A husband can get sued and go to jail for having his way with his wife even when she is in not in the mood, the dean of the Lyceum of the Philippines University College of Law said Monday.

Atty, Ma. Soledad Mawis said a husband who forces his wife to have sex with him can be sued criminally for marital rape and even violation of the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004.

“Kung ayaw makipagtalik ng asawang babae, hinding-hindi siya pwedeng pwersahin,” she said in a TeleRadyo Serbisyo interview.

“Ang babae hindi pagmamay-ari ng lalaki…May karapatan ang babae nq magsabi ng hindi.”

She noted the Supreme Court had already ruled on the issue of marital rape in the case People of the Philippines vs Edgar Jumawan wherein the accused-husband was found guilty of raping his wife twice after she refused his advances.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court found the accused guilty of raping his wife twice on October 16 and 17, 1998 and sentenced him to reclusion perpetua for each count of rape. 

Marital rape has become a hot topic after Sen. Robinhood Padilla asked family lawyer Lorna Kapunan during a Senate hearing if a husband can have his way with his wife even if she is not in the mood.

Kapunan told the senator it is not the obligation of the wife to satisfy the husband’s sexual urges, saying there must be mutual respect in the relationship.

In the interview, Mawis echoed Kapunan’s suggestion that husbands turn to prayer if they want to have sex but their wives say no.

“If the woman does not want, that’s it…She is a human being who has the right to discern and say no,” she said.

Padilla has apologized to those offended by the Senate hearing, pointing out that he never said it is OK for husbands to force their spouses to have sex even without their consent.

He also urged the public not to be sensitive about hearings, saying these are done int he review or formulation of a new legislative policy.