Last week, a number of Baghdad residents found themselves witness to an extraordinary scene. Passers-by on Al-Muntanabbi Street, a place known for attracting artists and intellectuals, saw a man in an orange prison jumpsuit in chains. Standing next to him, inside a huge gift-wrapped box, was a woman in a wedding dress. The box read “Gift of the Rapist”.
What they were witnessing was an elaborate protest in the form of theatre by a courageous group of activists, fronted by the Baghdad Women’s Association.
The protest play was against an obscure section of the Iraqi penal code known as Article 398. This is the clause that allows a rapist to escape imprisonment or other punishment so long as he marries his victim.
