Closing the Gap : Improving Laws Protecting Women from Violence
Women, business and the law examines where economies provide legal protection for women and girls in areas such as child marriage, domestic violence, and marital rape. It also collects data on remedies, such as the existence and scope of protection...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/180811501135102564/Closing-the-gap-improving-laws-protecting-women-from-violence http://hdl.handle.net/10986/28416 |
| Summary: | Women, business and the law examines
where economies provide legal protection for women and girls
in areas such as child marriage, domestic violence, and
marital rape. It also collects data on remedies, such as the
existence and scope of protection orders for victims of
domestic violence. Violence thwarts women’s economic
empowerment by limiting their ability to exercise agency and
make choices. Violence against women and girls both reflects
and reinforces inequalities between women and men. Where a
girl can be legally married before she turns 18, she has
less opportunity to make choices about her future. Where a
woman suffers abuse from her husband, her health and
psychological well-being are threatened and her capacity to
work and function socially are impaired. If she is not able
to work, she is forced into a subordinate position, both
psychologically and economically, and the cycle of violence
persists. Legal protection is crucial to reduce impunity and
open avenues for redress. Yet Women, Business and the Law
finds persisting gaps in laws protecting women from
violence. Countries are increasingly protecting girls and
women from violence. For example, between 2013 and 2015,
Kenya, Luxembourg, Nicaragua, and Uruguay all raised the age
of marriage for girls. Tonga’s 2013 Family Protection Act
explicitly criminalizes marital rape. Georgia has amended
its criminal code to expand the grounds of liability for
domestic crimes, including rape, to spouses and other family
members. Moreover, it reformed the Law on the Elimination of
Domestic Violence to provide for removal of the perpetrator
from the home. In its new penal code, Mozambique has amended
Article 400, which had been in place since 1886 and allowed
charges to be dropped if a rapist married his victim. And
Belarus, Lebanon, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga adopted new
laws on domestic violence that provide for protection
orders. While there has clearly been progress, major gaps
still need to be addressed. That Malawi and 8 other
economies have raised the marital age shows movement in a
positive direction. The adoption in the past 2 years of new
domestic violence laws in some economies and more
comprehensive provisions in others worldwide is also a
telling indication of progress. But more is needed. Among
the priorities of the new Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) are ‘eliminating all forms of violence against women
and girls in the public and private spheres’ and
‘eliminating all harmful practices, such as child, early and
forced marriage,’ which recognize the need for enhanced
legal protection for girls and women worldwide.
International and regional commitments and instruments pave
the way for change. And while the existence of more and
better laws is a critical first step, better enforcement of
the law is necessary to ensure protection for women. Only
when women and girls are fully protected from violence will
they be able to enjoy the same autonomy, freedom, and
opportunities as men. |
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