“Marry your Rapist” Turkish proposed law
Salman Shehzad Turkish government is considering a highly controversial bill allowing men who have sex with girls under the age of 18 to avoid any punishments if they marry their victims. At the end of the month, the bill, which has been nicknamed the “marry your rapist” bill, will be debated on by politicians in the Turkish parliament. The legislation would have applied to statutory rape cases without the use of “force, threat, or any other restriction on consent” involving girls aged 15 or younger. Civil rights activities and critics of the proposed bill have said that the law could potentially normalize statutory rape and child abuse in a country which has become increasingly Islamized in recent years. The UN has said that the law would legalize child rape and leave vulnerable people at the mercy of their tormentors. Politicians debating against the bill have said that it would lead to victims marrying people against their will. A similar piece of legislation in 2016 ...