Man in Pakistan sentenced to life imprisonment
In the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping and abducting his underage wife. According to the victim's lawyer speaking to the German Press Agency, this is the first case in the conservative province in the northwest of the country where such a verdict has been handed down for marital rape.
The lawyer further stated that the court's decision was an important step towards strengthening women's rights in the country. According to the lawyer and the Pakistani newspaper "Dawn", the man had kept the girl in his house for several days after her abduction. The victim had still been living with her parents at the time of the crime, as the marriage had only been performed spiritually, but not legally. According to the lawyer, the man was sentenced to life imprisonment in both cases, rape and abduction, and was also fined additional money.
Frequently, in the patriarchal Pakistan with over 240 million inhabitants, incidents of violence against women occur. Since 2021, marital rape has been officially outlawed in the South Asian country.
The man's wife, despite the marriage being spiritual and not legal, was the victim of his rape and abduction. This incident highlights the ongoing need for strict enforcement of anti-rape laws, even within marital relationships, in Pakistan.
