Partners for Law in Development - PLD / Bi-Monthly Legal News

Bi-Monthly Legal News[Asia]

 International Updates

Asia

  • Pakistan approves Hindu Marriage Bill

    A parliamentary panel in Pakistan unanimously approved a Hindu Marriage Bill which included provisions on fixing the minimum marriageable age of girls and boys at 18 years and the introduction of conditions of divorce. The clause providing grounds of divorce is one of the more controversial provisions because upper-caste Hindu men fear increased agency for women and a likelihood of conversions whereas women and lower-caste marginalized groups welcome the law as it resolves a number of problems relating to documentary proof and property transfer.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2qaBwcF, http://bit.ly/2ky82U5, http://bit.ly/2j1Mzkt

  • Philippines introduces sexuality education in schools but blocks condom distribution

    In January, the President of the Philippines issued an executive order to implement gender-sensitive sexuality education in schools. However, while health ministers recognize that HIV is prevalent among younger people who indulge in risky clandestine sexual behavior, certain senators felt that distributing condoms among the youth would only encourage sex between them. Accordingly, they chose to block the much-needed public health initiative. Source: http://bit.ly/2posrvM

  • Russia relaxes laws on domestic violence in favour of perpetrators

    In February, the Russian Parliament passed law reducing criminal liability for ‘moderate’ domestic violence towards women and children. As per the new law, exceptions have been provided to offences of family violence for incidents that do not include broken bones or require hospitalization, as long as they are not repeated within a year. The penalties are minimal, such as 15 days of administrative arrest or compulsory community service. Source: http://bit.ly/2jUeweH

  • Nepal convicts army personnel for rape

    In a first of its kind conviction, a District Court in Nepal convicted three army officers of rape and murder of a 15 year old girl. This is the first time that a civilian court in Nepal has convicted army personnel for crimes committed during the 1996-2006 conflict. This judgment has come after persistent advocacy of the UN Human Rights Office and other human rights organizations. However, none of the officers were present in the Court and it still remains to be seen whether they will be arrested and serve their sentences.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2pmrUac

  • Hindu Marriage Act, 2017 enacted by Pakistan

    A bill to regulate marriages of minority Hindu population has become a law in Pakistan after getting approval from the President and being unanimously passed by the National Assembly. The landmark law aims to protect marriages, families, mothers and their children while safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of Hindu families. It provides for procedures relating to restitution of conjugal rights, judicial separation, void and voidable marriages, termination of Hindu marriage, financial security of the wife and children, alternate relief in termination of marriage and termination of marriage by mutual consent.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2pqp9ph

  • Nepal Releases Draft Bill on Rights of LGBTI persons

    Nepal has constituted a five-member board to identify the issues and problems of gender and sexual minorities, and make the necessary recommendations to government. The draft bill has provisions for legally changing gender identity, same-sex marriage, adoption and enumeration in national census. It ensures the right to participate in political affairs, right to access, right to opportunity, right to employment, right to education, right to health, right to social security and other rights without any social discrimination. It also has provisions to safeguard the community from discrimination in all government services and facilities.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2qROrh7

  • Nepal SC stays impeachment motion against country’sfirst womanChief Justice

    In a welcoming move, the Supreme Court of Nepal has issued an interim order against an impeachment motion against Chief Justice Sushila Karki and directed the Legislature-Parliament to put the motion on hold, allowing the first female head of the judiciary to return to the bench. Ms Karki had been accused of being partisan, breaching the principles of separation of power, influencing her fellow Justices and failing to fulfil her duties in judiciary efficiently. Civil society activists in Nepal and all over Asia strongly condemned the suspension, given Ms. Karki’s strong stance against corruption and criminal activities during her tenure. This has been considered as another instance of political interference in the judiciary, given Nepal’s history of political interferences in civil positions. It is suspected that the motion was intended to attack judicial independence.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2u8idDg

  • Taiwan legalises same-sex marriage, becomesfirst country in Asia to do so

    In a landmark case filed by gay rights activist Chia-Wei Chi, Taiwan’s Court of Grand Justices has held that the provisions of the Civil Code relating to family that do not allow two persons of the same sex to marry are in violation of both the people’s freedom of marriage emanating from the right to sound development of personality and the right to human dignity, and the people’s right to equality under of the Constitution. The court directed the Taiwanese legislature to make statutory provisions for same sex marriage within two years, failing which same sex couples will be able to register their marriages anyway.

    This decision makes Taiwan the first state in Asia to permit same sex marriage. However, concerns remain about the manner in which ‘marriage’ has been interpreted by the Court, i.e. as a permanent union of “two persons of the same sex … of intimate and exclusive nature for the committed purpose of managing a life together.” Given the conspicuous absence of any reference to children in the definition, commentators argue that it accords considerable leeway to the legislature to develop a civil partnership regime for same-sex couples, while reserving the ‘privilege’ of marriage for heterosexual couples.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2qcpgcs

  • Indonesian court convicts politician under blasphemy law

    Jakarta’s Governor Ahok Tjahaja Purnama was sentenced to two years of imprisonment for violating the country’s discriminatory blasphemy law. A Christian politician,  was  charged with  blasphemy in 2016, after he made a reference to a Quranic verse which was perceived as disrespectful. This prosecution was extensively used by militant Islamist groups to polarise the electorate in the run up to the gubernatorial election, which Ahok lost.

    The Indonesian law against blasphemy, contained in article 156A of the Indonesian Criminal Code, punishes deviations from the central tenets of the six officially recognized religions with up to five years in prison. The blasphemy law has been used to target members of religious minorities and traditional religions.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2pBUaWl

  • Kyrgyzstan enacts new Domestic Violence Law

    The Kyrgyzstan legislature has enacted a Law on the Prevention and Protection against Family Violence, which replaces the 2003 law on domestic violence. It includes measures for protecting victims, and strengthening police and judicial response to domestic violence. It has been welcomed as a progressive piece of legislation, as it takes into account reports of implementation gaps, including CEDAW Concluding Observations of 2015 and UN Women report on “Access to Justice” (2015).

    The law recognizes ‘economic abuse’ in addition to physical and psychological abuse. It also requires police to register a domestic abuse complaint from anyone, not just the victim. The process for obtaining a protective order has been made simpler. The statute also states that domestic violence offenders will no longer be eligible for a permit to purchase or possess weapons, and the existing permits of convicted offenders will be revoked. Significantly, the law lays special emphasis on behaviour correction programmes for perpetrators.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2piVz94; http://bit.ly/2r7hmjW

  • South Korea Supreme Court upholds LGBT Rights

    The Supreme Court of South Korea has directed the government to allow an LGBT rights organisation ‘Beyond the Rainbow Foundation’ to legally register itself as a charity, ending the organisation’s three-year struggle against discriminatory rejection by government agencies on the ground that the foundation’s main purpose of promoting LGBTI rights was different from and opposed to the object of permission for incorporation. Each agency of the government involved, including the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the National Human Rights Commission, and the Ministry of Justicemaintained that LGBT rights were not within their purview.

    As denial of permission severely curtailed the ability of the Foundation to receive tax-deductible donations and operate in full compliance with the law, it filed a lawsuit with the Seoul Administrative Court.

    Source:https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/08/04/south-korea-supreme-court-affirms-lgbt-rights

     

  • Maldives set to reintroduce death penalty

    Maldives is set to reintroduce death penalty despite international criticism after a 60 year-moratorium, on the ground that severity of punishment might have an impact on the rising number of murder cases and help the law enforcement agencies in controlling drug trafficking in the country. The UN and international non-governmental organizations have urged the government not to reintroduce the death penalty by hanging, citing concerns over fair trials of some inmates.

     

    Source: https://thewire.in/169942/maldives-reintroduce-death-penalty-despite-criticism/

     

  • Qatar adopts new law on Domestic Workers

    The Emir of Qatar ratified Law No.15 on service workers in the home (“Domestic Workers Law”), thus adopting a law on labour rights for domestic workers for the first time in the country. The law guarantees workers a maximum 10-hour workday, a weekly rest day, three weeks of annual leave, and an end-of-service payment of at least three weeks per year. The lack of an enforcement mechanism in the law, however, is likely to impede the implementation of the law.

     

    Source: https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/08/24/qatar-new-law-gives-domestic-workers-labor-rights

  • Transgender Chinese man wins first-of-its-kind labour discrimination case

    A Guiyang court has ruled that the gender of an employee could not be treated as a ground for terminating their employment. In this case, a transgender man was fired from his job at a health services firm, after several of his colleagues told him that he “looked like a lesbian” and might damage the company’s reputation. The Court held that termination of his services solely on the ground of his gender orientation was in violation of the litigant’s equal employment rights, and directed his former employer to pay damages equivalent to $297 to him.

    Source:https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/07/27/transgender-chinese-man-wins-first-of-its-kind-labor-discrimination-case/?utm_term=.8f60f97403a2

  • Nepal criminalises isolation of menstruating women

    Nepal’s Parliament has voted unanimously to criminalise the practice of chhaupadi, which entails banishment of menstruating women, including after childbirth, from their homes. Practicing this custom will now invite a prison sentence of three months, or a fine of NPR 3,000.

    Rooted in the belief that menstruating women are unclean, the custom of chhaupadi affects not only the physical mobility of menstruating women, but also their right to choice in food, thus increasing their susceptibility to various diseases including diarrhoea, pneumonia and respiratory diseases. Banishing new mothers and infants also leads to higher rates of maternal and child deaths.

    Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/08/nepal-criminalises-isolation-menstruating-women-170809153456935.html

  • Supreme Court of Nepal allows Nepali citizens to change their birth-assigned sex.

    The Supreme Court of Nepal issued a ruling which enables Nepali citizens to apply for their citizenship documents to reflect their gender identity rather than birth-assigned sex identity. The Supreme Court reaffirmed article 12 of the Constitution, ensuring citizenship on the basis of identity. The Court also asserted their support of individuals with different sexual orientation to live freely in accordance with their identity. The legislation will need to be followed by separate laws for the amendment of gender on all official documentation and educational certificates.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2xang4r

  • Philippines House passes the SOGIE Equality Bill.

    The Philippines House of Representatives approved the SOGIE Equality Bill on its second reading, advancing the legality of the measure to criminalize and penalize discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression (SOGIE). The bill cites 15 forms of discrimination action including denial of access to public, health, or education services, harassment of any kind including over social media, or forced psychological examinations to alter one’s SOGIE. The bill mandates a minimum fine of P100,000 and potential jail time.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2zQk9in

  • Indonesia accepts two UN recommendations for upholding LGBT rights, but seeks to outlaw their representation on television

    Indonesia has accepted two recommendations made during its universal periodic review regarding LGBT rights. The recommendations pertain to ensuring a safe and enabling environment for all human rights defenders, and implementing freedom of expression, association, and assembly with an emphasis on non-discrimination, especially for LGBT people.

    Yet, a proposed draft bill seeks to  outlaw the use of LGBT representation or characters on television The bill subjects every public broadcast on the subject to be approved by  an external censorship body and .If passed, such a law will drastically reduce reporting, documentaries, and films with any connection to LGBT subject matter.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2zZEvGN; http://bit.ly/2iJ1QbF

  • Saudi Arabia permits women to drive, enter stadiums; access to essentials still limited

    The Saudi King has issued decrees legalizing driving of cars by Saudi women, and permitting them to enter sports stadiums. The former decree orders the creation of a ministerial body for the purposes of implementation, and stipulates the necessity of applying these changes in a manner compliant with Sharia standards. The latter decree will open three previously male-only venues at Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam to families.These amendments come as part of several initiatives of the kingdom to increase access to public spaces for women through modernizing reforms, though not without opposition from influential clerics. The decision is in line with the Crown Prince’s ambitious vision of bringing in significant reforms to the country. Although the kingdom appears to be relaxing some norms as part of its sweeping “Vision 2030” plan for bringing in significant economic and social reforms, the guardianship system for adult women remains in place, limiting their unfettered access to obtaining travel documents, accessing healthcare, etc.

    Sources: http://bit.ly/2ydpNP3; http://bit.ly/2gNw5Ko

  • Myanmar set to introduce draft law on gender based violence, in Parliament

    A new law to punish gender based violence has been drafted, and is set to be introduced in the current session of the Burmese Parliament. The law, called the Prevention and Protection of Violence against Women Bill carries a broad definition of violence, which includes domestic violence, marital rape, sexual violence, harassment and assault in the workplace and in public places. The bill carries a life sentence for rape of girls under the age of 18 and disabled women, and significantly, also seeks to criminalise marital rape, although punishable with a lesser sentence.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2yRikV0; http://bit.ly/2huhJ1T

  • Pakistan rejects proposal to raise minimum age of marriage to 18

    On the United Nations International Day of the Girl, the Pakistani Senate rejected a bill to raise the minimum age for a woman to legally marry from 16 to 18 on the basis that it was “un-Islamic” and “contrary to Islamic injunctions”. The bill was intended to combat the frequent marriages between girls as young as 10 years old with significantly older men. Such unions not only jeopardize the physical safety and well-being of the young girls but also deprive them of education and the right to self-determination. The bill stated that the leading cause of death for girls aged 15-18 years is pregnancy.

    Sources: http://bit.ly/2ykSAzP;http://bit.ly/2xI7k9b

  • Turkey mulls ban on surrogacy, restrictions on other ART

    The Turkish government has proposed a draft law that seeks to ban surrogacy by Turkish citizens, including abroad, and also seeks to prohibit “mediation,” “assistance,” “encouragement” or “advertisement” for the same.  The draft law also seeks to outlaw in vitro fertilisation unless the couple is married and cannot reproduce biologically. Discussions around Assisted Reproductive Technology have had a controversial history in Turkey, with religious hardliners arguing against it on the grounds that it contains elements of adultery and polygamy.

    Sources:http://bit.ly/2A8VpCP; http://bit.ly/2xOgz7S

  • Hong Kong Court of Appeal allows grant of spousal visa to homosexual woman

    In a unanimous decision, the Hong Kong Court of Appeal has held that the Immigration Department’s refusal to recognize the UK civil partnership of a homosexual woman and grant her visa was unlawful and amounted to indirect discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, and the nature of the relationship between the spouses. However, as same-sex marriages are not recognized in Hong Kong, the Court emphasized that granting a dependent visa to the woman must not be read as an official validation of same-sex unions.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2wil9KG

  • First non-Muslim Chief Justice of Bangladesh resigns amid speculations of executive interference

    The first non-Muslim Chief Justice of Bangladesh,Surendra Kumar Sinha, has resigned, purportedly under pressure from the executive, after he led the Supreme Court to a landmark verdict on judicial oversight and declared that the law passed by the Parliament that empowered the legislature to investigate and remove judges for incapacity and misconduct, was unconstitutional. A few days before his resignation, the former Chief Justice had been accused of money laundering and corruption, resulting in his sudden departure from the country. The developments in Bangladesh bode serious concerns about the independence of its judiciary.

    Source:http://bit.ly/2zcekA2

  • Philippines lifts ban on 51 contraceptives

    The Phillipine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has effectively revoked a supreme court order from 2015 that had temporarily banned 51 female hormonal contraceptive products by establishing that these contraceptives do not induce abortion. The temporary restraining order (TRO) was issued by the Supreme Court (SC) on contraceptives more than two years ago and was based on a petition by a pro-life group, alleging that all hormonal contraceptives were abortifacient, and aimed at having these vital commodities totally banned from the market.

    The FDA action complies with the court condition that allowed for automatic lifting of the ban after the FDA had ‘re-certified’ the contraceptives. This move will address the significant shortfall of contraceptives available to women, especially those belonging to lower-income groups. The FDA decision balances the government’s efforts to improve delivery gaps in reproductive health services and calls for full implementation of the reproductive health law. The primary challenge now for the government is to ensure the timely dissemination of these hormonal contraceptives that have been lying in storage for more than two years and are nearing their expiry date.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2lKBUuM

  • Turkey allows Muslim clerics to conduct civil marriages despite protests

    Activists and opposition politicians have raised concerns over a marriage law that will now allow Muslim clerics to conduct civil marriages, amidst the fear that the law will lead to an increase in the number of child brides. The move has been described as a blow to women’s rights and secularism. Previously, only state officers in branches of the family affairs directorate were allowed to conduct marriages.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2AHputJ

  • Petition to bar consensual sex outside marriage rejected by Indonesian court

    Indonesia‘s constitutional court rejected a controversial petition to bar all consensual sex outside of marriage with a narrow margin of five out of nine judges voting against the petition in the world’s biggest Muslim-majority country. The petition was put forward by a group of conservative academics and activists who had demanded that definition of adultery should apply not just to married couples but to anyone in a marriage or outside it – effectively making all sexual relations outside of marriage a criminal offence. The group further wanted the law to consider homosexual sex as rape and criminalise sexual activity amongst minors. Rights activists hailed the court’s move as they had feared that the petition brought forth by the conservative group would increase moral policing and discrimination, particularly against the gay community in Indonesia.

    Source: http://reut.rs/2CBEAW6

  • Japan urged to end forced sterilization on transgender persons

    Human Rights Watch and other rights-based groups have urged Japan to end forced sterilisation on transgender community in the country. Despite taking some positive steps to reduce discrimination against the LGBTI community, Japan’s legal gender recognition procedure- which allows transgender people to be recognized as their gender identity- requires applicant seeking legal gender change to be single, above 20 years of age, be without children below the age of 20, undergo psychiatric evaluation to be diagnosed with ‘Gender Identity Disorder’ and be sterilized. Law 111 of 2003 requires applicants seeking gender-change to “permanently lack functioning gonads” which amounts to forced sterilisation- a practice that has been condemned health and rights activists for the longest time.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2i9d5qb

  • Malaysian Federal Court rules that consent of both parents required for children’s religious conversion

  • Plea seeking legality of marrying Rohingya girl rejected by Bangladesh High Court

    A Bangladesh High Court rejected a writ petition which sought protection from harassment for his son, who had married a Rohingya girl, and was at risk of being arrested. Additionally, the Court imposed exemplary costs upon him for wasting judicial time and resources. According to a governmental notification issued in 2014, marriages between Bangladeshis and Rohingya persons are legally invalid, and can be punished under the Foreigners Act, 1946. This development comes in the wake of large scale migration of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar to Bangladesh, who do not have access to basic necessities like food supplies. In this context, a large number of Rohingya families have married young girls into Bangladeshi households to gain access to such necessities, and social welfare benefits available to such households, such as food rations.

    Sources: http://bit.ly/2zRU2MC , http://bit.ly/2tZRgCn

  • Israel relaxes restrictions on blood donation by gay men

    Israel has relaxed its restrictions of sexual abstinence on gay men who wish to donate blood, as a result of a new procedure that will only used blood plasma component. As a key population at risk of HIV, gay men face sexual abstinence conditions for blood donation across the world. While Israel did not permit gay men to donate blood at all earlier, the twelve month sexual abstinence rule was introduced in June 2017.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2GIT8lO

  • Japan province to recognise same-sex partnerships

    The Fukuoka province of Japan is set to introduce a new system to officially recognise same sex couples as partners. While this will not accord to them the status of a married couple, the new framework will enable same-sex couples to receive a “receipt,” which may be used when couples rent city-run housing or undergo medical treatment requiring the consent of a family member at city hospitals. If introduced, this system will make Fukuoka the second government-designated major city after Sapporo, and the second municipality after Naha, to recognise same sex partnerships.

    Source: http://bit.ly/2GFKa8F