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| Southeast Asia |
| Islamic leaders reject marital rape law proposal |
| 2004-08-23 |
| Islamic leaders and scholars have rejected a proposal by the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) pressing for husbands to be charged with rape if they force their wives to have sex with them. The critics of the proposal say it is against Islam and could ruin marriage as an institution in Muslim-majority Malaysia. More than 70 women complain every year that they have been raped by their husbands, while others are believed to suffer sexual abuse in silence. The authorities cannot do anything about these complaints as marital rape is not a crime in Malaysia. It should be an offence, said Suhakam chairman Abu Talib Othman, who argues that sex without a wife's consent violates basic human rights. In a paper submitted to a parliamentary select committee, Suhakam said a husband who does not support his wife financially but insists on having sex with her contravenes her rights. Malaysia is a signatory to the United Nations convention o the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. The convention stresses equal rights for married couples and states that a wife must not be enslaved by her husband. It also describes the sexual abuse of a wife by a husband as being no different from the same act committed by an unknown man on a woman. Suhakam's proposal is backed by several women's groups, but the Mufti, or religious leader, of Perak, Datuk Seri Dr Harussani Zakaria, said that in Islam, a husband forcing a wife to have sex cannot be accused of rape. Accusing Suhakam of being influenced by Westerners lobbying for more rights for women, he said: 'In Islam, sexual relations between husband and wife are governed by certain rules and limitations. 'For example, a husband is not allowed to demand sex while his wife is menstruating. A husband has the right to be intimate with his wife and the wife must obey. If the wife refuses, the rule of nusyus (recalcitrance) can be applied and the husband will no longer be responsible to provide for his wife.' Syariah Lawyers Association deputy president Zainal Rijal Abu Bakar said: 'Introducing the term 'rape' in a marriage contradicts syariah laws because one of the objectives of marriage is to legitimise sex between a couple.' The Prime Minister's Religious Adviser, Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Othman, is also against what he describes as criminalising marital rape. Muslim wives abused by their spouses, he said, can go to the Syariah Court and divorce their partners. Social activists believe there are many wives being sexually abused by their husbands who are either too afraid or ashamed to complain to the authorities. 'Such men give husbands a bad name,' said Women's Aid Organisation executive director Ivy Josiah.'Husbands have the right to have sex with their wives, but we want to remove the protection given to husbands who physically and sexually abuse their wives,' she said. |
| Posted by:TS(vice girl) |
| #1 This kind of law is common, if sadly recent, in the west. Why isn't it common in the Muslim world? The critics of the proposal say it is against Islam Oh, that's why. If the wife refuses, the rule of nusyus (recalcitrance) can be applied and the husband will no longer be responsible to provide for his wife.’ AKA "put out or get out". Never mind if she's feeling ill, or spent the day chasing the rug rats and doesn't have the energy... ’Introducing the term ’rape’ in a marriage contradicts syariah laws because one of the objectives of marriage is to legitimise sex between a couple.’ There's that shariah, again. Funny how often it justifies bigotry, violence, and cruelty. ’Husbands have the right to have sex with their wives, but we want to remove the protection given to husbands who physically and sexually abuse their wives,’ she said. Protection that comes from... SHARIAH!!! |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-08-23 10:33:03 PM |