Editing Sexism (section)

=== Coverture and other marriage regulations ===

{{Main|Coverture|Marital power|Restitution of conjugal rights|Kirchberg v. Feenstra|Marriage bar}}
[[File:Say no to dowry.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=An Indian Anti-dowry poster headed Say No To Dowry |Anti-[[dowry]] poster in [[Bangalore, India]]. According to Amnesty International, "[T]he ongoing reality of dowry-related violence is an example of what can happen when women are treated as property."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/issues/women-s-rights/violence-against-women/violence-against-women-information |title=Violence Against Women Information |website=Amnesty International USA |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110529111202/http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/issues/women-s-rights/violence-against-women/violence-against-women-information |archive-date=May 29, 2011}}</ref>]]

Until the 20th century, U.S. and [[English law]] observed the system of [[coverture]], where "by marriage, the husband and wife are one person in law; that is the very being or legal existence of the woman is suspended during the marriage".<ref name="Blackstone's Commentaries">{{cite web |author=Blackstone, William |author-link=William Blackstone |title=Extracts from William Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England 1765–1769 |url=http://www.mdx.ac.uk/WWW/STUDY/xblack.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005032946/http://www.mdx.ac.uk/WWW/STUDY/xblack.htm |archive-date=5 October 2008 |access-date=15 March 2015}}</ref> U.S. women were not legally defined as "persons" until 1875 (''[[Minor v. Happersett]]'', 88 U.S. 162).<ref name="Legacy '98 2001">{{cite web |url=http://www.legacy98.org/timeline.html |title=Legacy '98: Detailed Timeline |publisher=Legacy98.org |date=2001-09-19 |access-date=November 20, 2010 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100702081142/https://www.legacy98.org/timeline.html |archive-date=July 2, 2010}}</ref> A similar legal doctrine, called [[marital power]], existed under [[Roman Dutch law]] (and is still partially in force in present-day [[Eswatini]]).{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}

Restrictions on married women's rights were common in Western countries until a few decades ago: for instance, French married women obtained the right to work without their husband's permission in 1965,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Allwood |first=Gill |year=1999 |title=Women in France |url=http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/explore/cmcf-vsi-women-in-france.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Modern and Contemporary France |volume=7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092212/http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/explore/cmcf-vsi-women-in-france.pdf |archive-date=March 4, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.parisvoice.com/-archives-97-86/282-frances-leading-women-show-the-way |title=France's leading women show the way |publisher=Parisvoice.com |access-date=July 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728175142/http://www.parisvoice.com/-archives-97-86/282-frances-leading-women-show-the-way |archive-date=July 28, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/TWR-07.html |title=Lesson – The French Civil Code (Napoleonic Code) – Teaching Women's Rights From Past to Present |website=Womeninworldhistory.com |access-date=July 20, 2013}}</ref> and in West Germany women obtained this right in 1977.<ref>{{cite news |last=Benhold |first=K. |date=2010 |title=20 years after fall of wall, women of former East Germany thrive |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=April 17, 2015 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/06/world/europe/06iht-letter.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Trzcinski |first1=E. |last2=Holst |first2=E. |year=2012 |title=Gender Differences in Subjective Well-Being In and Out of Management Positions |journal=[[Social Indicators Research]] |volume=107 |issue=3 |pages=449–463 |doi=10.1007/s11205-011-9857-y |citeseerx=10.1.1.621.3965 |s2cid=189873867}}</ref> During the [[Francisco Franco|Franco]] era, in Spain, a married woman required her husband's consent (called ''permiso marital'') for employment, ownership of property and traveling away from home; the ''permiso marital'' was abolished in 1975.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/spain/43.htm |title=Spain – Social Values And Attitudes |publisher=Countrystudies.us |access-date=July 20, 2013}}</ref> In Australia, until 1983, a married woman's passport application had to be authorized by her husband.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.passports.gov.au/Web/passport_history.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060614171552/http://www.passports.gov.au/Web/passport_history.aspx |archive-date=June 14, 2006 |title=The History of Passports in Australia |date=June 14, 2006}}</ref>

Women in parts of the world continue to lose their legal rights in marriage. For example, [[Yemen]]i marriage regulations state that a wife must obey her husband and must not leave home without his permission.<ref>{{cite web |author=Amnesty International |date=2009 |title=Yemen's dark side: Discrimination and violence against women and girls |access-date=April 17, 2015 |url=http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrc/docs/ngos/Yemen%27s%20darkside-discrimination_Yemen_HRC101.pdf}}</ref> In [[Iraq]], the law allows husbands to legally "punish" their wives.<ref>{{cite web |title=The law states: "The punishment of a wife by her husband, the disciplining by parents and teachers of children under their authority [is permitted] within certain limits prescribed by law or by custom" |url=http://law.case.edu/saddamtrial/documents/Iraqi_Penal_Code_1969.pdf |publisher=Law.case.edu |access-date=March 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021100954/http://law.case.edu/saddamtrial/documents/Iraqi_Penal_Code_1969.pdf |archive-date=October 21, 2012}}</ref> In the [[Democratic Republic of Congo]], the Family Code states that the husband is the head of the household; the wife owes her obedience to her husband; a wife has to live with her husband wherever he chooses to live; and wives must have their husbands' authorization to bring a case in court or initiate other legal proceedings.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/drc/Congo0602-09.htm |title=The War Within the War |website=Hrw.org |access-date=March 31, 2015}}</ref>

Abuses and discriminatory practices against women in marriage are often rooted in financial payments such as [[dowry]], [[bride price]], and [[dower]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unwomen.org/~/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/library/publications/2012/12/unw-legislation-supplement-en%20pdf.pdf |title=Handbook for Legislation on Violence Against Women: Supplement to the "Harmful Practices" against Women |publisher=UN Women |date=2012 |location=New York |access-date=April 25, 2015 |archive-date=June 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610131259/http://www.unwomen.org/~/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/library/publications/2012/12/unw-legislation-supplement-en%20pdf.pdf}}</ref> These transactions often serve as legitimizing [[coercive control]] of the wife by her husband and in giving him authority over her; for instance Article 13 of the [[Code of Personal Status (Tunisia)]] states that, "The husband shall not, in default of payment of the dower, force the woman to consummate the marriage",<ref>{{cite journal |jstor=4322925 |title=The Tunisian Code of Personal Status (Majallat Al-Ahw Al Al-Shakhsiy Ah) |first=George N. |last=Sfeir |date=1 January 1957 |journal=[[Middle East Journal]] |volume=11 |issue=3 |pages=309–318}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Code du Statut Personnel – Tunisie |url=https://www.jurisitetunisie.com/tunisie/codes/csp/Csp1015.htm |access-date=August 26, 2019 |website=www.jurisitetunisie.com |language=fr}}</ref> implying that, if the dower is paid, [[marital rape]] is permitted. In this regard, critics have questioned the alleged gains of women in [[Tunisia]], and its image as a progressive country in the region, arguing that discrimination against women remains very strong there.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 13, 2013 |title=7 raisons pour les hommes et les femmes de remettre en cause le CSP&nbsp;... ou pas |url=http://www.huffpostmaghreb.com/2013/08/13/raisons-hommes-femmes-csp_n_3747952.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702190813/http://www.huffpostmaghreb.com/2013/08/13/raisons-hommes-femmes-csp_n_3747952.html |archive-date=July 2, 2015 |access-date=June 14, 2015 |website=[[Al Huffington Post]] |url-status=usurped |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Nouveaux progrès, mais il ne faut pas pour autant pavoiser |url=http://www.letemps.com.tn/article/83765/nouveaux-progr%C3%A8s-mais-il-ne-faut-pas-pour-autant-pavoiser |access-date=June 14, 2015 |website=[[Le Temps]] |language=fr |archive-date=May 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505093933/http://www.letemps.com.tn/article/83765/nouveaux-progr%C3%A8s-mais-il-ne-faut-pas-pour-autant-pavoiser}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=FIDH |title=Les violences sexuelles en Tunisie: après le déni, un début de (...) |url=https://www.fidh.org/La-Federation-internationale-des-ligues-des-droits-de-l-homme/maghreb-moyen-orient/tunisie/15424-les-violences-sexuelles-en-tunisie-apres-le-deni-un-debut-de |access-date=June 14, 2015 |website=FIDH – Worldwide Human Rights Movement |language=fr}}</ref>

The [[World Organisation Against Torture]] (OMCT) has recognized the "independence and ability to leave an abusive husband" as crucial in stopping mistreatment of women.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2004_2009/documents/dv/droi_090121_9omct/DROI_090121_9OMCTen.pdf |title=Combating extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment in the Philippines by addressing their economic, social and cultural root causes |access-date=November 18, 2019}}</ref> However, in some parts of the world, once married, women have very little chance of leaving a violent husband: obtaining a [[divorce]] is very difficult in many jurisdictions because of the need to prove [[Divorce#At-fault divorce|fault]] in court. While attempting a ''[[de facto]]'' separation (moving away from the marital home) is also impossible because of laws preventing this. For instance, in [[Afghanistan]], a wife who leaves her marital home risks being imprisoned for "running away".<ref>{{cite web |author=Human Rights Watch |date=2012 |title='I had to run away': The imprisonment of women and girls for 'moral crimes' in Afghanistan |access-date=April 17, 2015 |url=https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/afghanistan0312webwcover_0.pdf |website=[[Human Rights Watch]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-22614536 |title=More Afghan women jailed for 'moral crimes', says HRW—BBC News |publisher=BBC.com |date=May 21, 2013 |access-date=March 31, 2015 |work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> In addition, many former British colonies, including [[India]], maintain the concept of [[restitution of conjugal rights]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1382895/ |title=Smt. Saroj Rani vs Sudarshan Kumar Chadha on 8 August, 1984 |publisher=Indiankanoon.org |access-date=March 31, 2015}}</ref> under which a wife may be ordered by court to return to her husband; if she fails to do so, she may be held in [[contempt of court]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Samta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gN1dEJuiZ0cC&q=india+if+a+woman+fails+to+return+to+her+husband+she+may+be+held+in+contempt+of+court&pg=PA205 |title=Women and Labour in Late Colonial India: The Bengal Jute Industry |date=1999 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=205 |isbn=978-0-521-45363-9}}</ref><!--<ref>[http://www.esocialsciences.org/Download/repecDownload.aspx?qs=Uqn/rN48N8UOPcbSXUd2VF1L1gqR3i8qEifUw/RWYQS4WrMWtyLI/TA9E5klz08DFzwCoAiC8f6t7I6f0nJIyFlx6CcmXz+JQ6yidtSIGFPvVUamcPjvFryZSnf5DDLHPJyg1qcTMLOU0iDofyuYvfkJ5r4jItzZJarbB26DeQg9z8RmNAfNvHTnWIR5ZcITDFUD14lrCeNgxZ3nYAWuzg] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20150402172914/http://www.esocialsciences.org/Download/repecDownload.aspx?qs=Uqn/rN48N8UOPcbSXUd2VF1L1gqR3i8qEifUw/RWYQS4WrMWtyLI/TA9E5klz08DFzwCoAiC8f6t7I6f0nJIyFlx6CcmXz+JQ6yidtSIGFPvVUamcPjvFryZSnf5DDLHPJyg1qcTMLOU0iDofyuYvfkJ5r4jItzZJarbB26DeQg9z8RmNAfNvHTnWIR5ZcITDFUD14lrCeNgxZ3nYAWuzg|date=April 2, 2015}}</ref> ---><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.manupatrafast.com/articles/PopOpenArticle.aspx?ID=797c51f7-0615-4fa8-b92e-7d7d24d03689&txtsearch=Subject:%20Family%20Law |title=Manupatra Articles |publisher=Manupatrafast.com |access-date=March 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402092830/http://www.manupatrafast.com/articles/PopOpenArticle.aspx?ID=797c51f7-0615-4fa8-b92e-7d7d24d03689&txtsearch=Subject:%20Family%20Law |archive-date=2015-04-02}}</ref> Other problems have to do with the payment of the [[bride price]]: if the wife wants to leave, her husband may demand the return of the bride price that he had paid to the woman's family; and the woman's family often cannot or does not want to pay it back.<ref>{{cite web |author=Equality Now |date=2007 |title=Protecting the girl child: Using the law to end child, early and forced marriage and related human rights violations |access-date=April 17, 2015 |url=https://www.equalitynow.org/sites/default/files/Protecting_the_Girl_Child.pdf |archive-date=March 29, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140329215211/https://www.equalitynow.org/sites/default/files/Protecting_the_Girl_Child.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>Lelieveld, M. (2011) Child protection in the Somali region of Ethiopia. A report for the Bridges project Piloting the delivery of quality education services in the developing regional states of Ethiopia. Retrieved April 17, 2015 from {{cite web |url=http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/sites/default/files/docs/FINALChild_Protection_in_the_Somali_Region_30511.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=March 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924095119/http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/sites/default/files/docs/FINALChild_Protection_in_the_Somali_Region_30511.pdf |archive-date=September 24, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |editor=Stange, Mary Zeiss |editor2=Carol K. Oyster |editor3=Jane E. Sloan |entry= |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Women in Today's World |volume=1 |year=2011 |publisher=Sage |isbn=978-1-4129-7685-5 |page=496}}</ref>

Laws, regulations, and traditions related to marriage continue to discriminate against women in many parts of the world, and to contribute to the mistreatment of women, in particular in areas related to [[sexual violence]] and to self-determination regarding [[sexuality]], the violation of the latter now being acknowledged as a violation of [[women's rights]]. In 2012, [[Navi Pillay]], then [[High Commissioner for Human Rights]], stated that:

<blockquote>Women are frequently treated as property, they are sold into marriage, into trafficking, into sexual slavery. Violence against women frequently takes the form of sexual violence. Victims of such violence are often accused of promiscuity and held responsible for their fate, while infertile women are rejected by husbands, families and communities. In many countries, married women may not refuse to have sexual relations with their husbands, and often have no say in whether they use contraception{{nbsp}}... Ensuring that women have full autonomy over their bodies is the first crucial step towards achieving substantive equality between women and men. Personal issues—such as when, how and with whom they choose to have sex, and when, how and with whom they choose to have children—are at the heart of living a life in dignity.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pillay |first=Navi |author-link=Navi Pillay |date=2012 |title=Valuing women as autonomous beings: Women's sexual reproductive health rights |website=United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner |access-date=April 18, 2015 |url=http://www.chr.up.ac.za/images/files/news/news_2012/Navi%20Pillay%20Lecture%2015%20May%202012.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313210726/http://www.chr.up.ac.za/images/files/news/news_2012/Navi%20Pillay%20Lecture%2015%20May%202012.pdf |archive-date=March 13, 2017}}</ref></blockquote>