Fatima Muhammad Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — A proposal to impose prison sentences against men who refuse to pay alimony and child support to their ex-wives has been widely welcomed by divorcees and lawyers who represent them. Al-Mawadda Charity Association, which is campaigning to reduce the high divorce rate in the Kingdom, has proposed the new legislation. The proposal has been considered favorably by the Ministry of Justice, which has sent it to the higher authorities for approval. Once approved, the ministry will enforce the new law with the cooperation of security bodies. Princess Sara Bint Musaid, the chairwoman of Al-Mawadda, told local newspapers that the proposed law will give judges the power to imprison any man who delays financial assistance or does not disclose his sources of income. According to Khalid Abu Rashid, a Jeddah-based lawyer, imprisonment should be the last resort when a man refuses to provide financial assistance to his ex-wife. “The imprisonment should not exceed 15 days as this will result in him losing his job. According to the law, a government employee does not lose his job if he or she stayed in prison for 15 days. In case of the private sector, 10 days is the maximum limit,” said Abu Rashid. “The judges need to take this into account before passing sentences because if a man stays more than 15 days in prison he would risk losing his job and thus would not be able to make any payments at all,” he added. “As soon as a man hears about the possibility of imprisonment he will become cooperative and fulfill all financial obligations because of his social image and this is what we are looking for,” said the lawyer. Abu Rashid said if this proposal was approved, divorcees would no longer have to depend on the police to get their monthly financial assistance, as the men will be forced to deposit the money on time to avoid punishment. Asked about the low amount that men tend to pay to their ex-wives in child support, he said the judges need to be specific and should consider the income that comes from private investments as well as from salaries. “Here comes the role of the judge to protect the right of the woman and her children who are in her custody,” the lawyer said. The proposal will be incorporated as an article in a new project the Ministry of Justice is planning to launch soon. The project, dubbed as the Financial Assistance Fund, will support divorcees and children in their custody. Under the project, the divorcees will be able to withdraw their money every month from the fund and will no longer have to seek help from the police to get the payment from their ex-husbands. The fund will then be responsible for collecting the money from the men and if they do not pay up they will be confronted in courts.
