Pakistan Parliament approves chemical castration of habitual rapists

Sex offenders convicted of multiple rapes in Pakistan could face chemical castration after parliament passed a new law that aims to speed up convictions and deliver harsher sentences.

The Bill is a response to the public outcry against the recent rise in the incidents of rape of women and children in the country and the growing demands to effectively curb the crime.

Nearly a year after the bill was passed, President Arif Alvi has approved a new anti-rape ordinance, approved by the Pakistan cabinet, that seeks to set up special courts for chemical castration and speedy trial of rapists with the consent of convicts. has been invoked. ,

The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2021 Bill was passed along with 33 other Bills in a joint session of Parliament on Wednesday. Dawn newspaper reported that it wants to amend the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898.

“Chemical castration is a process duly notified by rules made by the Prime Minister, whereby a person becomes unable to have sexual intercourse for any period of his life, as may be prescribed by the court by the administration of drugs.” which shall be conducted through a notified Medical Board,” as per the Bill.

Senator Mushtaq Ahmed of Jamaat-e-Islami opposed the bill and termed it as un-Islamic and against Sharia.

He said a rapist should be publicly hanged, but there was no mention of castration in the Sharia.

Chemical castration is the use of drugs to reduce sexual activity. According to media reports, it is a legal form of punishment in South Korea, Poland, Czech Republic and some states of America.

Critics say that less than 4 percent of cases of sexual assault or rape in Pakistan result in conviction.