12 September 2012

Unrecorded Muslim Marriages, Bigamy, and Polygamy

.... The few cases which do make it to the courts are representative of a much larger problem. Adherents of strict sharia law often perform verbal divorces, with the result that many cases are not submitted to a judge.

The wife rarely has access to the resources required to contest the terms of the divorce or to appeal an erroneous determination. In this case, there were multiple proceedings as the intermediate court rationalized the terms of the marriage to pass muster, but found that the verbal divorce did not meet legal standards and so concluded that the second marriage was indeed bigamous. The cumulative costs at the end of three trials had to be staggering. [Gatestone Institute] Read more