Guyana, in its few areas of progressiveness, had in 2010 passed the Sexual Offences Act that addressed the criminalisation of marital rape. Today, a married woman can go before the courts if she was raped by her husband. Despite progressive laws, however, it is constantly clear, that legislation without changed attitudes does very little.
Largely, there remains the belief amongst many citizens, that if a man has “taken” a woman to be his “own,” then he has full control and say over what happens to and with her. This is one of our most persistent patriarchal beliefs, as it relates to the right to possession men are seen to have over women. We have, of course, shifted a bit over the years when it comes to beliefs such as these, but they still remain alarmingly present.