Wife Beaters to Get 3-Year Jail – Govt Declares

Niger State Government imposes three-year jail term on wife beaters, with a fine option of N200,000.

Mary Yisa, Director of Planning, Research, and Statistics in the Ministry of Women Affairs, disclosed this on Tuesday in Minna, while addressing journalists on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse/Sexual Harassment.

“The law stipulates that anyone who batters their spouse commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding 3 years or to a fine not exceeding two hundred thousand naira (N200,000) or both,” she said.

Yisa emphasized that the state’s legal and policy frameworks are designed to protect victims of domestic violence and hold perpetrators accountable. She noted that the law encompasses physical, sexual, economic, psychological/emotional abuse, and harmful practices, including threats and coercion.

“The SEASH broadly encompasses physical, sexual, economic, psychological/emotional abuse/violence including threats and coercion, and harmful practices that occur between individuals either at the place of work, within families and in the community, at large,” she explained.

Yisa further disclosed that the law also provides that “a person who attempts to commit the act of violence provided for in subsection(1) commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding 1 year or to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand naira (N100,000) or both.”

The government’s move is a significant step towards combating domestic violence and promoting gender equality in the state. The law aims to create a safe and supportive environment for victims of GBV and ensure that perpetrators face justice.