A new report by the advocacy group Equality Now has found that globally, “governments still have a long way to go to transform their laws, policies and practices” in order to prevent sexual violence and protect victims. The report found that many governments discriminate against survivors of sexual violence either directly or indirectly. For example, many jurisdictions excuse rape if the perpetrator marries his victim or if the perpetrator is the victim’s husband. Additionally, some jurisdictions have “laws or practices that inhibited the investigation of sexual violence, ” making it difficult for victims or prosecutors to successfully pursue criminal cases against perpetrators. The report’s authors said that their findings should be a “call to action” for governments to “reform discriminatory laws” that fail to protect women and girls from sexual violence.
Compiled from: McVeigh, Karen, Belgium and Greece among countries failing women on rape laws, says study, The Guardian (March 5, 2017).