Institute of Law in Gaza holds legal encounter on personal status law draft in light of women’s rights

On Wednesday 5, 2023, the Institute of Law at Birzeit University held a legal encounter titled “The Compatibility of the Personal Status Law Draft with Just Rights for Women in Gaza” featuring human rights activists, lawyers and representatives from feminist organizations in Gaza.

In the opening statement, Lina Al-Tonisi, administrative coordinator at the Institute of Law in Gaza, welcomed the attendees and introduced Birzeit University Legal Encounters Program.

Zainab Al-Ghanimi, director of the Center for Women’s Legal Research and Consulting, elaborated on the NGO Coalition, which comprises 14 feminist and human rights organizations and activists. Driven by community engagement and social responsibility, the coalition aims to adjust the personal status law in Gaza to overcome challenges facing women in accessing justice.

These adjustments include raising the age of custody of children to 18 years, raising the age of marriage and enacting the Khula law that grants women the right to terminate their marriage.  Al-Ghanimi explained that the current draft fulfils 75% of the demand of the feminist movement and is currently pending approval of the Palestinian Legislative Council, with the purpose of serving the interests and demands of the society and maintaining its stability.

Later, Al-Ghanimi elaborated on Article 5 and Article 10 of the draft, which outline the definition and conditions of marriage, highlighting that it is the first time marriage laws have been defined in Gaza. Al-Ghanimi also spoke about new regulations that mandate the court to inform the first wife or wives if the husband has taken new wives, noting that it is a positive discrimination for women.

During the discussion, she raised the issue of marriage guardianship outlined in the third section of the draft. Al-Ghanimi pointed out that maidens need guardians’ permission to get married, regardless of their age, highlighting that this poses a problem, as it suggests that women lack capacities, while personal status laws in other countries only require guardianship for minors.

She also discussed judicial divorce due to abuse, noting that there have been positive developments in this file.  Al-Ghanimi added that judicial divorce is also granted to women if the husband suffers from any defects, provided that the wife returns the dower. Additionally, if a husband is proven to be infertile, women can obtain a judicial divorce after five years of marriage, suggesting that the divorce should be determined based on medical reports rather than a fixed period of time.

In a lively discussion at the end of the encounter, the attendees pointed out the significance of the legal adjustments and called for a public discussion on the draft featuring feminist and human rights organizations and Islamic judiciary representatives.