Pakistani husbands can ‘lightly’ beat their wives, recommends Islamic Council
The state-affiliated body made the proposal in its new women’s protection bill.
The Council for Islamic Ideology has recommended allowing Pakistani husbands to “lightly” beat their wives in a draft of a proposed Bill that will be sent to the country’s Punjab Assembly. The draft proposes that a husband can be allowed this if their wife defies his commands, refuses to dress according to his wishes, and turns down his demands for sex among other things, according to a report in Express Tribune.
The draft proposed many bans on women including banning them from appearing on television and in advertisement campaigns, from treating male medical patients, and recommended allowing husbands to forbid their wives from seeing any men besides their relatives, The Washington Post reported.
The CII’s proposal is non-binding though the council has constitutional status, PTI reported. The draft Bill came after the CII rejected Punjab’s Protection of Women Against Violence Act, 2015, and called it un-Islamic. The draft Bill also reportedly includes recommendations allowing women to join politics.