The alleged torture of a young Saudi child, Ahmad Al-Ghamdi, by his stepmother, has resulted in calls for a review of the country's custody and guardianship law. Ahmad's body, with injury marks on head, was found in an abandoned building last week following an eight-day search. Sources said the preliminary examination showed the body had head injuries. The Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution (BIP) is continuing its investigation into the case. The stepmother has been charged with murder. She allegedly confessed to hitting the boy to death with a stick. The woman and her Asian housemaid are behind bars at the women's section of the General Prison in Taif. She is 39 years old with a secondary school degree and a computer diploma, sources said. Ahmad Al-Razin, a judge at the General Court in Riyadh, outlined the current practice. “Under the Shariah law, mothers get custody of their children if they are under seven years of age.” If the mother and father both have good qualities, then the judge would award custody to the most pious, said Al-Razin. He said children usually stay with the mother until the age of seven and are then raised by the father. In recognition of an infant's need for female care, all the juristic schools give first preference to the mother's claim to physical custody provided she satisfies all the requirements for female custodianship. Typically, under Shariah law, a Muslim and non-Muslim mother can maintain custody of her male children under the age of nine and maintain custody of female children until the age of seven after which the custody will revert to the father. Determination of visitation rights and custodial rights when a Saudi man and woman are divorced from one another is influenced by the relationship between the divorced couple, since the man will usually get custody, according to the Shariah. Al-Razin said a woman can maintain custody of her child if she remarries, if the father is unqualified and there is no close relative like a mother, sister or aunt. He said issues of custody should be reconsidered. “A majority of judges don't issue a final and irrevocable verdict because most of the cases are settled amicably.” He also stressed that these issues should also be considered with the help of sociologists, psychologists and legal experts, who can help the child lead an honorable life. Sami Al-Hamoud, Director of the Education and Training Center in Riyadh and a certified arbitrator with the Ministry of Justice, emphasized the importance of psychological and social rehabilitation for children of divorced couples, particularly teenagers. This type of help will prevent them from being preyed on by stepmothers and vice versa, he added. __
