Jordan repeals law which allows rapist to marry his victim

After a heated session yesterday, the Jordanian Parliament voted to repeal Article 308 of the Penal Code which allows a rapist to evade criminal prosecution in the event of marrying his victim. The victorious vote which comes after years of human rights campaigning, needs to be ratified by the Upper House (majlis al a’ayan) under King Abdullah. According to Al Akhbar newspaper, the civil society, parties and progressive political factions have joined forces in their demand to abolish above article which shielded the perpetrator and condemned the rape survivor. Such alleged marriage is a void contract lacking free consent, they said. On the other hand, Al Akhbar wrote, supporters of the scrapped article favor amendment of the text by completing the marriage if the victim (aged between 15 and 18 years) consents to it. The Jordanian society, they argued, is still dominated by tribal mindsets, which prefer the ‘cover-up’ way out through compromise with the victim’s family. They accused certain foreign-supported organizations of manipulation to impose their agendas through imported solutions that are not commensurate with society's values. (Al Akhbar, August 2, 2017)

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