Afghan President Signs Law

"Legalizing Rape"

Karzai rushed the new Shia Family Law through parliament in a shameless bid to win votes in advance of national elections. Read more »

Terrible news out of Afghanistan: Afghan President Hamid Karzai has rushed through a law that "negates the need for sexual consent between married couples, tacitly approves child marriage and restricts a woman's right to leave the home."

According to an Independent UK article posted, the Shia Family Law:
Regulates personal matters like marriage, divorce, inheritance and sexual relations among Afghanistan's minority Shia community.
...
The provisions are reminiscent of the hardline Taliban regime, which banned women from leaving their homes without a male relative. But in a sign of Afghanistan's faltering steps towards gender equality, politicians who opposed it have been threatened.

Afghanistan's President, Hamid Karzai, has signed a law which "legalizes" rape, women's groups and the United Nations warn. Critics claim the president helped rush the bill through parliament in a bid to appease Islamic fundamentalists ahead of elections in August.

In a massive blow for women's rights, the new Shia Family Law negates the need for sexual consent between married couples, tacitly approves child marriage and restricts a woman's right to leave the home, according to UN papers seen by The Independent.

"It is one of the worst bills passed by the parliament this century," fumed Shinkai Karokhail, a woman MP who campaigned against the legislation. "It is totally against women's rights. This law makes women more vulnerable."

The law regulates personal matters like marriage, divorce, inheritance and sexual relations among Afghanistan's minority Shia community. "It's about votes," Ms. Karokhail added. "Karzai is in a hurry to appease the Shia because the elections are on the way."

A report by the United Nations Development Fund for Women, Unifem, warned: "Article 132 legalizes the rape of a wife by her husband".