TUNIS, Tunisia — Tunisia’s parliament has approved comprehensive new legislation targeting violence against women. The new law, passed July 26, represents a major change from the existing law.

Despite Tunisia’s reputation as one of the regional leaders on women’s rights, violence against women has remained a major problem. In a 2010 study by the National Office of Family and Population, 47% of Tunisian women reported being victims of violence.

The new legislation, which was led by an amalgam of representatives from different political parties and civil society organizations, addresses several key issues. The law addresses different forms of violence, defining violence against women along the lines of the United Nations Handbook for Legislation on Violence Against Women: “any physical, moral, sexual or economic aggression” against women specifically.

Women’s rights activists have spent decades pushing for this type of legislative change. After working on the law for over six months, the parliamentary representatives involved in writing it broke into cheers upon its long awaited passage. Parliament member Bochra Belhaj Hmida passed out celebratory jasmine blossoms. Other parliamentarians broke out in song, chanting the Tunisian national anthem in the middle of the assembly.