Oppress Widows, Bag 3-Year Jail, Pay N1m Fine Reps

The House of Representatives Thursday passed for second reading, a bill to amend the Violence Against Persons Act 2015 to prohibit discrimination against widows and all forms of repressive and degrading widowhood practices in Nigeria.

The bill, sponsored by Adejero Adeogun and Sergius Ogun, is titled: “A Bill for an Act to Amend the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act 2015 to Prohibit Discrimination against Widows and all Forms of Repressive and Degrading Widowhood Practices and to make Provision for the Definition of the Offence of Image-based Sexual Abuse under the Act and make Provision for Penalty for Offence of Image-based Sexual Abuse; and for Related Matters (HBs. 1711&1804).”

The bill, among others, proposed that “A person who attempts to inflict any harmful widowhood practice provided under subsection (1) commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of three years or a fine of N1m or both.

“A person who incites, aids, abets or counsels another to commit an offence under subsection (1) commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of three years or a fine of N1m or both.

“A person who receives or assists another who, to his or her knowledge has committed an offence under subsection (1) is an accessory after the fact and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not more than two years or a fine  not more than N1m or both.” In his lead debate, Adeogun, said widows in several parts of the country were made to pay heavy penalties for painful departure of husbands.

He said the bill proposed to amend six sections of the Violent Against Persons Act to make provisions to safeguard widows from violent and evil customary practices, denial of property rights, rape, forced marriages and all other dehumanizing acts that undermine the dignity of the widow.

He said: “Widowhood is not by choice. Widows are victims of the inevitability of death. So why does our society criminalize the unfortunate incident of widowhood? Why are widows denied the right to mourn in peace? Why is the trauma of their loss met with more trauma rather than solace?”

He said the proposed law would be recorded in history as one of the most important legislations passed by the 9th Assembly.”

The lawmaker said: “We would’ve succeeded in metaphorically giving to the widows in our nation what could be described as the ‘widows mite’.