I apologize in advance if today’s topic is “darker” than usual. Something has been on my mind in recent weeks, after reading various news articles about some barbaric customs and laws abroad. And I have been asking myself: would I feel comfortable travelling to a country where things that I find morally unacceptable are common practice, or at least happen on a regular basis?
Now before you go accusing me of racial intolerance, I want to make it clear that I’m not talking about dress code, food preferences, or religious rituals here. I’m referring to actions that I’m pretty sure anybody reading this blog would find morally reprehensible. These things are so ridiculously atrocious, they make my head spin and my skin crawl. You want examples?
Marry the rapist
I had never heard about this one until I read an article last week announcing that Jordan had repealed the “marry the rapist” clause from its penal code (although the Senate and the King still have to approve it).
This law basically states that a rapist can escape punishment, and his victim can escape lifelong social stigma, by getting married to each other. This lopsided logic stems from the fact that it is “shameful” to have a rape victim in the family, and this shame can be expunged through marriage. In some countries, men’s honour is tied to the women in their family, who are essentially considered property. You can follow the link above to read the details.
Apparently, this law still exists in many countries in the Middle East, Latin America, Tajikistan, and the Philippines. Tunisia, Morocco, and Egypt have previously cancelled their “marry the rapist” clause, while Lebanon is currently considering doing the same.
The Philippines is one of the countries that still hangs onto its “marry the rapist” clause
In a related move, Jordan has also closed a legal loophole that gave courts the discretion of imposing sentences as short as six months on those who killed female relatives in the name of family honour.
Well, that’s some progress (really trying hard not to be cynical here) although you wonder why this didn’t happen a long time ago, like in the 17th century! How long before the other countries follow suit I wonder?
Going to jail for miscarriage
El Salvador is one of a handful of countries where abortion is not allowed under any circumstances, and is therefore considered a crime. In the ultra-Catholic country, this can easily lead to ugly situations where women who suffer miscarriages are accused of aborting their baby, and sentenced without a proper investigation.
This is what happened to a 19-year old in July, when she was sentenced to 30 years in jail! To make matters even worse, her pregnancy was the result of rape. You can read more about it here.
So basically, if you have a miscarriage, it’s your responsibility to prove that you didn’t kill your baby, or you could risk imprisonment. Completely twisted. And that’s not even talking about cases where you may have been raped, or risk dying if you carry on with the pregnancy.
Fortunately, groups of women are demonstrating against this law, and a parliamentary bill to relax the law has gone through hearings, but after months, it has yet to be submitted to the legislative assembly for a vote. Obviously, a small group of powerful and ultra-conservative men are running the show. 🙁
In case you’re curious, the other countries that do not allow abortion under any circumstances are the Holy See (no surprise here), Malta, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Chile. I have to say that I’m rather surprised about Malta and Chile, which are both modern developed countries.
Nicaragua is one of 6 countries that doesn’t allow abortion under any circumstances
Hunting albinos for their body parts
Here is a different one. It’s not women being victimized this time, it’s albinos (men, women, and children). This one is particularly disturbing so you may want to jump over this section if you’re of a sensitive nature.
Albinos suffer from a genetic disorder that results in a lack of pigmentation in their skin, hair and eyes. They are fairly common in Africa (1 in 1400) and made even more noticeable by their very white skin among a black population. In Tanzania, Malawi, and Mozambique in particular, albinos are hunted and killed for their body parts which are used in witchcraft and believed to bring riches, success, power, or sexual conquest. Children are especially prized. These deep-seated superstitions and nonsense are rife among poor uneducated villagers.
It’s not legal (fortunately), but authorities don’t do an awful lot to stop it either. In Malawi, the police and criminal justice system are so bad that nobody has been convicted in the 20 known slayings of the past three years!
The United Nations even got involved, relocating some of those families to Canada and other countries, which is proof that these are not isolated incidents.
What are your travel ethics?
Obviously, some countries still seem to be living in the Middle Ages. I am torn because I was previously thinking of visiting some of these destinations (Tanzania in particular), but do I really want to spend my money in places that allow such atrocities to continue?
Up until now, I’ve had a very long list of places to visit, and only one place I decided I would never visit. Should I start creating a “no-go” list?
I know these issues (and many others, some we probably don’t even know about) are not new, but I guess I never realized how bad things really were, and now it’s bothering me. I would really like to know what you think. Would you travel to a country that allows things you find barbaric or morally reprehensible?
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at 11:35 AM
Really thought provoking and insightful. I don’t know either what my stand would be at this time since I never considered it in this particular light. Thank you for bringing awareness to these issues in a traveling context.
at 11:41 AM
Thanks Monique! I wasn’t sure how this would be received since it’s quite different from my usual travel pieces. But one can only write so many list-type articles!
at 11:54 AM
I really think we all should think about visiting countries with terrible practices like that and maybe instead just spend some money on organizations that work on terminating those practices or if they cannot do that at least trying to help the victims. For my travel planning I already have a list of countries I don’t want to visit for political or disease reasons and although I understand that almost every country has its problems I definitely will draw the line at certain practices and just go somewhere else.
at 12:27 PM
Hi Ingrid. I like your idea of contributing money to organizations that are working against those practices (after making really sure they’re legitimate and putting the money to good use). Here’s a good business idea for tour companies to these countries: donate part of customers’ payment to such organizations.
at 2:09 PM
Hi Ingrid, good article! I have thought a lot about this and wrote about it recently. https://kimmie53.com/2016/02/07/the-other-ethical-travel/#more-5457
My view is we open doors to more social justice when we go to places where there are problems. I would just add that I distinguish cultural abhorrent laws (the rapist marrying the victim) from the acts of criminals (hunting albinos). In the US, we tolerate 11,000 gun-related homicides a year on behalf of gun “freedom”. This is shocking to people in other parts of the world but it doesn’t mean we as a nation are barbaric. I enjoy your posts. Best, Kim
at 2:10 PM
Sorry — I meant hello MARIE!
at 11:06 AM
Hi Kim. Yes I realize that my first two are laws and the third is a criminal act, but I bunched them together because they’re all part of the local culture (at some level) and they all horrify me. I read your article and you make some very good points. That’s pretty much how I framed it when I decided to visit Burma.
at 12:47 PM
You’ve brought a different insight to travel. I haven’t really given it that much a thought yet because I’ve recently started travelling. But yes I agree somewhat that we shouldn’t be visiting such countries. Although on second thoughts I think we should be visiting and try to get into more details into these things and then share that knowledge with our community. That will in a way bring awareness at some level.
at 11:06 AM
Yes, I think you’re right. 🙂
at 8:23 PM
Because of how they pollute their world and the atrocious way the treat their people, I would never let China have any of my dollars. I would love to see the Great Wall but not enough to help the Chinese government in any way. I went to Bhutan instead….it was incredible! Thanks…
at 9:08 PM
I would LOVE to go to Bhutan. I’m also curious about China, but wary at the same time… Planning to go to Taiwan this winter, which sounds very different from mainland China; it’s an actual democracy.
at 9:11 PM
Just because we travel there doesn’t mean we agree with their policies. I have travelled in USA where there is still the death penalty, one of only a few countries in the world.
I have also travelled recently in Myanmar but would argue that most people there have no idea about what is happening. Cross cultural exchange through travelling can only be positive.
at 10:01 AM
That’s bordering on sad. 🙁
For me, it really depends on the context. Sometimes the barbarism stems from what is being done on a national/government/military level, but the ordinary residents, who are innocent people, are the ones whose livelihoods are affected by whether or not we visit a place and contribute some dollars into the local destination. Exhibit A: Myanmar.
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