The Second Reading of the Administration of Muslim Law Act (Amendment) Bill in Parliament

By: Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources and Minister-In-Charge of Muslim Affairs

        AMLA and Previous Amendments to AMLA

1. Sir, the Administration of Muslim Law Act, or AMLA, enacted in 1968, provides for many facets of Muslim life in Singapore today. This includes the establishment of key Muslim institutions, such as -
   - the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) to administer the religious life of Muslims here;
   - the Registry of Muslim Marriages to handle Muslim marriages; and
   - the Syariah Court, to deal with Muslim divorces and related matters, and the issuance of inheritance certificates for estates of deceased Muslims.
   
   

   Proposed Amendments

2. Sir, today we seek to amend AMLA to improve the quality of life for the Muslim community in Singapore and to strengthen our key institutions. There are several social trends that the community is facing. First, the divorce rate in the community continues to be high, especially for marriages involving minors. Second, there is a growing number of reconstituted families, which are created when divorcees remarry. The statistics show that such marriages are more likely to end up in divorce, and the children inevitably suffer. Third, Muslim women are facing difficulties in claiming maintenance from their husbands, especially upon divorce.
3. The proposed amendments will support the Singaporean Muslim community as it strives to be a progressive and responsive community that will be a blessing to all. In a series of dialogue sessions since June this year, I have consulted community leaders on the proposals and incorporated their suggestions where possible. Our media reported the proposals on the MBMF widely and encouraged public discussion and feedback. I also raised it in my Hari Raya Message as well as my Hari Raya Get-Together Speech. I am heartened by the broad-based support for the proposals. Allow me to describe the key features of the Bill.
   
   

   Raising the Minimum Muslim Marriage Age

4. In March this year, I had announced a proposal to raise the minimum Muslim marriage age during the Committee of Supply debate. This was a result of extensive studies we conducted on the trends of divorce. We had studied divorce rates in the community by cohort; that is, by following marriages contracted in a certain year, and looking at what happened to them 5, 10, 15 and 20 years down the road. The statistics were clear. Minor marriages, that is, marriages where at least one party was below 21 years at the point of marriage, were about 2.5 times more likely to end up in divorce than marriages involving adults. The problem was worse for marriages involving under-18 minors. We found that they were 3.5 times more likely to end up in divorce after just 5 years of marriage compared to adults. More than one-third of marriages involving those under 18 years end up in divorce within five years of marriage. The data, coupled with psychologist reports that indicated that minors were typically unprepared for marriage, indicated to us that there was a need to send a strong signal to the community that minor marriages should be discouraged.
5. We therefore propose to raise the minimum Muslim marriage age from 16 to 18 years. The minimum age of 18 years will be consistent with the minimum marriage age for non-Muslims under the Women's Charter. There are only about 100 such marriages every year. Thus, the impact of this move is in its signalling effect rather than preventing under-18 marriages from occurring, because those who are below 18 years of age can still marry with a special licence from a Kadi who solemnizes Muslim marriages. This special licence is not new. It is already in place for Muslims wishing to marry under the current minimum age of 16 years, and there is a similar practice for non-Muslims under the Women's Charter, where the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports approves the special licence after reviewing the couples' reasons for marriage and psychologist reports. We will fine-tune the special marriage licence process for underaged Muslim applicants to be in line with the process for non-Muslim underage marriages. These procedures will help address concerns raised by some asatizah or religious teachers that this Bill may restrict Muslim rights, because Islam permits marriage upon reaching puberty. In fact, several Muslim countries have legislated a minimum marriage age that is at least on par with, if not stricter than, our proposal today. For example, in Morocco, the minimum marriage age is 18 years for both females and males; while in Algeria, the age is 18 years for females, and 21 years for males.
6. The proposal to raise the minimum marriage age is not intended to be a 'cure-all', nor will it replace existing programmes to address teenage sexuality issues. It will serve to complement existing programmes by giving parents and caregivers more influence when advising teenagers against marriage. On top of programmes in schools, the Community Leaders' Forum has initiated supplemental programmes, such as, Family Excellence Circles for parents to share best practices, and the Cool Teens programme for teenagers and their parents. MUIS is also doing its part by including a sexuality education component in the aLIVE religious education programme for teenagers offered in mosques. I am pleased to note that the Muslim community has taken ownership of the teenage sexuality problem. And I am hopeful that the efforts will bear fruit in the near future.
7. In relation to marriages, I would like to highlight two technical amendments to the Act. The first is the removal of the provision requiring marriages to be solemnized in the daerah masjid, or mosque compound, of the bride, as it is no longer relevant today. Second, we propose to remove the provision allowing the Registry of Muslim Marriages to register marriages between Muslims and the kitabiyah, or People of the Book. This is because the Registrar of Muslim Marriages only registers marriages where both parties are Muslims.
   
   

   Improving the Enforcement Process for Syariah Court Orders

8. Let me move on to another key amendment, which deals with the enforcement of Syariah Court orders. In 1999, AMLA was amended to allow the enforcement of Syariah Court orders in the District Courts.
9. Since then, we have received feedback on how the enforcement procedure for Syariah Court orders could be streamlined further. Here, I would like to express my gratitude to the Muslim Law Practice Committee of the Law Society of Singapore, or MLPC. The MLPC had conducted a comprehensive study based on their experience on the ground with their clients. We have studied their recommendations, and have accepted some of them.
10. First, Syariah Court orders will no longer need to be registered at the District Courts before they can be enforced by the District Courts. Currently, this is an additional step that Muslims have to go through to enforce their Syariah Court orders in the District Courts. The MLPC commented that the registration process is mostly administrative, and it is time-consuming and costly for their clients. After studying the issue with the District Courts and the Ministry of Law, we found that it is possible to remove this registration process. This means that Syariah Court orders will henceforth be treated as District Court orders for the sole purpose of enforcement. With this move, Muslims can save both time and money if they need their Syariah Court orders enforced in the District Courts.
11. Second, we propose to define Syariah Court orders for nafkah iddah and mutaah as maintenance orders solely for the purpose of enforcement. For those unfamiliar with the terms, nafkah iddah refers to the maintenance payable to the ex-wife under Islamic law, and mutaah is a consolatory gift to the ex-wife upon divorce. Currently, there is no straightforward enforcement mechanism for the breach of Syariah Court orders for nafkah iddah and mutaah. The Family Court has a separate mechanism which allows divorced women to claim unpaid maintenance against their errant ex-husbands easily. Defining orders for nafkah iddah and mutaah as maintenance orders will allow Muslim women to use this mechanism.
    
    

    Appointing a Deputy Registrar for the Syariah Court

12. In a related amendment, we propose to appoint a Deputy Registrar for the Syariah Court. This is not because there is a backlog of cases at the Syariah Court. Rather, it is to enable someone to cover the Registrar's duties during her absence. Currently, when the Registrar is absent, a Syariah Court President covers her duties. Any appeal of the President's decisions in his capacity as covering Registrar would have to be heard by the Appeal Board, which is relatively inconvenient. If a person other than the President can cover as the Registrar in her absence, any appeal of the covering Registrar's decisions can then be heard by the Presidents. This amendment will allow the Deputy Registrar to exercise the powers and duties of the Registrar, where necessary. In addition, we propose to give both the Registrar and the Deputy Registrar the power to appoint hakam, or arbitrators, as this need not be done by the Presidents.
13. We will also take this opportunity to remove or amend several antiquated provisions relating to the Syariah Court. First, we will remove the Syariah Court's power to issue a Warrant of Seizure and Sale against the property of the defaulting party. This has not been used since 1999, because the Subordinate Courts can do this and the Syariah Court should not duplicate such powers. Second, we propose to remove any mention of divorce by Kadis as they no longer handle divorces. All divorces now go through the Syariah Court. For the same reason, we will replace the provision requiring husbands who utter talak outside court to report it to a Kadi, with a provision requiring them to report the talak to the Syariah Court. Under Muslim law, talak means 'to untie the matrimonial knot by articulating a word denoting divorce'. Often, talak is uttered in the heat of anger, or over trivial issues. As such, we strongly discourage this practice.
    
    

    Internationalising MUIS

14. Let me now turn to amendments to strengthen MUIS. We propose to widen the scope of MUIS' powers so that MUIS can share its expertise overseas. MUIS has received many requests to share its expertise in areas under its purview -from its development of wakaf properties to the religious curriculum of its aLIVE programme. It is a great source of pride for the community to see MUIS gain the reputation that it deserves overseas. This is in line with the Government's initiative to export public sector expertise. It may also generate revenue that can fund MUIS' programmes back home.
    
    

    Enhancing Deterrence Against Breaching Halal Regulations

15. Another amendment related to MUIS is to make it explicit in AMLA that individuals behind corporations, as well as the corporations themselves, can be prosecuted if they misuse MUIS' halal certificate or mark. Currently, AMLA does allow for this, but as Justice VK Rajah rightfully pointed out in a High Court case in 2006, the way AMLA is worded technically does not allow for the prosecution of corporate officers. This is because it is the corporation that commits the offence, not the individuals holding office in the corporation's management. Thus, these individuals cannot be prosecuted. The maximum fine is $10,000, which may not be strong enough deterrence, especially for large corporations. The Bill will make it explicit that individual actors behind the corporations may be prosecuted as well, and may face imprisonment of up to 12 months as a result. I thank Justice Rajah for his astute observation and suggestion that AMLA be amended. I believe every Muslim in Singapore will take comfort in knowing that the authorities take a serious view of a matter that is important to all Muslims.
    
    

    Allowing MUIS to Compound Lesser Offences

16. Another minor amendment involving the enforcement of MUIS' regulations is to allow MUIS to compound lesser offences. The benefit to MUIS is that it need not go to court every single time to enforce its regulations. This is a power enjoyed by many regulatory authorities, and MUIS will exercise it judiciously.
17. We also propose to amend AMLA so that the Mufti may recuse himself from the Fatwa Committee, or Legal Committee, in situations where he has a conflict of interest. When the Mufti has been summoned to court to give his opinion or evidence relating to Muslim Law, we propose that he be allowed to certify his opinion to the court or appoint someone to appear on his behalf unless the court directs otherwise. This is because fatwa rulings are made in the name of MUIS, not the Mufti, and thus, where appropriate, it need not necessarily be him who has to appear in court. This provision will be used sparingly, and only with good reason.
    
    

    Reviewing the Mosque Building and Mendaki Fund

18. Let me now explain the need to revise the Mosque Building and Mendaki Fund, or MBMF. The MBMF facilitates Muslim employees to make regular, monthly donations towards mosque building. Established in 1975, it was expanded in 1984 to inject Mendaki with much-needed funds to run some of its programmes. Contribution rates to the MBMF were last raised in 2005 to address the cost and future needs of the mosque building programme.
19. In just 33 years, the MBMF has helped the community to build 22 new mosques in the satellite towns - no small feat considering the small size of the Muslim community in Singapore. The funds channelled to Mendaki have benefited 153,000 students in tuition programmes to date.
20. There are no plans to build more mosques in the near future, after the Al-Mawaddah mosque is built in Sengkang and another in Punggol, as no new housing estates are being built. There is, however, a need to upgrade older mosques to meet our community's needs. Some mosques that were built in the 70s and 80s are in urgent need of refurbishment or are no longer able to serve their communities well.
21. I recently visited Al-Ansar Mosque in Bedok, which was built in 1981. The visit left a deep impression on me, and I am now more convinced of the need to upgrade the older mosques. Let me use Al-Ansar as an example. Al-Ansar is located on a slope, and its main prayer hall is located on the upper floor. Bedok is now a mature estate with an increasing number of senior citizens. Many of the elderly congregants have great difficulty climbing the flight of stairs to reach the main prayer hall. We will need to build a lift or escalator to enable them to do so. There are also frequent roof leakages which are costly to repair. We will need to perform extensive renovations on the dome to solve this problem.
22. Needs like those of Al-Ansar are not uncommon among MBF mosques built during the first and second phases, some of which are more than 30 years old. There is also a need to make such mosques as user-friendly as possible, given their expanding roles and functions. While their fundamental role is still as places of worship, mosques now play a part as centres for Islamic learning and social development. For instance, mosques offer religious education programmes, and disburse financial aid to needy families in their neighbourhood. To cater to these functions, the mosques need to make their premises family-friendly, youth-friendly and community-friendly.
23. There is great difficulty in raising funds for mosque upgrading, which mosque volunteers are acutely aware of. During my consultations with Muslim community leaders, Haji Rahmat Sulaiman, a veteran leader and mosque volunteer himself, shared with me his difficult experience in raising funds to rebuild the Hasanah Mosque in Teban Gardens in the 1990s.
24. AMLA currently does not allow MBMF to be used for mosque upgrading. Now that mosque building is winding down, it is a good time to expand the usage of the MBMF for mosque upgrading. This will be restricted only to much-needed, large-scale ongoing and future projects to make our mosques more accessible and community-friendly. To ensure that the funds are directed to the most urgent needs, prior approval from MUIS has to be sought for each project. Mosques will continue to raise funds and pay for minor repairs and maintenance works themselves, as the MBMF will not be used for such purposes.
25. Mosque hardware alone is not sufficient to meet the needs of the community. It must be complemented by the 'software' of religious education. Religious education helps to inculcate moral values - especially in our young - thus, providing them with the compass for navigating though life's challenges. MUIS has developed programmes such as the aLIVE programme, to teach our young Muslims to better understand, appreciate and practise Islam within the context of a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society like Singapore. Besides upgrading the curriculum, we need qualified and well-trained asatizah to effectively convey the learning points to students. The same applies to our full-time madrasahs, whose educational standards we have been trying to improve. Such capacity-building efforts are critical, for which more resources are needed.
26. Religious education is a matter close to the heart of Muslim Singaporeans and we have received many suggestions on how to fund it. Generally, the community agrees that there is a need for quality religious education programmes. Some have asked about the status of Dana Madrasah, or the Madrasah Fund, but this has not been as successful as the MBMF. The MBMF raises over $10 million a year compared to $1 million by Dana Madrasah. Some have commented that parents who send their children to madrasahs should bear the cost since madrasahs are private schools. I agree with this to some extent, and note that madrasah school fees will be raised starting next year to ensure that parents pay a bigger share of the costs. But there is a limit to how much and how fast fees can be raised.
27. Despite their private school status, madrasahs do not benefit only their students. The madrasahs produce religious teachers and scholars who will serve the entire community. Many of our top religious leaders such as Syed Isa Semait, the Mufti of Singapore, and Syed Ahmad, the Registrar of Muslims Marriages, had their early training in our madrasahs. With the MBMF funding, the madrasahs can improve the quality of education provided, and concentrate more on teaching their students well instead of fundraising.
28. Last year, I announced the Joint Madrasah System (JMS) that will take effect starting in 2009. This is a significant initiative that will require considerable funding especially in its start-up phase, mainly to upgrade the skills of madrasah teachers. It is reasonable to apply much of the MBMF funds for religious education towards the JMS in the near future. In time, the MBMF funds will also be made available to non-JMS madrasahs and part-time madrasahs. MUIS' current efforts to upgrade all full-time madrasahs, including non-JMS madrasahs, especially in their PSLE-related efforts, will continue. For example, MUIS estimates that about 206 out of 240 madrasah teachers would have been professionally trained [''Professionally trained'' refers to Diploma in Education, Specialist Diploma in Teaching & Learning, Specialist Diploma in English, Mathematics & Science.] by 2009 compared to only 11 before 2003.
29. I have described how the MBMF will build the hardware and software of the community. For a comprehensive approach, we must also step up our efforts on the social front, to enable the vulnerable families in our community to benefit from these changes as well. We have been studying the trends of dysfunctional families within the Malay/Muslim community with Mendaki and the Syariah Court for some time now. A more strategic approach will make a more demonstrable impact in tackling the problem, given its prevalence. Our findings suggested that there was a need to provide a more holistic intervention to help Malay/Muslim families facing a range of difficulties. This was the key thrust of the Action Plan to strengthen Malay/Muslim families announced at the Community Leaders' Forum last November.
30. Part of this Action Plan required expanding our reach to reconstituted families, given the prevalence of divorce and remarriages among Muslim divorcees. We need to focus on reconstituted families as they tend to face greater challenges. Currently, there is only one centre run by a Muslim organisation that provides support for reconstituted families, especially those from lower socio-economic backgrounds. Located in Ubi Avenue, the As-Salaam Family Support Centre run by the Young Women Muslim Association, or PPIS, can only reach 17% of such families. I visited them last month, and was impressed by the good work of PPIS. There is a critical need to open a second centre to double our reach to these families and equip them with the necessary skills. It is important that we act quickly to prevent an intergenerational transfer of dysfunctionality to the children of reconstituted families. Thus, we propose to set aside an additional $300,000 a year from the MBMF for all our programmes for dysfunctional families, including the new PPIS centre. This will relieve some of the burden of fundraising for these programmes and complement Government efforts to tackle this problem.
31. To provide greater funding to Mendaki to tackle the problem of dysfunctional families together with its Community Leaders Forum partners, and to fund the two new components of mosque upgrading and religious education in the MBMF, we have found it necessary to ask for the contribution rates to be revised. The timing of this rate increase is not ideal, given the uncertain economic climate and inflation. But this is the best time to act. A delay will compromise the community's efforts and ultimately the long-term health of the community. The details of the proposed increase in contribution rates are already in the public domain. We have suggested a more equitable approach, where the lowest income band will not be affected by the increase, and the increase is larger for the higher income bands. I have sought the support of community leaders to explain the need for the increase to their constituents, and I trust that the community supports the changes.
    
    

    Conclusion

32. Sir, to conclude, at the core of these proposed amendments is the goal to uplift the Muslim community. We are proposing amendments today that will safeguard the well-being of members of the community who face greater challenges, such as minor couples, divorced women and their dependents and dysfunctional families. We are proposing amendments to strengthen our key institutions, such as MUIS and the Syariah Court. And we are proposing amendments to build the hardware and software of the community through mosque upgrading and religious education. The decisions we make today will benefit future generations, who will appreciate us for the sacrifices and difficult choices that we have to make, and the good work that we do to create a better environment for them. I hope the House will join in in supporting these key efforts in uplifting the Muslim community. Thank you.
33. Sir, I beg to move.
    
    MCYS Speech No: 65/2008
    Date Of Issue: 17/11/2008