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August 17, 2009

New Afghan Law Allows Men to Starve Wives If They Refuse Sex
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In other news from Afghanistan, a new law has gone into effect that
allows a husband to starve his wife if she refuses to have sex. The law
also prohibits women from working without their husband’s permission.
Critics of the bill have accused President Karzai of selling out Afghan
women for the sake of support from conservative Shiites in this week’s
election. The bill also grants guardianship of children exclusively to
their fathers and grandfathers, and it effectively allows a rapist to
avoid prosecution by paying “blood money” to a girl who was injured when
he raped her.



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