MATERNAL INSTINCT: Fatimah (third left) interacts with a special child. From left are the child’s mother, Leila, Zainani and Nilawati.
MIRI: There is a need for a taskforce committee to help non-Muslim divorced women and abandoned single mothers.
Welfare, Women and Family Development Minister Datuk Fatimah Abdullah said such cases could be more complex than that of single mothers since they had been abandoned by their husbands, and as non-Muslims were not helped by the law.
“Muslim single mothers have Syariah laws to safeguard their interests with husbands made to pay monthly maintenance to them and their children,” Fatimah said.
Non-Muslim single mothers need a law to safeguard their interest as abandoned housewives have problem getting financial aid.
Fatimah revealed that a committee had been set up to oversee their problems. It is given three months to look into and help this group of women find tangible solutions.
The minister said these women had no documents to show they were divorced, other than no financial support from their husbands.
There was a need to set up a support system to help non-Muslim single mothers married under customary laws, she said.
With today’s high cost of living, husbands were instructed by the court to pay compensation but often fail to do so, whereas for Muslim single mothers, their ex-husbands must pay financial compensation through the Syariah court every month.
Ex-husbands who do not obey the law can have action taken against them by the Syariah Court and be made to pay back the arrears owed.
Non-Muslim single mothers who got married and divorced by Bumiputera (Bidayuh, Orang Ulu and Iban etc) customs including civil marriages do not have such a committee to look after their welfare.
“So there is a need for us to have a women’s committee with law background, and expert in ‘adat istiadat bumiputera’ to discuss, research and come up with a law to help them,“ Fatimah said.
And, a need for a support system for divorced single mothers and abandoned mothers to get aid from relevant parties.
Single mothers, she said, must register with the Welfare Department to get assistance for their school-going children.
She urged them to run small businesses from home like making biscuits and cakes for sale.
Also present were PBB Lambir women chief, Councillor Zainani Salleh, her deputy Mariam Jukim, PBB Senadin women chief Nilawati Simat and PBB Pujut women chief Leila Mohamad.