乌干达法院4月5日废弃了国家的通奸法,法院认为这项法律内容偏袒了男子,是违反宪法的。 : Y) u0 l& y$ T3 ^9 a
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根据该被废除的法律,有通奸关系的妇女会被罚款或者坐牢,坐牢时间最长可达十年之久,而通奸关系中的男子和妇女的情人则不受任何惩罚。 / Z# z! J' U2 d8 p) ^& I0 d
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五位法官在乌干达宪法法院一致同意推翻该法律,其中一位法官表示:“这种通奸法是不公正的,它偏袒了男子。” 0 F6 d7 N6 h+ f) c/ @
& N# M! t& U' S" s3 R* r1 s O( M: D 由乌干达女性律师组成的法律和拥护女性组织推动了该法律的废除。 4 n, C) \ N% S! m7 x m
7 m$ p/ h q9 P 然而也有一些人表示担心这种裁决会鼓励乌干达妇女犯错误,甚至背叛她们的丈夫。 ) B% y1 l( N- p4 M3 q ! B* t6 D) o( N: e! g Z4 ]; W 乌干达有一个帮助失业男子找工作的组织--发展中男人,该组织负责人表示:“现在妇女变得越来越固执,已婚妇女在知道没有法律会限制她们的行为后,会外出认识其他男子。” + `- ~4 I, L4 V5 D
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法院还废除了另外一条法律,该法律否认寡妇享有同鳏夫一样的权利和继承权。现在男子可以把财产留给他的妻子,而不是像以前那样财产自动传给该男子的亲戚。6 ?* P! f2 a7 q1 S6 U0 |) I0 i; G
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Court Overturns Uganda’s Adultery Law5 c/ O$ {. e0 i- l5 J) ~5 ~
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KAMPALA, Uganda, April 5 (AP) — A Ugandan court scrapped the nation’s adultery law on Thursday, saying it was unconstitutional and favored men.7 j3 y: I8 t5 N4 A$ T
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Under that law, a woman having an adulterous relationship could be punished with a fine or a prison sentence of up to 10 years, while men could have such relationships without punishment. A woman’s lover could also escape punishment. x! w7 f6 }5 x+ x+ b: d! L7 [
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“It is unfair for women being victimized and the men being left free,” said Justice John Egwau, one of five judges who unanimously overturned the law at Uganda’s Constitutional Court. “The adultery law is biased in favor of men.”% J/ q, C" n/ I8 Z' ]& ]
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The court also tossed out a law that denied widows the same rights and inheritance as widowers. # I# g( A0 s/ K9 F O0 J1 l7 k _8 M4 v5 }
The changes were prompted by a group of female lawyers called Law and Advocacy for Women. f4 B: W- @9 p' P) W0 J
+ O& D3 u! P2 V1 W“The ruling is good for all the women of Uganda,” said the group’s leader, Dora Byamukama. “There is need for all women and men to be treated the same.”: M: o3 G6 ^6 N- x+ @
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Some men’s advocacy groups said they feared that the ruling would encourage Ugandan women to stray. , r3 ~/ o& V/ ~ a4 B% P # n* [! l% t9 J" D6 Q! X“Now the women are going to become stubborn,” said Simon Mukasa, head of Men in Development, a group that helps unemployed men. “Married women will go out with other men well knowing that there is no law against what they are doing.”