The AMLA Amendments - Association of Muslim Professionals

The AMLA Amendments
Social Resilience
KARYAWAN
‘The amendments are useful and very helpful to
those who are divorcing and have been divorced.
They will go a long way to alleviate some of the
enforcement of SYC orders, which many are
currently facing and encountering.’
age of marriage in line with civil marriages – for non-Muslims, minimum age
of marriage is also 18 and has been since 1961.
Enforcement of SYC orders
Under the current system, enforcement of SYC orders is done in civil courts. To
understand this, we must go back in history.
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• The post of Deputy Registrar is created.
Proposed also were amendments relating to the
Mosque Building and Mendaki Fund (MBMF) but I
will focus on the above three amendments.
K: What are the objectives of the
amendments
HM: The amendments on the increase in minimum
age of marriage and enforcement of SYC orders are to
strengthen institutions of Muslim families. The creation
of the post of Deputy Registrar is to strengthen Muslim
institutions i.e. SYC.
K: Why are the amendments necessary
HM: Minimum age of marriage
Statistics show that more than 50% of Muslim marriages
of those marrying under 18 end up in divorces. This
is understandable – those under 18 are essentially
children still and may not have reached the level of
maturity to undertake the responsibilities of marriage
and parenthood. Increasing the minimum age of
marriage to 18 would, to some extent, prevent breakups
of such early marriages. This also makes the minimum
In 1999, major changes were made to AMLA. The 1999 AMLA amendments
made enforcement of SYC orders something which can be done only in
civil court. SYC does not enforce its own orders. (The exception is the act of
the Registrar or President of SYC signing documents to effect transfer of the
matrimonial home from one spouse to the other or documents connected
with sale of the matrimonial home when one spouse refuses to do so in
breach of SYC orders).
Enforcement of SYC orders in civil courts involves two types of action:
(I) Civil proceedings
Enforcing SYC orders via civil proceedings involves two steps:
(a) First, registering SYC orders in civil court to make it a District Order;
(b) Once it has become a District Court Order, it can then be enforced
through the “normal” process namely:
• Bankruptcy proceedings against the recalcitrant party. Sale and seizure
of the recalcitrant party’s assets and/or properties;
• Garnishee proceedings i.e. if A owes the recalcitrant husband monies
and the husband refuses to pay his ex-wife the mutaah and nafkah
eddah ordered by SYC, the ex-wife can go after A to get A to pay her
directly the money her ex-husband owes A, instead of A paying the
ex–husband;
• Recovering the amount owed by the recalcitrant party as a debt;
• Contempt proceedings i.e. asking the Court to imprison the recalcitrant
party because he breached the SYC (now a District Court) order.
(II) Criminal proceedings
Enforcing SYC Orders via criminal proceedings involves lodging a
magistrate’s complaint in the Subordinate Courts (Crime Registry) against
the recalcitrant party for breach of SYC orders. This is a process of private
summons, for example, if someone slaps you or verbally abuses you, you
can lodge a private summons against the person. This means you “privately
prosecute” the said person.