UPDATE: Partial Victory on Mozambique Rape Laws, But the Fight Isn’t Over
March 28, 2014
Pat yourselves on the back, stamp your feet, give a (potentially) inappropriate shout of glee wherever you happen to be at this moment, or at the very least, indulge in a slow clap.
35,544 Amnesty USA activists stood with the women and girls in Mozambique who marched in the streets of Maputo to demand the revocation of a proposed revision to the criminal code allowing a rapist to avoid punishment if he married the survivor.
The Mozambique government listened and it has been removed from consideration!
[pullquote text=”Stand with us as we keep the pressure on the Mozambican parliament to draft a criminal code that respects the rights of women and girl survivors of sexual assault.”]The parliamentary commission considering the revision announced Article 223 would be struck from the draft Criminal Code. This is a huge victory for women’s rights, but there is still more work to be done.
There are still troublesome proposed revisions, including the requirement criminal proceedings cannot begin against a perpetrator unless a formal complaint is filed. Even more concerning, the proposed criminal code definition of a minor deprives children between 12-18 coerced into non-consensual sex the full protections merited under the law due to their age.
Stand with us as we keep the pressure on the Mozambican parliament to draft a criminal code that respects the rights of women and girl survivors of sexual assault.
Take action! Together, we can all claim ultimate victory!
