The United Arab Emirates announced on Saturday a major overhaul of the country's Islamic personal laws
Credit: AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File
The United Arab Emirates scrapped reduced sentences for so-called "honour" killings and decriminalised alcohol consumption in a sweeping overhaul of criminal and family law announced on Saturday.
The oil-rich Gulf state also lifted a ban on unmarried couples living together and raised the penalties for rape and sexual harassment.
It marks a significant liberalisation designed to ensure the country’s continued appeal as a destination for foreign direct investment and expat workers, according to the UAE-based National newspaper.
The legal systems of many Arab countries provide for reduced penalties for "honour" crimes, victims of which are mostly women seen as having brought "dishonour" on their families.
In the UAE, "honour" crimes will no longer be subject to separate sentencing guidelines and will now be punishable like any other crime.
That means those convicted of murder will face the death penalty or life imprisonment, unless the victim’s family waives its right to "retribution", in which case the penalty will be at least seven years in jail.
Human rights groups and women’s organisations have long campaigned for the scrapping of the "honour" defence, which they say allows male murderers of women to get off lightly.
Other reforms approved by UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan also toughen up sentencing guidelines for offences targeting women.
Harsher penalties will be stipulated in cases of harassment, while those convicted of "rape of a minor" or of "someone with a limited mental capacity" will face the death penalty, The National reported.
Expatriates, who make up some 90 percent of the UAE population, will also be able to ask for their own country’s law to be applied in cases of divorce and inheritance, rather than relying on local UAE legislation, which is based on Islamic religious law and tends to disadvantage women.
In addition, penalties will no longer be imposed against those found drinking alcohol without a licence and suicide and attempted suicide will be decriminalised.
Renowned for its futuristic skyscrapers and shopping malls, the UAE has developed the most diverse economy in the Gulf but is heavily dependent on foreign tourism and its large expatriate workforce.
The government said the legal reforms were part of efforts to improve legislation and the investment climate in the country as well as to consolidate "tolerance principles".
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