Civil Society urge Govt to fast track much delayed reforms into Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act

A group of civil society organisations and over 190 civil society activists urged the government to take immediate steps to reform the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) considering the failure to reform the MMDA has been a long-standing issue that successive governments have not addressed, and this has had a dire impact on the Muslim community, in particular women and children, a statement said. 

Urging the government to take this process forward, the activists noted in the collective statatment that Sri Lankan State will finally ensure greater protection and equality for the Muslim citizens of this country by meaningful reform process into the current MMDA law. 

The Civil society activists pointed out that the MMDA as it currently stands has a number of drawbacks, particularly those relating to the age of marriage, the lack of mutual consent for marriage and divorce, and the serious limitations of the existing Quazi court system. “Failure to address these problems places women in a vulnerable position and undercuts their right to equality as guaranteed by the Constitution of Sri Lanka.”

In other countries that have personal law systems similar to the MMDA, there have been efforts to reform such laws. Countries ranging from Afghanistan to Malaysia have taken measures to amend existing provisions, such as increasing the age of marriage and appointing female Quazis. Yet, in post-independence Sri Lanka, there has been no such progress.

“The call for reforms has been longstanding. For at least thirty years, Muslim women’s groups and academics have advocated for both partial and comprehensive reforms. Successive governments appointed at least five different committees but the State failed to take action.” 

The last committee, appointed in 2009, headed by Justice Saleem Marsoof carried out consultations for 9 years before presenting their findings and recommendations in early 2018. In July 2019, in a salutary move, the Muslim Members of Parliament agreed on 14 recommendations towards reform but once again it appears that there are moves to stymie reform.

“While there are differing views within the Muslim community, including among religious leaders and Islamic scholars, the State’s responsibility to protect all its citizens equally must be upheld. It is essential that the government acts decisively and forthwith to reform the laws that discriminate women from men,” the statement said.