Christians split on divorce law revision

LAHORE

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had announced  on International Women's Day on March 8,  that the Christian Divorce Law would be amended as "it violated  human rights and was against the dignity of women." However, it is not an easy task as different sects of the Christian community are divided on the issue.

Some in the community support the proposed amendments whereas others are not ready to accept it, saying the divine Biblical laws cannot be changed by man. Even the federal and Punjab ministers for minorities and human rights, Kamran Michael and Tahir Khalil Sindhu respectively, have openly rejected the idea of amending the existing Christian Divorce Laws many times.  So the question is how the amendments will be made if there is no consensus among the different sects of the Christians? Or will the Punjab government afford to estrange a large part of the community by ignoring its stance and seeking their approval? Under the existing law, a Christian woman can be divorced only if she is charged with adultery and the alleged adulterer also appears before the court. Or if she converts to some other religion. 

Salman Sufi, head of Special Monitoring Unit (SMU) Punjab, says the basis for every law of the land is that all citizens of Pakistan are equal under  Article 25 of the Constitution of Pakistan. He says no citizen can be discriminated against on the basis of colour, creed, religion, sect and caste in Pakistan.  Unfortunately, he says, the Christian Divorce Act 1869, is discriminatory against women who cannot be divorced because of being accused of adultery. Regarding the differences, he says, these will be taken into account during the process and consensus. He says to change the Christian Divorce Act 1869, open invitation would be sent to all  sects of the Christian community and it would reach a consensus on the law.  Moreover, he says, the government of Punjab has given a task to Punjab Minister of Minority and Human Rights Tahir Khalil Sandhu to evolve a consensus on the topic.  "The government of Punjab doesn’t believe in imposition. We will first get the outstanding issues resolved. After change in law, no woman will face adultery charges and they would not have to convert just to get divorce," he added.