Six-month jail term for man who threatened to kill ex-wife

A man who threatened to kill his ex-wife if she remarries has been jailed for six months.

According to the Criminal Court ruling, the man from Guraidhoo island in Kaafu atoll threatened to kill his former wife in 2016.

“You cannot dare remarry. I will kill you and your husband if you ever get married again,” he said during an argument with the woman, according to a witness.

He denied the charges, but was convicted based on witness testimony. He was sentenced to six months in prison under the law prohibiting the use of threat, dangerous weapons and sharp objects.

In 2016, a man was fined MVR200 (US$13) for hitting his wife during a domestic dispute, causing outrage on social media.

In a similar case in 2015, a man was fined MVR200 for assaulting and shoving his wife onto the deck of a fishing boat, also angering the public and women’s rights advocates.

There have been 11 cases of domestic violence so far this year.

Last year, 279 cases of domestic violence were reported to the police – a drop from the 305 cases reported in 2016. Sexual offence cases also decreased, from 467 in 2016 to 417 last year.

A 2007 study by the Ministry of Gender and Family – the first comprehensive nationwide survey of domestic violence in the Maldives – found that one in three women between the ages of 15 and 49 was a victim of sexual or physical abuse.