PORT LOUIS, Mauritius: Mauritius lawmakers have voted to criminalise marital rape, a landmark reform for women´s rights that brings an end to a colonial-era law.
The island nation passed the new law on Tuesday, with those found guilty of marital rape set to face between 10 and 45 years in prison.
“It shall not be a defence for a person charged with the offence of rape that he was, at the time of the offence, civilly or religiously married to the complainant,” the law states.
It was praised as a crucial step in the fight against domestic violence in a country where official records show 86.6 percent of victims are women.
