Puerto Rico not supporting end to violence against all women

Summary of story from Human Rights Watch, ailment August 16, 2011

Despite having had a comprehensive law to protect women and girls against domestic violence since 1989, a report from Human Rights Watch suggests that the Puerto Rican Supreme Court is blocking a lot of women from its protection.

In a decision made in March, the Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s ruling that a victim of intimate partner violence was not protected by Puerto Rico’s domestic violence law – because she was not married to her partner.

The Supreme Court then asserted that the historical background of the law and the intent of the legislation was to protect the integrity of the family and its members, and therefore does not apply to extramarital affairs, although other laws were contravened by the violence.

The ruling has caused considerable outrage.

In a society where interpersonal violence is a serious problem, this ruling sends out the dangerous message that some women may not deserve to be protected by the state.