Beirut - The Lebanese parliament scrapped on Wednesday a penal
code provision that allowed rapists to escape prosecution by marrying
their victims, making Lebanon the third Arab country to do so in less
than a month.
In December, members of the Parliamentary Committee for
Administration and Justice announced an agreement to repeal article
522 of the Lebanese Penal Code.
The article allowed halting the prosecution or suspending the
conviction of a person who has committed rape if he marries his
victim.
Wednesday's decision comes after years of campaigning against the law
by Lebanese women's rights organizations.
In recent weeks, both Jordan and Tunisia have repealed similar laws.
Several countries in the region still have similar laws including
Algeria, Iraq and Kuwait, according to Human Rights Watch.