Admid protests, two Tunisian policemen have finally been sentenced to seven years each in jail after being found guilty of raping a woman two years ago.
Meriem Ben Mohamed, was attacked by the two officers after they stopped her and her fiancé’s car in 2012. The officers then pulled the then-27-year-old out, took her to a police car and raped her, while a third officer – sentenced to two years’ imprisonment – tried to extort money from Meriem’s fiancé at a nearby cash point.
The officers tried to pin the blame on the couple, denying the charges and claiming that they had found the couple in an ‘immoral position'. The public proseceutor subsequently tried to charge the couple with indecency. The police officer's defence team also insisted that Meriem had tried to seduce them and that she wasn’t a virgin – a huge taboo in Tunisian culture. 'Their intention is to tell the court that she was not a virgin.’ Her defence lawyer, Emna Zahrouni said, according to African news channel eNCA. ‘They are attacking her character.'
Hundreds of protesters descended on the courthouse in Tunis on Monday, holding up placards saying ‘Stand up for Meriem, stand up for Tunisian women’.
Eventually all efforts to blame the victims for the police officers’ actions were quashed as the police officers were sentenced. However, Meriem’s lawyers claim the sentences are too lenient.
As she left the courthouse, Meriem, who was left depressed and suffering with side-effects of post traumatic stress disorder after the prolonged ordeal, said: ‘When I demand justice, they insult me.’
The case comes as Tunisia’s gender rights are at the forefront of the national agenda; reluctantly, lawmakers have allowed for a clause in their new constitution allowing for gender equality to exist in the country, according to the BBC. Secular Tunisians, particularly women, are worried about the growth of ultra-conservative Islamists in the country since the Arab spring.
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Picture: Getty
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.