KUWAIT CITY, March 22: With the number of divorces among Kuwaitis rising to 84,442 according to official statistics at the end of December last year, several lawyers and human rights experts have called for amendments to the Personal Status Law, particularly concerning alimony and child visitation. They emphasized the need for the return of visitation location to the courts and the imposition of harsher penalties for those who fail to comply with the requirements. While several lawyers have indicated that refining the current law has long been overdue and has led to family disintegration, others have called for raising the marriage age for both men and women to 18 years. enabling women to complete their education, exercise their right to choose a suitable spouse, and bear the consequences of marriage. Attorney Fawaz Al-Shallahi support the Ministry of Justice’s move to refine the Personal Status Law, believing this step is long overdue and should have been decided years ago. He said the new law must include amendments to the articles on divorce to impose numerous restrictions to curb the rising divorce rate in the country, taking into consideration the remarkable increase in recent years.

He stressed the importance of the new law; citing flexibility regarding child visitation rights after divorce and tougher penalties for those who fail to comply with visitation requirements. Hamdan Al-Namshan, lawyer and legal advisor to the National Human Rights Office, underscored the need to amend the articles related to alimony to be reasonable, as some women are unable to remarry after divorce due to the exaggerated child support costs. “Therefore, separation hinders marriage, which Allah has permitted,” he argued. He pointed out that working women may seek a divorce to enjoy their salary and child support, and therefore refuse to marry to obtain the exaggerated child support. He explained that alimony is the right of children from both Islamic and legal perspectives, but exaggerating it harms men and may deprive them of the right to marry. He expressed support for the idea of increasing the marriage age for both boys and girls, particularly since this is consistent with international human rights principles.

“Marrying a girl under the age of 18 prevents her from choosing a suitable husband, deprives her of completing her education, and excludes her from childhood, which extends until the age of 18,” he added. Attorney Dr. Salem Al-Kandari clarified that the issue of visitation is somewhat arbitrary, so he called for “the return of the place of visitation to the courts, rather than its current isolation.” He advocated for raising the marriage age to prevent marriage registration until both spouses reach the age of 18. “This is in line with the Constitution, which stipulates the cohesion and preservation of the family,” he asserted. He explained that a wife, even when she is a child, may be exposed to early violence and suffer from numerous marital problems. “Furthermore, her young age undermines her right to choose her life partner. Raising the marriage age takes into account Kuwait’s international obligations, particularly the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which defines a child as anyone under the age of 18. Marrying at a young age deprives her of her childhood and poses a threat to her life and the lives of her children in the future,” he concluded.