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This article participates on the following special index pages:
Index of articles surrounding the debate of the Domestic Violence Bill
Women
legislators ululate as House passes Domestic Bill
The
Herald (Zimbabwe)
November 08, 2006
http://www1.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=11127&cat=1&livedate=11/08/2006
THE Domestic
Violence Bill that seeks to provide for protection and relief
to victims was yesterday passed in the House of Assembly with amendments.
The proposed
law now awaits transmission to the Senate for consideration.
There was jubilation
and ululation among female lawmakers from both sides of the House
when the Bill finally sailed through. Amendments were made to the
contentious Clause 3 of the Bill, which deals with the scope, and
definition of domestic violence that stirred spirited debate inside
and outside Parliament.
Among the changes
was the incorporation of the terms "forced virginity testing" and
"genital mutilation" as constituting domestic violence. A number
of cultural practices now deemed dysfunctional were outlawed.
These included
pledging of women and girls for the purposes of appeasing avenging
spirits and forced marriage, forced wife inheritance and intimacy
between fathers-in-law and newly married daughters-in-law, the latter
a ritual among a few communities that a woman had to undergo before
acceptance into her husband’s family.
Amendments were
also made for the deletion of the terms "jealously" and "unreasonable
denial of conjugal rights" as constituting domestic violence.
Clarifications
were made to the proposed law that emotional, verbal, psychological
and economic abuse shall not constitute an offence but be subject
to counselling.
Community courts
shall have jurisdiction to deal with cases involving emotional,
verbal, psychological and economic abuse. The proposed Anti-Domestic
Violence Board would be transformed into a council mandated with
promoting the provision of services necessary to deal with all aspects
of domestic violence, among other issues.
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