“So horrific that it’s hard to believe”: Amnesty International launches petition to overturn “disgraceful” flogging sentence
02 Mar 2013, 7:54 PM
Amnesty International has launched a petition calling on the Maldivian government to overturn a court ruling sentencing a 15 year-old rape victim to 100 lashes for an unrelated fornication offence.
The story of the girl from Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll, who was convicted of premarital sex in the Juvenile Court February 26 and sentenced to 100 lashes and eight months of house arrest, has been reported by media around the world and been widely condemned by international NGOs and embassies.
“It’s so horrific that it’s hard to believe it’s true: a 15 year old rape survivor has been sentenced to 100 lashes for ‘fornication’ in the Maldives,” stated Amnesty International, which has followed the case since January.
“The traumatised girl was allegedly sexually abused by her step-father for many years. He has since been charged with sexually assaulting a minor. During the investigation however, authorities came across evidence to support separate charges of fornication against the girl for pre-marital sex,” Amnesty stated, demanding the government overturn the “disgraceful” sentence.
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