Jordan Scraps Law Setting Rapists Free If Married to Victim

Jordan has scrapped on Sunday its rape law allowing rapists to walk free if they married their victims.

The Jordanian cabinet has officially decided to repeal Article 308 after activists had campaigned for several years to revoke the law. The law used to stipulate that rapists can escape a jail term if they married their victims for at least three years.

Last year Jordan decided to amend the law and implement it on if the victims aged between 15 and 18 and the incident is believed to have happened by consensus. In February however, a royal Jordanian committee suggested that the law be entirely scrapped.

The controversial law’s supporters believe that it protects the victims’ reputation. However, Muslim and Christian scholars altogether believed that it should be scrapped.

Meanwhile, Lebanese activists have staged their campaigns over the past few days to abort the same rape law that is believed to take away the victims’ rights. The Lebanese parliament is set to discuss repealing this law in a session to be held Mid-May.

Egypt, Iraq and Morocco are among the first countries in the Arab world to repeal this law and instead impose severe sanctions on rapists.

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