Marriage age upped for Muslims
Change tackles problem of broken families; claiming maintenance made easier
By Zakir Hussain
THE minimum marriage age at which Muslims can marry has been raised to 18, in line with that for other Singaporeans.
The change from age 16, which has been floated in the community for some years now, marks its resolve to nip in the bud the problem of broken homes.
Official figures show that Malay-Muslims make up a disproportionate number of such dysfunctional families, many of whom are couples who married young and divorced soon after.
The change was approved by Parliament yesterday as part of amendments to the Administration of Muslim Law Act (Amla), which governs various aspects of Muslim affairs here.
All 10 Malay MPs spoke during the debate on the changes, which include making it easier for divorced women to claim maintenance payments from errant husbands, strengthening halal certification laws and expanding the use of a community fund to refurbish mosques and fund religious education.
Earlier, in presenting the Amla (Amendment) Bill for debate, Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim gave figures to show the high risk of divorce in young marriages.
Marriages in which at least one partner is aged below 18 are 3.5 times more likely to end in divorce than those between adults over 21.
Also, more than than one-third of marriages involving under-18s end in divorce within five years.
Although the number of teen marriages among Muslims has dipped, it is still greater than among non-Muslims.
Last year, 76 Muslims aged 16 and 17 got hitched, down from 87 in 2006.
For non-Muslims, only about 125 below age 18 have married in the past five years, or an average of 25 a year.
Dr Yaacob, who is also Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, noted that some religious teachers were concerned that the change in age would restrict Muslim rights, as Islam allowed marriage on reaching puberty.
He explained that, like non-Muslims, those under 18 can still marry.
While young non-Muslims who wish to wed need the stamp of approval from the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Muslims can get a special licence from a kadi, who solemnises Muslim marriages.
This is an existing practice but in the past five years, no under-16 Muslims had sought such a licence.
Dr Yaacob also pointed out that some Muslim countries, such as Morocco and Algeria, have a similar, if not stricter, minimum marriage age.
Mr Zainudin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) wanted the minimum age raised even further, to 21.
Dr Yaacob said that this would be even more restrictive than the marriage rules in the Women's Charter. 'Perhaps Mr Zainudin can raise this 30 years later,' he said to laughter.
Other MPs called for a change of mindset in the community.
Dr Ahmad Magad (Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC) said that while teenage pregnancy should not be condoned, society should also not be overly harsh in ostracising these teenagers as social support is critical in ensuring that they 'do not get mired in a web of other bigger social problems'.
Dr Maliki Osman (Sembawang GRC) wanted a message sent to men who could not keep up with child maintenance payments that they should not be marrying again. Dr Yaacob said that this had to be studied further.
Madam Halimah Yacob (Jurong GRC) was critical of the prevalent thinking that men were the sole or main breadwinners, saying that this could be responsible for making young girls predisposed to early marriages rather than thinking of pursuing a career and being self reliant.
'We need a more open discussion in the community on how the values, perceptions and biases that we hold influence and have an impact on the values of our young,' she said.
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Marriage age upped for Muslims 
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