Progress Amid Resistance

OMAN 341exempted from penalty altogether. If such an act (e.g. murder) constitutesa felony punishable by life in prison or capital punishment, Article 109permits the sentence to be reduced to “at least one year.” 9 Additionally,when a gender-based violent crime such as rape is reported, it is often thefemale victim, in addition to the male perpetrator, whose actions are criminalized.The rape of a spouse is not considered a crime under Omani law.Women and men are protected against arbitrary arrest and detentionunder Article 15 of the Basic Law by virtue of their citizenship, and Article16 prohibits the state from deporting or exiling citizens or preventing theirreturn to the country. Arbitrary arrests and detentions are believed to berare for both men and women, but information on this topic is scarce asno human rights NGOs are available in Oman to monitor such issues. In2005, several people were arrested for an alleged coup plot, although thesultan later pardoned them all. Taiba al-Mawali, a women’s rights activistand former member of the elected Consultative Council, was arrested inSeptember of 2005 for slander and sentenced to a six-month term as apolitical prisoner because of her support for the families of these detainees.In a June 2007 television interview with the American-funded Al-Hurratelevision channel, al-Mawali claimed that she had limited access to informationregarding charges against her before and during her 2005 trial andthat she had had only one week to prepare her defense.Adult women may now be considered full persons before the law ifre cent amendments to the rules of evidence are fully enforced. Pursuantto Law No. 63 of 2008, the testimony of men and women is now deemedequal in court proceedings, although it is unclear whether this will be fullyimplemented throughout the legal system, particularly in family courts.For example, Oman’s personal status law requires that marriage contractsbe concluded with the witnessing and testimony of two men; a woman’stestimony is not permitted in this instance. Adult women are entitled tofile legal suit without permission from a male family member although,in practice, some judges request that women appear in court with theirfathers or husbands.Preliminary discussions regarding how to implement CEDAW areun der way after its February 2006 ratification. The MSD, charged withsupervising “women’s issues,” is the governmental body most responsiblefor CEDAW’s implementation. It, along with the Ministry of Legal Affairs,the Ministry of National Economy, and the Ministry of Justice, is reviewingOman’s existing laws to determine whether they satisfy or contradict