made by the Taliban regime”.

Even before Mr Obama’s comments, Mr Karzai said he ordered the Justice Ministry to review the law in consultation with scholars and religious leaders. Critics have accused Mr Karzai of signing the law to court Shia votes in the country’s presidential election in August.

- AGENCIES


From TODAY, World
Monday, 06-April-2009