Women's rights circles in Morocco considered the decision a step towards establishing the joint guardianship of the father and mother over the children (social networking sites)

Rabat -

 Moroccan women now have the right to issue, renew and withdraw the passport of their minor children, according to a circular issued by the Ministry of Interior to workers and governors in various regions of the Kingdom.

In turn, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote to its diplomatic and consular representations abroad regarding this procedure, to direct its services to implement the same controls that the Ministry of Interior circulated at the Kingdom level and to inform those involved of the means it deems appropriate, indicating that this proactive step will be approved within an appropriate legal framework.

This decision was welcomed in women's rights circles, and it was considered a step towards achieving a more comprehensive demand, which is to establish the joint guardianship of the father and mother over the children.

This comes at a time when consultations are still ongoing regarding amending the Family Code, as the body charged with reviewing the Family Code has listened to all political, legal, civil and governmental sensitivities with the aim of making compatible amendments to it.

The memorandums of a number of women's rights associations, political parties and ministries - including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation - included proposals to amend the articles related to guardianship or guardianship over minor children, in light of the problems raised by the current legal text that concern the administrative and legal aspects of the child, especially in the event of a conflict or dispute. Divorce between parents.

The Family Code stipulates in Articles 179 and 231 that legal guardianship rests with the father in the event of marriage or its absence.

According to Article 231 of the law, legal representation is in the hands of the adult father, then the adult mother when the father is not present or loses his legal capacity.

Bushra Abdo: The step taken by the Ministry of Interior is “understandable and reasonable” given the administrative problems facing some women (social media sites)

The interest of the child

Ministerial sources explained to Al Jazeera Net that this patrol comes within the framework of taking into account the best interest of the child and facilitating administrative procedures by enabling Moroccan mothers to obtain passports for their minor children, and to solve a number of problems recorded by government departments in this regard.

The issuance of this decision in the form of a periodic raises questions about its legal value in light of its contradiction with the articles of the Family Code, which grant guardianship exclusively to the father regarding the administrative and legal interests of the children.

The periodical is an administrative document issued by the minister and contains decisions or instructions that are published for all employees to know and follow. It may be an explanatory publication for interpreting legal texts, or it may be a regulatory publication with a legal effect by adding a new rule.

However, Buthaina Qarouri, President of the Al-Zahraa Forum for Moroccan Women, believes that many legal problems are solved through periodicals waiting for the law to be amended, referring in this regard to the periodicals issued by the Ministry of the Interior regarding enabling women of lineage to benefit from the right to usufruct the land of lineage groups as an example. With the male members of the group, which was implemented before the issuance of a law on the subject.

In Morocco, tribes and rural districts called Slaliyya still apply laws based on outdated customs and customs, including depriving many “Slaliyya” women from obtaining their share of the inheritance, under the pretext of fear that they will marry men from outside the tribe, and thus the lands will return to strangers.

Buthaina Qarouri told Al Jazeera Net that the step taken by the Ministry of Interior is “understandable and reasonable,” given the problems that some women face in carrying out their children’s interests of an administrative nature, especially if there is a divorce, and there are practical difficulties for the husband to do so.

The spokeswoman mentioned that there is a precedent in this field related to the right to school (study) for a child in custody, as educational institutions now enable mothers to obtain a certificate of the student’s departure from school in order to transfer him to another school close to their place of residence, as soon as the mother delivers the final judicial ruling granting her the right to custody.

Buthaina notes that “this exception does not cancel the rule that makes guardianship the responsibility of the man,” explaining that the true purpose of guardianship is for the father to bear his responsibility towards his children, because divorce is done towards the wife and not the children, but in the event of practical difficulties, or there is abuse. By the man, especially in the case of divorce - Buthaina says - the Al-Zahra Forum for Moroccan Women, which she heads, sees the possibility of granting guardianship to the divorced mother by a judicial decision; If it is proven to the judge that the father was abusive in exercising this responsibility.

Hanan Rehab: The father’s sole legal guardianship causes the children’s interests to be disrupted if he fails to fulfill his duties (social media sites)

A call to expand the resolution

For her part, Hanan Rehab, national secretary of the Socialist Organization for Federal Women, appreciated this step, which she considered late.

She explained to Al Jazeera Net that the royal decision to give Moroccan women married to foreigners the right to grant Moroccan nationality to their children required that they also be granted the right to obtain a passport for their minor children, because their fathers who hold another nationality cannot carry out this procedure, and therefore the children were waiting for them to reach the legal age to begin the procedures for obtaining a passport. travel.

Rehab said that this measure granted this right to all Moroccan women, including those residing abroad, regardless of the husband’s nationality, and called for its expansion to include granting the right to mothers to complete all administrative documents for their children.

The spokeswoman pointed out that the father's sole legal guardianship causes the children's interests to be disrupted, if the father fails to fulfill his duties for some reason, or if there is a compelling excuse at a time that requires urgent completion of an administrative document.

She pointed out that a group of testimonies had been received by the Federal Women's Organization from custodial mothers in recent days, complaining of the father's reluctance, refusal, or inability to communicate with him to obtain the children's national card, which secondary school students need to take the certification exams (high school).

In addition to these cases in which the interests of the children are harmed after divorce, there are other cases related to the completion of documents related to treatment for serious or chronic diseases, or participation in cultural or sporting events inside or outside Morocco, the absence of which due to this obstacle has an impact on the children’s psychology. And sometimes even their future.

Bushra Abdo, head of the Challenge Association for Equality and Citizenship, agrees with this idea, as this measure will solve an administrative problem, but it does not open the door for women to have other legal responsibilities regarding children, because legal guardianship ultimately remains in the hands of the father only.

The spokeswoman stressed that the mother's role is not limited only to home care, but rather she should have the right to undertake the administrative and legal interests of the child.

Bushra Abdo indicated that the Challenge Association for Equality and Citizenship, which she heads, submitted, along with the Women’s Coalition for a Code Based on Justice and Equality, proposals to the body charged with reviewing the Family Code regarding joint legal guardianship over the children, while restricting this guardianship to one of the parties if he does not fulfill his responsibility towards the children.

She said, "If the father does not visit the children and does not pay alimony dues, or if the mother is not custodial and neglects her children, they cannot be granted legal guardianship. The latter is given to both parties when they fulfill their full responsibilities towards their children and preserve the interest of the child."

The two speakers hope that granting mothers the right to obtain a passport for their children will be an introduction and a positive signal that will pave the way for the approval of joint guardianship over children in the Family Law, taking into account the interest of the child and preserving his rights.

Source: Al Jazeera