Women Protection Bill 2006
In Pakistan a women is described in terms of her honor, and it is woven around her sexuality. Honor is not only a matter of life and death for the women but it also defines her family’s social status. This research paper has been divided into a number of parts .The first part provides explanation regarding the Hudood ordinance. Second part explains the amendments that were introduced in 2006 as the Women protection bill. The third part specifies the effectiveness and helps us conclude how this protection bill has been helpful towards strengthening the legal and social position of the women in Pakistan. Women protection Bill 2006 is an attempt described by many to protect the integrity of Pakistani women. It has been the most controversial bill ever. This bill calls for amendment in the Hudood Ordinance which was introduced during the Zia regime in 1979 after suspending the constitution; it defines the punishments for adultery, non-marital or extra marital consensual sex This ordinance was intended to implement Sharia law and to enforce punishments mentioned in the Quran . Brief introduction of the Hudood ordinance: 1. The Offences of zina (Enforcement of hadd) ordinance, 1979, and
Offences of qazf (false accusation of zina (Enforcement of hadd) Ordinance, 1979, were the two ordinances which dealt with sexual crimes. All sex outside of marriage was made a serious penal offence punishable under the zina Ordinance, while false accusations of zina were made punishable under the qazf 9deals with the false acquisitions of zina/adultry/fornication)Ordinance. 2.
The Ordinances does not make a distinction between rape and adultery resulting in the accusation of fornication/zina/adultry of divorced women in great numbers by their first husband especially in rural areas. Apart from this since bail was very difficult to obtain under this ordinance, many women spent years in jail on false accusations.
3.
As rape, fornication/zina/adultry were placed on the same footing subjecting both to the same kind of proof and punishment. The requirement of proof for the maximum punishment of rape being the same as adultry. The victim of rape had to produce four pious, witnesses to prove the offence.
These laws rendered most sexual assault victims unable to seek justice through the criminal justice system, deeming them guilty of illegal sex rather than victims of unlawful sexual abuse. Comparative overview of zinâ(adultery and fornication) and rape in The Offence of Zinâ(Enforcement of hadd) Ordinance 1979
Division of Offender Zina/adultry/Adu ltry
Proof for Zina/fornication/Adu ltry and Rape (punishments for Offenses)
Punishment for Zina/fornication/adu ltry and Rape liable to Hadd
Proof for Zina/fornication/ad ultry and Rape liable to Tazir (Punishment of offenses not fixed by God)
Punishment for Zina/fornication/ad ultry and Rape liable to Tazir
Proof for Zina/fornication/Adul try
Punishment for Zina/fornication/Adul try
Maximum 10 years improsinment,30 lashes and fine
1.Confession of the Crime
Stoning to death at a public place
No standard of Proof is provided, at the discretion of the judge
No standard of Proof is provided, at the discretion of the judge
Maximum 10 years improsinment,30 lashes and fine
Stoning to death at a public place
No standard of Proof is provided, at the discretion of the judge
Imprisonment for not less then 4 and more then 25 years,30 lashes
100 Lashes at a public place and other punishments including death
No standard of Proof is provided, at the discretion of the judge
Imprisonment for 25 year and 30 lashes
(Married and Non- Married)
Married Offender
2.Four truthful Muslim eye witness Un-Married Offender
Proof of Zina/fornication/Adul try Hudd
Punishment for Zina/fornication/Adul try -Hudd
1.Confession of the Crime
100 Lashes at a Public Place
2.Four truthful male Muslim eyewitness
RAPE Married Offender
Proof 1.Confession of the Crime 2.Four truthful Muslim eye witness
Un Married Offender
Proof 1.Confession of the Crime 2.Four truthful Muslim eye witness
What women protection Bull does? Women protection Bill 2006 was introduced to cover the gapes that were present in the Hudood ordinance. For the very first time Zina/fornication/Adultry is defined as a “bailable” crime. This Bill also presented some other procedural safe guards to protect women. The important amendments was made only in the offences of zina (Enforcement of hadd) Ordinance, 1979 and in Offences of qazf (Enforcement of hadd) Ordinance, 1979. All the other ordinances remain un-amended Main crux of the bill is as provided below 1. Four Eye witnesses are now required by the complainant to formally lodge a compliant against a woman in case of Zina/fornication/Adultry.
2. It is essential that the Witnesses meet Islamic standards of moral probity 3. The judge can issue a summon instead of a warrant in case of suspicion on the part of the judge. 4. If the whole event turns out to be fabricated then the complainant and all four alleged witnesses can be punished with a sentence of 80 lashes for making a false accusation of adultery. 5. The term confession has now been defined to mean an actual confession in court before a judge. 6. The
Zina/fornication/Adultry Ordinance now excludes all those punishments that are not defined in Qurani.e no punishment has been specified in Quran for rape
7. Rape is now defined as a crime under Pakistan Penal Code, subject to
normal rules of procedure and evidence.
Comparative Overview of reforms introduced by the Protection of Women Act 2006
Ordinance
Zina/fornication/ Adultry under ordinance 1979
Crime
1 Zina/fornication/Adultry
Hudd: Proof and Punishment
Tazir :Proof and Punishment
Women protection Bill
Zina/fornicati on/Adultry : Proof Confession
No standard of Proof is provided, at the discretion of the judge
All offenses except the Hudd punishment moved to Pakistan Penal Court.
2.Four truthful Muslim eye witness
Punishment:10 years imprisonment , 30 lashes
3.100 Lashes for minor and stoning to death incase of an adult
2 Rape
Same as above
Imprisonment for not less then 4 and more then 25 years,30 lashes
Introduced punishment forZina/fornication/Ad ultry liable to Tazzir and punishable to 5years –bailable crime
1.Hudd punishment for rape repealed 2.All kinds of sexual acts of penetration under 16yearsa to be considered as rape 3.Marital rape –an offense 4.Complains of rape not treated under Zina/fornication/Adult ry
3Kidnapping/abducting/ind ucing women to compel for marriage
Life and 30 Lashes
Removed under Pakistan Penal code
4. Kidnapping or abducting in order to subject person to unnatural lust
25 years and fine
Removed under Pakistan Penal Code
Selling person for the purposes of prostitution
Life and 30 lashes
Removed under Pakistan Penal Code
Buying person for the purposes of prostitution
Life and 30 lashes
Removed under Pakistan Penal Code
How far has it been successful? How far it has been successful can be debated upon. Underlying belief is that the Bill has not benefited women who in the past were unfairly accused of adultery and even convicted of adultery when in fact they had been raped. The public opinion in the society has been divided into two major halves, one group supporting the bill and the other defying it. Religious groups are not satisfied with the amendments to the ordinance as they believe it goes against the Article 2A and 227 of The Constitution of Pakistan which states “Islam will be the state religion and no laws will be passed which are repugnant to the Quran and Sunnah”. “The proposed package of amendments to the Hudood Ordinance is a revolt against the “Holy Qur’aan and Sunnah” we take pledge from the participants to resist any change in the Islamic laws and vow to wage war against “anti-Islamic laws”.i MMA and ARD Leaders comments
published on ‘The Nation:” 29 August 2006 The FSC(federal Sharia Court) has claimed that elements of the Protection of Women Act are not consistent with Islam and thus violate Article 203DD because they conflict with the FSC’s support of the Hudood Ordinances. Asian Human Rights Commission 1984 report on Women protection bill
The key constraint of the religious parties is that it provides too much liberty to the women and will lead to the creation of a sex free state. Under the new law which restricts the power of courts to take up cases of adultery unless four witnesses have been provided. ii The bill retains legal discrimination against women and religious minorities whose status as witnesses under the Hudood ordinances has been retained as cases of Hudood offences cannot be heard by non-Muslim judges. In other words, the Protection of Women Act continues to discriminate against the minority population groups who are not treated as equals. The bill also retains the Hudd punishments of stoning to death which has never been executed in Pakistan but its presence is of great concern for most of the Human Rights activists “Their endorsement justifies Zia’s Islamization process and more importantly leaves the temptation for the orthodoxy to agitate for their implementation at an appropriate moment in time” (Jahangir, 2006a and 2006b: 9)
Most of the Non government views it as ray of hope for the women; they believe that it will lead to the many new laws in favor of women. As prior to the Women protection bill 80-85 per cent of rape victims were booked for adultery or zina and imprisoned. They claim that the new law has made a new beginning and has been introduced at an appropriate time to review the existing laws and practices in order to eliminate social and other forms of discrimination against womeniii But much work needs to be done; the civil society demanded the complete repeal of the ordinance. But the clashes between the government and the religious parties lead to only a few amendments.iv
Conclusion: Women protection bill has been an issue for debate since the day it was introduced. The public opinion about it remains divided to this very day. One of the major reasons for the public uncertainty is due to the clash between the liberals celebrating the reforms and the conservatives bidding to put an end to this bill. The bill has been introduced to put an end to the misery of women at large in Pakistan due to the lack of the Hudood ordinance to distinguish between the rape and Zina/fornication/Adultry which resulted in the bearing of serious consequences on reporting a rape on the part of the victim. The exploitation of this gap by the offender in the court of law and the failure on the part of the victim to produce witnesses to the crime resulted in a large number of females victims in jail .The women protection bill made only two amendments in the ordinance. Many amendments are still required in the ordinance. The bill is silent on cases like sexual harassment at work place, domestic violence etc. which lead to the passing of two more bills by the government in 2010.The bill holds a controversial position due to the lack of the public awareness regarding the legal procedures that are adopted in the courts. It also takes a discriminatory stance at the religious minorities who are residing in Pakistan as the Hudood offences cannot be heard by non-Muslim judges. Most of the women in Pakistan are still afraid to register cases in the courts due to the wider misconceptions surrounding the bill. In terms of the gender and development lenses this was introduced to strengthen the position of women .This bill has in a way given partial liberty. It provides them with some judicial support but on the contrary such women are subject to public humiliation and are disregard by the religious organizations. It puts a question mark on their social standing. The government may be able to strengthen the legal position of the women but fails to cater to the norms that surround this bill as most religious leaders view this bill unislamic and against the Islamic Sharia court, claiming that it is the duty of the state to ensure that moral standers are maintained in the
country which results in the resulting contradictions within the state itself regarding the bill. It is also difficult to draw conclusions regarding the bill as it leaves one confused about towards the role of the state especially in an Islamic country like Pakistan. To conclude that measure such as awareness, capacity building, networking and mentoring are recommended to enhance women’s position. The government needs to introduce more reforms in the legal system to provide relief to women and remove misconceptions regarding amendments in the law. This bill can be seen as a first step in the long journey towards the liberation of women
i
MMA and ARD Leaders comments published on ‘The Nation:”
29 August 2006
ii
The Controversial Women Protection Bill by Lt. Col.(Retd) Tariq Sadaat
iii
Ray of hope-Dec16,2006”the Nation”
iv
Rubya Mehdi, « The Protection of Women (Criminal Laws Amendment) Act, 2006 in Pakistan », Droit et cultures [En ligne], 59 | 2010-1, mis en ligne le 06 juillet 2010. URL : http://droitcultures.revues.org/2016
