Portrait of a mother with her child in Chimoio, Mozambique (Photo Credit: Ute Grabowsky/Photothek via Getty Images).
This month, Mozambique is considering draconian revisions to its criminal code that will allow accused rapists to escape punishment if they marry the sexual assault survivor.
To say this is a violation of the rights of the survivors is a gross understatement. The law not only minimizes the trauma of the survivor and ignores their rights to bodily integrity and not be subjected to torture, cruel, inhumane and and degrading treatment, it encourages impunity and escape from legal repercussions for heinous criminal violations.
Saturday, March 8th is International Women’s Day. Help us stand with the women and girls in Mozambique by taking action and demanding legislator’s protect the rights of sexual assault survivors and encourage respect for the dignity and protection of women.
Join us in telling legislator’s that impunity through marriage is a gross violation of women’s rights and this law must not be passed.
Not only would such a law enable perpetrator's to escape much needed prosecution, it would punish victims further.
This has to stop! We need to shine the spotlight on this issue and put pressure on the government to change laws so that women are safe and feel safe reporting these crimes! This is not just a tradition! It is a violation of human right!
Instead of the government revising its laws to be better and to respect equality they want to issue such revision. Very shameful. We all join hands to stop such act.
Passing this revision would allow women and girls to feel safer. No one should be forced to marry the one who caused all of their pain and anguish. This is the stupidest legislature they could ever come up with in a hundred years. What is this world coming to????? This only lets the perpetrator think that it is okay to assault poor women and girls. THIS NEEDS TO END NOW!!!!!!1!!!!!1
There is supposed to be serious action taken upon this type of act that are ruling the life of innocent girls. Some time it makes me feel that still we are living in stone age.