The Lagos State Government has warned husbands against forcing their wives to have sex without their consent, stressing that such conduct could attract life imprisonment under the state’s criminal laws.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Dr. Babajide Martins, issued the warning while speaking at the commencement of the state’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Awareness Month.
Addressing whether a married woman can take legal action against her husband for having sexual intercourse with her without consent, Martins explained that although Nigerian law does not expressly recognise marital rape, Lagos State criminal law provides for the offence of sexual assault by penetration, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
According to him, a husband who forces his wife to have sexual intercourse after she has clearly withdrawn her consent could be prosecuted under the provision.
Martins urged women experiencing domestic or sexual violence to report such cases, stressing that being married does not give a man the right to force his wife into sexual activity.
He said, “Any man that feels because he paid his wife’s dowry, nobody can challenge him for domestic violence, the wife should report such a man to the Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency.”
The DPP further clarified that the law distinguishes between rape and sexual assault by penetration within the context of marriage.
He explained that while the offence may not be prosecuted as rape where the parties are legally married, a husband who forces his wife to have sex after she has refused can face prosecution for sexual assault by penetration, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment in Lagos State.
Martins encouraged victims of domestic and sexual violence to seek help and report incidents to the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency for appropriate intervention and legal action.
