(Cairo, 20th of June 2022) ECWR, headed by Nehad Abulkomsan- Female Senior Lawyer and an Expert in Gender and Development, submitted a proposal includes substantive and procedural legal articles for the family law to the expert committee concerned with amending the Personal Status Law.
ECWR’s proposal identified a number of problems and challenges of the law’s separation from reality and the changes in Egyptian families including:
- The legal personality of women has been abolished and children are harmed
- The marriage contract in Egypt has been converted into a contract for the purchase of goods, not a partnership between a man and a woman
- The State has removed its hand from fathers who fail to pay expenses
- The State has renounced its responsibility to protect children in conflict families
- The proceedings have been complicated and the courts have become a tool for the violation of justice
The proposal emphasized the need for seven important pillars, which must be included in the Personal Status Law, to be just and equitable for all parties:
- The Family Personal Law should be based on article no. 2 of the Egyptian Constitution to serve as a reference for the principles of Sharia.
- The Egyptian woman’s legal personality and full capacity shall be recognized.
- The divorce shall be documented before the judge and all outstanding rights shall be settled within 60 days.
- The polygamy of the husband shall be by decision of the judge and at the presence of the first wife and the rights shall be fulfilled.
- The order of custody is for the mother and then the father if he is not married and then the grandma for mother and then the grandma for father.
- Guardianship of children shall be granted for both parents (father & mother)
- A protection system for children in conflicting families shall be established to protect children during custody, vision and hosting
The proposal provides legal solutions to all the problems of the current Personal Status Code, the most important of which are:
To enforce the experience of one-stop shop to collect all lawsuits:
- When a legal action is taken, the family court, as it is the task of the court clerks, is concerned with making a family file in which the papers of judicial proceedings and lawsuits are drawn up. In the event of a desire to end the marital relationship with the consent “by competent authorized Ma’azoun” or apply for divorce or khul’, all rights shall be considered and all other lawsuits concerning the same family shall be settled within sixty days from the start of the litigation.
- The family court is also competent to consider fulfilling all rights related to the termination of the marital relationship and to formulate amicable agreements in an executive form.
- In addition, the Family Court is competent to examine the request for polygamy and to ensure whether the wife or wives are aware of and accept the request for polygamy, and to consider fulfilling of all the rights resulting from the termination of the wife’s marital relationship with the wife who rejects the polygamy.
In the event of a desire to end the marital relationship by the husband “at the competent authorized Ma’azoun,” a session is scheduled before issuing the divorce certificate to consider the fulfillment of all rights related to the termination of the marital relationship, provided that it is resolved within 60 days.
In the event that polygamy is desired, a session is scheduled to attend the concerned parties to ensure the knowledge and consent of the wife or wives, and the financial and health capabilities of the polygamist, provided that it is resolved within 60 days.
The link of ECWR’s proposal in Arabic is below
https://ecwronline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/ECWR-proposal-of-the-personal-status-law-2022.pdf
