Parliament has passed the Domestic Violence Bill. There was mass jubilation by supporters of the bill following the announcement by the Speaker of Parliament, Ebenezer Sekyi Hughes of its passage. His announcement followed unanimous support from both sides of the House. The Act was first laid before the House in November 2002 and went through consultations for fine-tuning following which several amendments were made. One clause that generated a lot of controversy talked about marital rape. Those who opposed the clause said spouses, particularly women, could take advantage of it to unnecessarily drag their husbands to court. But although the clause is not contained in the refined bill, some provision has been made in its stead. Clad in white bands, supporters of the bill who were mainly gender activists patted each other and seemed not bothered that the marital rape clause was not included in the Act. The wording of the clause has changed and the new version states that the use of violence in the domestic setting is not justified on the basis of consent. What it means is that anyone in a domestic setting is barred from using consent as a justification for perpetrating violence. Divided in three parts, the first part of the bill makes provision for the Meaning of Domestic Violence; Meaning of Domestic Relationship; Prohibition of Domestic Violence; Number of Acts which Would Amount to Domestic Violence, Filing of Complaints to the Police, Police Assistance, Arrest by Police and Arrest by Police Officer Without Warrant. In the second part, provisions are made for Protection Order as Jurisdiction of the Court, Application for Protection Order, Conduct of Court Proceedings, Interim Protection Order, Grant of Protection Order Reference to Family Tribunal and Power to Discharge Protection Order. Part Three of the Bill covers miscellaneous provisions including Relation of Act to Criminal Code, Promotion of Reconciliation by Court, Publication of Proceedings, Criminal Charges and Protection, Civil Claim for Damages, Procedure Rules for Domestic Violence, Regulations and Interpretation. Among the new clauses of the bill is the establishment of Victims of Domestic Violence Support Fund, which shall source funds by voluntary contributions to the Fund from individuals, organizations and the private sector; the amount of money that Parliament may approve for payment into the Fund, and any other source approved by the Minister Responsible for Finance. The Fund shall be applied towards the basic material support of victims of domestic violence, tracing the families of victims of domestic violence and for any other matter connected with the rehabilitation and reintegration of victims of domestic violence in their best interest. The moneys shall also be applied for the construction of reception shelters for victims of domestic violence in the regions and districts and for training and capacity building to persons connected with the provision of shelter, rehabilitation and reintegration. But even with the bill passed some MPs are still raising concerns about some aspects. Clause 14(b) in particular restricts perpetrators from being within fifty metres of the victim. MP for Jomoro, Lee Ocran says the distance prescribed is not enough and will be problematic in the implementation of the law. But Minister for Women and Children’s Affairs Hajia Alima Mahama does not foresee any difficulties with the inclusion of this clause. According to her the clause is not entirely specific and makes room for a judge to exercise discretion.