BEIRUT: Lawmakers Wednesday unanimously agreed to scrap a controversial article of the Lebanese penal code that protects rapists.
Parliament’s Administration and Justice Committee has unanimously decided that it does not "accept article 522, as marriage cannot disregard such crimes," committee chair and Justice Committee MP Robert Ghanem told The Daily Star.
Article 522 of Lebanon's penal code states that authorities shall not pursue or prosecute an accused rapist, and will overturn the sentence of a convicted rapist if he or she marries the victim.
The law is applicable to cases of rape, kidnapping, indecency, seduction and the violation of the sanctity of women’s spaces.
"The committee is discussing articles 503 through 521 ... before referring the draft law to the Parliament," Ghanem said, adding that Wednesday’s discussion had reached article 510 of the penal code.
"We modified some articles by adding penalties and forcing strict punishments, and in other articles we granted the judge ... the right to decide the sentence."
Articles 503 to 521 pertain to misdemeanors and honor violations.
The committee will hold another meeting on Dec.14 to work out the details involved in canceling Article 522, as per a draft law presented by Lebanese Forces MP Elie Keyrouz.
Media reports said that the new sentence for rapists could reach up to seven years.
Later on Wednesday, Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri hailed the panel's decision in a tweet.
"We will be waiting for the completion of the civilized step at the beginning of the first parliamentary session," Hariri tweeted.
Despite the committee's unanimous agreement to abolish article 522, the draft law will have to be referred to the Parliament for endorsement.
Kataeb chief Sami Gemayel hoped via Twitter that the draft law would swiftly reach the Parliament for approval, accompanying his tweet with a hashtag #White_doesn't_cover_rape.
"[It] is the best news during the 16 days of activism campaign," he said.
NGOs and women rights organizations, in particular ABAAD, have been campaigning to press lawmakers to abolish the article.
In a symbolic protest, around a dozen women dressed in wedding gowns and fake blood-stained white bandages took to Downtown’s Riad al-Solh Square to press for the annulment of the article.
With white veils covering their faces and their bodies painted with purposefully placed bruises, the women stood in a line representing victims of the crimes included in the article.
ABAAD has been running a broad media and action campaign in the lead up to the committee meeting.
Parliament’s Administration and Justice Committee has unanimously decided that it does not "accept article 522, as marriage cannot disregard such crimes," committee chair and Justice Committee MP Robert Ghanem told The Daily Star.
Article 522 of Lebanon's penal code states that authorities shall not pursue or prosecute an accused rapist, and will overturn the sentence of a convicted rapist if he or she marries the victim.
The law is applicable to cases of rape, kidnapping, indecency, seduction and the violation of the sanctity of women’s spaces.
"The committee is discussing articles 503 through 521 ... before referring the draft law to the Parliament," Ghanem said, adding that Wednesday’s discussion had reached article 510 of the penal code.
"We modified some articles by adding penalties and forcing strict punishments, and in other articles we granted the judge ... the right to decide the sentence."
Articles 503 to 521 pertain to misdemeanors and honor violations.
The committee will hold another meeting on Dec.14 to work out the details involved in canceling Article 522, as per a draft law presented by Lebanese Forces MP Elie Keyrouz.
Media reports said that the new sentence for rapists could reach up to seven years.
Later on Wednesday, Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri hailed the panel's decision in a tweet.
"We will be waiting for the completion of the civilized step at the beginning of the first parliamentary session," Hariri tweeted.
Despite the committee's unanimous agreement to abolish article 522, the draft law will have to be referred to the Parliament for endorsement.
Kataeb chief Sami Gemayel hoped via Twitter that the draft law would swiftly reach the Parliament for approval, accompanying his tweet with a hashtag #White_doesn't_cover_rape.
"[It] is the best news during the 16 days of activism campaign," he said.
NGOs and women rights organizations, in particular ABAAD, have been campaigning to press lawmakers to abolish the article.
In a symbolic protest, around a dozen women dressed in wedding gowns and fake blood-stained white bandages took to Downtown’s Riad al-Solh Square to press for the annulment of the article.
With white veils covering their faces and their bodies painted with purposefully placed bruises, the women stood in a line representing victims of the crimes included in the article.
ABAAD has been running a broad media and action campaign in the lead up to the committee meeting.
Source & Link : The Daily Star
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