Violence against women outlawed

Morocco's law criminalising violence against women has come into force. It includes a ban on forced marriage, sexual harassment in public places, and tougher penalties for certain forms of violence. BBC News reports that it has been criticised by Human Rights Watch for not explicitly criminalising marital rape and lacking a precise definition of domestic violence. But it acknowledged that it has some positive aspects, including a definition of violence against women to mean 'any act based on gender discrimination that entails physical, psychological, sexual, or economic harm to a woman'. But it contains ‘major gaps and flaws that leave women at risk of domestic violence, including a lack of provisions to finance the reforms,’ HRW says. Bouthaina Karouri, a member of the parliamentary committee that drafted the law, says the law can be changed in the future to remedy any oversights. ‘No law is perfect,’ Karouri said.