Changes to marriage and divorce law to be tabled in next session

PUTRAJAYA: Amendments to the law on issues of religious conversion after marriage will be tabled in the next Parliament session, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak (pix) announced today.
He said the call for a change to the law came following several controversial cases.
"One thing that has drawn controversy and various reactions is the problem of conversion, especially when a divorce occurs and one spouse decides to embrace Islam.
"There have been such cases from time to time that requires us to find a way out of the problem.
"I, the deputy prime minister and the Cabinet have agreed that the amendment to the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 will be made at the next Parliament sitting," he said in his 2016 National Women's Day speech at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre.
Najib stressed that the amendment to the law would be based on three principles, namely:
i. issues related to divorce for a civil-registered marriage have to be resolved in the civil court. This is to ensure that claims such as child custody rights and alimony are protected and secured;
ii. the amendment will be based on the principle of universal justice; and
iii. conflict between the civil and syariah courts due to the conversion to Islam by one of the marriage partners will be resolved.
"The three principles are clear. If we were married under the civil law ... all affairs must be settled in the civil court. I believe the principles are very fair, as fairness is demanded in Islam," Najib added.