Gender Alert: Committee to review Sudan’s Muslim Personal Law Act 1991

SIHA highly welcomes the formation of a special committee initiated by the Sudanese Ministry of Justice and supervised by judge Hassan Hussen Sharfie, to review and amend the Muslim Personal Law Act of Sudan 1991. The Committee will include  members from different institutions such as the Islamic Fiqh Academy, Khartoum University, Omdurman Al-Islamia University, and Al-Quran Al-Kareem University, the Sudanese Woman Union, the Sudanese Bar Association, the Sudanese Clerics Council and the Sudanese Organization for Research and Development (SORD).

The decision 33/2016 to review the Act, is an urgent and long outstanding matter, which could lead to great improvements of women’s lived realities in Sudan if for example amendments to the legal age of marriage would be undertaken. The review is to be submitted by August 2016.

Prominent examples of progressive family laws draw from Djibouti, Morocco and Tunisia. To read more on the progressive family laws and a comparison between Sudan and Djibouti- you can find more information on SIHA’s Women in Islam Blog  Click here to read the full article in Arabic or English.