AMMAN — A 60-year-old
provision in the
Penal Code, derived from Sharia, makes it possible to
prosecute men who attempt to entice women into a relationship out of the
wedlock or make them leave their spouses' home.
اضافة اعلان
Most men and
women interviewed by
Jordan News agreed that section 3 of Article 304 of the
Penal Code is antiquated and should not be used in a society purporting to
empower women.
“This article
has not been amended since it was introduced in 1962,” said Suleiman
Al-Mubaidin, a lawyer with nearly three decades of experience.
“Applying the
article to men only is a legislative shortcoming, a legal loophole, and all
members of the civil society agree that it should be amended to keep with modern
times,” he told
Jordan News.
The article stipulates
that a man who convinces a woman to leave her home for a “strange man”,
breaking her marital bond, “shall be punished by a prison term of not less than
three months and not more than two years”.
The wording of
the law is very broad, offers no details, and does not mention equal
prosecution of women who may commit such an act.
A 43-year-old
married housewife with no children, who asked to be identified as Dina, said
that she sometimes notices text messages from some women asking her husband “to
get in touch with them, or asking him out on a date”, a thing “made easier by smart
phones and social media”, she complained.
“Social
networking sites opened a limitless horizon for dating, and this is liked by girls
who want to marry,” she said, stressing that the article should apply to women who
wreck marriages as well, without asking that it be revoked altogether.
According to Mubaidin,
the article in question is used as a key argument in lawsuits in which
plaintiffs argue that any attempt to “seduce or lure a woman into leaving her
husband” is an act of “incitement” to break up a marriage.
He said that
husbands may lodge a complaint against any male “instigator”, “even a blood relative”,
and that even though any such claim must be backed by proof, it is “easy to get
evidence nowadays, by presenting chats and text message exchanges”.
He said the
number of lawsuits and complaints have “undoubtedly increased; I have handled
scores of similar cases on the job”.
Elaborating, he
said that incitement is considered a crime, even if a marriage did not appear
to have any “problems” before the incident.
“If the
marriage was stable, and the inciter tried to spoil it for any reason, it is
considered a crime. But if the marriage was marred by problems, the judge has
the prerogative to either accept or drop the case,” he said.
Amal Abdallah
Abuanzeh, of the Law School at the University of Jordan, said the article has
many loopholes stemming from its vague wording, such as a “stranger” being the
inciter, which leaves the door open to broad interpretation.
Another vague term
is the reference to a “woman”, without specifying whether she is married or
single.
She argued that
women must be equally prosecuted under the article, for it to be “seen as fair”.
Her sentiment
was echoed by women rights activists.
Read more Features
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
