Adultery is a big deal, but how big of a deal is it? Well, big enough to get you killed in some countries. In some countries, it is a crime to commit adultery, which is having sexual relations with someone else while married.
Here are five countries where adultery is a crime:
- Indonesia
Indonesia’s Sharia law prohibits adultery, with a nine-month jail sentence for those caught. Although the government does not have cheating-related laws, many Muslims in the country follow Sharia. In Aceh province, the government has created a law prohibiting being alone with someone of the opposite sex and adultery.
- Nigeria
States in Northern Nigeria still follow Sharia law, and some of it has been encoded in the Penal Code. Adultery is a criminal offence under the Penal Code of Northern Nigeria. Sections 387 and 388 stipulate imprisonment for two years and/or a fine for adultery. Adultery is not a crime in southern Nigeria.
- Taiwan
In Taiwan, adultery is punishable by four months in jail for the third party involved, while cheating spouses can face a year. Taiwan’s Minister of Culture, Lung Ying-tai, expressed her desire to abolish the law, but a 2013 survey revealed that 82.2% of respondents support keeping it in place.
- Philippines
In the Philippines, people who engage in sexual intercourse with someone other than their spouse can face jail time, as can the person they cheat with. Women who cheat on their spouses can face up to six years in jail, while men can face up to four and a half years. If a man cheats on his wife, the woman he cheated with is sentenced to exile for four years and one day.
- Somalia
In Somalia, anyone who has ever been married—even a divorcee—and who has had an affair is liable to be found guilty of adultery, punishable by stoning to death. An unmarried person who has sex before marriage is liable to be given 100 lashes.
