Legal bodies are drafting a bill of law for the protection of adults against domestic violence and abuse. The draft constitutes the second phase of legislation to address domestic violence and child abuse.

Sources told local media that the new legislation comes in the wake of the recommendations of the preparatory committee that set out the mechanisms to deal with child abuse and domestic violence.

Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, chairman of the Health Services Council, recently approved these recommendations.

“The new legislation will include paragraphs to deal with violence against adults of both sexes, especially physical violence,” said informed sources, adding that action teams would be formed to protect the abused adults once they had reached a medical facility, and ensure that they were victims of violence or neglect.

The two phases relating to the protection of children and adults involve violence within the family, while the protection against abuse system — which the Ministry of Social Affairs supervises — is aimed at all kinds of violence and abuse cases.

The move comes 73 days after the approval on the executive list for the protection against abuse system, and its revision by the Ministry of Social Affairs. The system will take effect in January.

The protection against abuse system that the Council of Ministers approved earlier, granted the security authorities the power to break into houses in which abuse had occurred. This power is based on a letter from the Ministry of Social Affairs, which addresses problems facing abused children and women.

Penalties for abuse include imprisonment for up to one year, or a fine of up to SR50,000, or a combination of both.

The penalty shall be doubled if the crime is repeated, and the court of jurisdiction will have the right to rule an alternative punishment for those penalties that involve deprivation of freedom.

The system defined abuse as one form of physical, psychological, or sexual exploitation or abuse, or the threat of it, committed by a person against the other, thereby surpassing the limits of power, authority or responsibility, or the family relationship, warranty, guardianship or dependency of living.

Mechanisms for dealing with child abuse and domestic violence and the inclusion of adults in its second phase, which deals primary with family issues, differ from the Saudi protection against abuse system. This is a comprehensive system of all kinds of abuse and violence, which the Ministry of Social Affairs supervises.