So, a while back, the Jamaican law regarding Rape and Sexual Assault was a hot topic. During they time, there was a big fuss about what the new law really meant for the people (especially the females) of the country. I (Legal System Ben' Up) had a conversation with one of my friends (Mikhail - Just taking things day by day) about the topic. I recently found a log of the conversation, and thought i'd share some parts with you. It's short, but it is interesting to read. I'll post more details about the new laws in a post later on.

So, Here goes!:

ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

hi

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

hi

how can I help you?

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

not sure

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

well jus let me kno wats on your mind and I'll see if I can connect the dots and answer your question for you

ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

i think its more of a 'why is this legal' sort of thing than a 'question' per say

yes...

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

oh you mean about the new act they trying to pass into law?

which part of it? the issue as to how buggery would be legalized by the passing of that act?

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

not really that,

more interested in the rape in marriage aspect

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

oh well under Jamaican law, a man can be charged of raping his wife

but it is only within certain circumstances that he'd be found guilty

I  remember all of them but essentially they are that firstly if a man forces his wife to have sex with him during the period of them clearly going through a divorce then he can be found guilty of rape

ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

what it says is that if I’m legitimately ill or watever, and he decides to hold me down and have forcibly have sex even if i beg no, thats not rape

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

right

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

and it technically means theres no "sexual abuse" within marriage..

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

well the thing is if you can prove that having sex would have been to the detriment of your health then you could have a case of rape i figure

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

detriment to health didnt fall into any of the 5 categories

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

so for example if you jus had major surgery in the vaginal area, etc. and hence you need time to heal and he forcibly has sex with you and this lkeads to the stitches becoming infected then you could have a case against him

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

ok.

in the work i do, i come across people who say they HAVE TO have sex with their husbnds. i mean, forced sex. even if it means being held down or tied down or whatever. what does it mean for people like them

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

 the issue of him having sex with you and knowingly having a sexual disease that is the detriment to health issue

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

no, it specified STD.

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

sexual diseases to me means STD's

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

i know, but detriment to health doesnt always constitute STD

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

but for ppl like those they might not have an claim of rape but they could have a successful claim of assualt or battery

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

assault in what sense

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

assualt in that they were caused to act out of geniune fear of harm and battery cuz battery is where anything is brought into contact with the person without his/her consent

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

so wts the difference between rape and assault?

just a technicallity that says women don't get raped, they get assaulted?

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

rape and assault intertwine somewhat but there are still some distinctions

cuz you can be raped and not assualted cuz women who have sex with their husbands willingly only to find out later that they had he had an STD was not assualted but raped

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

ok i get that

Mikhail - Just taking things day by day. says:

and you can be fondled against your wishes and even buggered which is assault but not rape cuz Jamaica’s law specifies that rape has to be vaginal penetration and it has to be penetration by penis so if somebody is forced to make somebody have oral sex on them that is not rape

also if he penetrates the vagina with a foreign object outside of a penis then it is not rape but assault

so you see that there are some distinctions

 ஜӁஜ Legal System Ben' Up ஜӁஜ R.I.P. J says:

*sigh... i guess i have my new blog....


Post your comments and questions, and i'll be more than willing to answer them =)

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