[ad_1]
Image posted, PA media
The UAE authorities announced that their courts will henceforth adopt a “stricter stance” on so-called “honor killings”, which include the killing of women who violate conservative standards of sexual behavior.
The government said it had removed legal provisions that allowed judges to issue reduced sentences in such cases. These crimes will now be treated like any other murder.
Human rights groups say that across the Middle East and South Asia, thousands of women and girls are killed each year by relatives angry at the damage to their “honor.” This could include desertion or any transgression of conservative values regarding women.
Emiratis would also have the right to choose the inheritance laws to use in each case, rather than Sharia-based legislation.
Inheritance and divorce agreements are regulated according to Sharia in the Emirates and other Persian Gulf countries, although expats make up the majority of the population, including in the Emirate of Dubai, the financial and commercial center of the state.
The government said the legal reforms were part of an effort to improve the country’s legislation and investment climate, as well as to establish “principles of tolerance.”
The Emirates News Agency (WAM) said the UAE will also decriminalize some acts that do no harm to others, with possible examples including drinking alcohol and consensual sex outside of marriage, while granting the authority to prosecute and judge to determine these acts.
