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Anti-Gender Developments

Ghanaian Domestic Violence Act Exempts Marital Rap

Friday, October 12, 2007

The Ghanaian government passed the Domestic Violence Act on 22 February 2007. The original bill specifically prohibited marital rape; however, this was not included in the final version of the act.

Nancy Kaymer Stafford’s article “Permission for Domestic Violence: Marital Rape in Ghanaian Marriages,” examines this exemption and why Ghana must repeal the marital rape exemption.

The article begins by examining the history of the marital rape exemption in British common law leading to the codification of this exemption in Ghanaian law. The article also discusses the new Domestic Violence Act and finishes by looking at Ghana’s legal obligations to outlaw marital rape created by regional and international treaties.

For further information and access to this article, please click here.

Compiled from: "Abstract: Permission for Domestic Violence: Marital Rape in Ghanaian Marriages," Social Science Resource Network, 2007.

For More Information

For more information on marital rape, please see the Marital and Intimate Partner Sexual Assault portion of this website.

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