| Recently
a law
permitting
Egyptian women
to file for
divorce on
grounds of
incompatibility
has been
received as
welcome news
by many abused
women, who are
trapped in
unhealthy
marriages,
while some
perceived it
as a call for
breaking homes
and a right, a
woman
shouldn't
have.
Please read
the following
reports by
different news
agencies and
if you wish,
you can post
your opinion
by clicking on
The Forum link
above. |
|
 Broken
Vows
Egyptian
Women
Allowed
Divorce
Option
Aziza
Abdel
Moneim,
pictured
here
with
her
two
children,
is the
second
woman
to
file
for
divorce
in
Egypt.
(ABCNEWS.com)
click
on the
image
to
view a
video
report
C
A I R
O,
Egypt,
June 6
—
Aziza
Abdel
Moneim
is a
very
happy
—
and
soon
to be
free
—
woman.
The
mother
of
two,
who
has
been
married
for 11
years
to a
man
she
claims
has
systematically
abused
and
beaten
her
for
most
of
that
time,
is the
second
woman
in
Egypt
to
file
for
divorce.
A new
law,
known
as “Khula,”
allows
women
for
the
first
time
to
unilaterally
request
a
divorce.
Before
the
Khula
law
was
passed,
Aziza
would
file
for
divorce
after
each
fight.
But
her
efforts
were
in
vain
because
her
husband
would
never
agree.
“We
used
to
disagree,
have a
fight
take
and
I’d
take
my
daughter
and go
to my
mother,”
Aziza
said.
“But
my
parents
would
tell
me I
had to
go
back,
I
could
not
stay
like
this,
neither
married
nor
divorced.”
Under
Egypt’s
old
divorce
law, a
woman
had to
prove
to
judges
—
all of
whom
are
men in
Egypt
—
that
she
had
been
battered,
while
her
husband
could
appeal
endlessly.
And
Egyptian
men
have
always
been
able
to get
a
divorce
in as
little
as 10
minutes,
just
by
signing
a
sheet
of
paper.
Now,
the
equality
gap is
narrowing.
Neither
her
husband
nor
the
judge
can
deny a
woman
a
divorce
if she
wants
one.
And
she
can be
granted
her
freedom
just
three
months
after
filing
for
divorce.
Relationships
May
Improve
And
the
new
law
may
even
improve
relationships
between
men
and
women.
“Women
feel
more
secure
in
their
relationships
with
their
husbands
and
husbands
are
now
careful
about
how
they
treat
their
wives
because
they
cannot
get
away
with
mistreatment,”
said
Mona
Zulfiqar,
a
lawyer
and
member
of the
Egyptian
National
Council
of
Women.
But
the
new
law
can be
expensive.
A
woman
who
requests
a
divorce
must
repay
her
husband
any
money
he
brought
to the
marriage
and
forgo
alimony,
which
can be
difficult
for
those
who
are
poor.
But
for
women
like
Aziza,
it’s
a
small
price
to
pay.
“This
law is
beautiful
and a
very
courageous
step
taken
here.
Now we
have
to
give
up our
financial
rights,
before
we
used
to
give
up our
dignity,”
she
said.
“I
lost
10
years
waiting
for
something
I
couldn’t
get
without
this
law.
But my
daughter
will
grow
up
knowing
she
has
it.”
ABCNEWS'
Gerry
Holmes
and
Hoda
Abdel-Hamid
contributed
to
this
report. |
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