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The Legislation Year 2003-2004 ( contined)
The Legislation Year 2003-2004 ( continued)
The Translation of a Speech Given by His Majesty Mohamed the
Sixth.........
Translated from Arabic into English by Amina Foukara
......Should it be necessary for a husband to remarry, he should ask for the authorization of the judge. The latter would consider two issues in that: First, he must make sure the husband would be just to his former wife as well as to the children he begot by her. Second, he must make an inquiry into the motives of remarrying. Had the former wife made it a legal condition for him never to remarry, it would be obligatory for the husband now to ask for permission before another contract of marriage to a second wife is ratified. Thus, it would be incumbent on any husband intending to remarry to keep their current wives informed about it.
5: The procedure of marriage relating to Moroccans living abroad should be simplified: The presence of two trustworthy witnesses during the ratification of the contract of marriage and the consolidation of the contract either in Moroccan offices dealing with the issue of marriage or at Embassies or in court would be enough for marriage to be considered valid.
6: Whether divorce is claimed by a Man or whether it claimed by a Woman, it should comply with legal procedures. As far as divorce by man is concerned, aggression against his divorced wife must be controlled and the mediation of the judge and of family members for the sake of reconciliation is encouraged
7: Woman is entitled to acquire due rights before divorce. Divorce would not be considered legal unless the tribunal authorizes it. It would not be registered unless the husband gives the divorced wife and the children the due sums. Oral divorce would not be considered valid.
8: If a husband neglects any requirements of the contract of marriage, if he harasses his wife through for example not providing for her or through deserting her in bed, or through physical aggression, or on the basis of other ill practices, his wife is granted the right to claim divorce. The reinforcement of equality and of justice is the main objective of this stipulation. Besides, the agreement of a husband and wife to get divorced must be put under the authorization of the judge.
9: To protect the rights of children, the stipulations of international agreements made in Morocco must be observed. Therefore, the guardianship of a child must be relegated first and foremost to the mother. ( If the mother cannot do it), then, it must be relegated to the father, otherwise, it should be relegated to the maternal grandmother. ( If all these persons cannot do it for some reasons), the judge will have to appoint a trustworthy relative to the child to carry out the burden. Convenient lodging and issues relating to provision must be guarranteed. In addition to this, the deadline for settling the case of provision should not exceed one month.
10: If the contract of marriage proves to be missing under the force of circumstances, affiliation should, still, be acknowledged. However, the tribunal is bound to find reliable evidence for that. To alliviate problems for the child, a five years investigation into the issue (of missed affiliation) should be fulfilled.
11: Like grandsons, granddaughters have the right to inherit their maternal grand fathers in compliance with the former due rights of inheritance.
12: Husband and wife must equitably manage the money ( and the properties) they may have accumulated throughout matrimonial life. Two things must be taken into account: the economic independence of each partner and an identification of a method for the management and for the investment of their wealth must be put under the auspices of the husband and his wife. If they fail to reach an agreement ( about a method for managing their money and wealth), they shouls resort to the judge. He is invested with the power of putting into effect the general procedures for the improvement of the wealth of families.
Thus, the personal status code does not deal solely with matters relating to women. It rather deals with the protection of the family welfare at large. It targets the establishment of justice with regard to women, the protection of the rights of children, and the protection of the honor of Man.
As far as Hebrews are concerned, the principles of the Moroccan Hebrew personal status law must be strictly observed.
The personal status code dates back to 1957. It appeared prior to parliament..It was amended in 1993 on the basis of honored decrees. The present family personal code dates back to 2003. It came into existence as a project thanks to the leader of the Moroccan Islamic Nation. It was sent to parliament for discussion
foukara_amina@yahoo.fr
Published: October 24, 2007
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