HEADLINE-Malaysia’s The Sun Daily | Amend Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act, Financial Services Act to protect non-Muslim divorcees, children: Lawyer
KUALA LUMPUR: A lawyer is fighting to have the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 and Financial Services Act 2013 amended to ensure non-Muslim spouses and children are not financially neglected in the event of a divorce.
Rachel Chan said it began when a single mother with an autistic son was neglected by her ex-husband, who refused to visit the child or pay for child maintenance.
Memento Maxima Digital Marketing @Now, she is calling on the public and other lawyers to band together to ensure such a situation does not befall other divorcees.
Chan wants an amendment to the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 to include an additional subsection (6) so that a free app owned and managed by the government can be installed to monitor asset division and alimony payments to the children of a divorced couple.
She also wants sections 134(1) and (2) and Schedule 11 (6) of the First Column of the Financial Services Act to be further enhanced with respect to disclosures of money in Malaysian banks so that spouses are forced to be transparent and cannot hide their banking account details when filing for divorce, since banks would then be duty-bound to disclose the assets to the court.
“The proposed changes are one of the ways to eradicate financial hardship among non-Muslims as they ensure single parents and children from broken families receive monetary compensation from errant ex-spouses who fail to adhere to their child maintenance payment obligations.”
She said making the amendments has become more important since former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said in the parliamentary session on Sept 15 last year that 76,786 divorce cases were recorded nationwide since the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country.
Ismail Sabri also said between March 2020 and August 2021, a total of 10,346 divorces involved non-Muslim couples while 66,440 cases involved Muslims. Collectively for Muslims and non-Muslims, Selangor recorded the highest number with 3,160 cases followed by Kuala Lumpur, with 2,893.
Chan urged the government to develop a mobile app that is automated and backed by computerised systems so that relevant information involved in a divorce can be uploaded and monitored for adherence to the law and terms of the divorce settlement.
On identification of matrimonial assets subject to division, she said: “At the moment, there is no way to determine if either spouse owns landed assets in Malaysia and what are the bank account assets and the details thereof, unless the parties involved divulge them.
“Local councils may be able to ascertain the properties held by one spouse if the other provides details of the (MyKad) and name. But this is subject to a letter of authorisation being sighted by the local councils, and (even then), details of properties are limited only to those situated in the local councils’ area of jurisdiction.”
Chan also said banks are prohibited from making disclosures in a family court as under the Financial Services Act 2013, details of bank accounts and bank statements are private and confidential.
Chan’s call to amend the laws has gained the support of social activist Kuan Chee Heng, better known as Uncle Kentang, and human rights lawyer Siti Zabedah Kasim.
“This is an honorable cause and a way to help single parents raise their children without being financially neglected by their irresponsible ex-spouses. I have seen cases where parents who raise their children alone were helpless and suffered in silence. Chan’s effort to get the existing laws amended could be a way out of their predicament,” Kuan said.
However, while Siti Zabedah expressed support for Chan’s cause in that something needs to be done to assist spouses who have been financially neglected after divorce, she disagreed with the development of a mobile app that monitors divorce settlements.
“I believe producing a mobile app for this purpose would be inefficient and I suggest Chan propose another way to monitor the assets of irresponsible spouses,” she said.
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