WOMEN'S CHARTER (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

7.15 p.m.

The Minister for Social Affairs (Encik Othman Bin Wok): Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

The Women's Charter (Amendment) Bill, 1975, was introduced in Parliament on 25th February 1975. The Bill, now before the House, seeks to repeal and re-enact section 93, subsection (2), of the Women's Charter.

The Women's Charter was enacted in 1961 and since its coming into operation a number of difficulties in its application have arisen making it necessary for it to be reviewed in relation to the changing social and economic situation in Singapore and the need to strengthen the family unit in our society. Amendments are also necessary to ensure that the legislation is socially relevant and effective in enhancing the status and promoting the welfare of women and families.

In 1967, an Act was passed to amend the Women's Charter. One of the main purposes was to make clear that non-Muslim customary marriages will be brought within the ambit of the Charter and be solemnised in accordance with its provisions. A new section was inserted in the Charter which provides that a marriage which is solemnised without a certificate for marriage or a licence authorising the marriage from the Registrar of Marriages or the Minister, as the case may be, shall be void.

It is not the intention of the Government to prevent customary marriages from taking place. A person before going through a Chinese customary marriage should comply with the provisions of the Charter relating to capacity, minimum age and consent. A certificate for marriage or a licence under the provisions of the Charter must be obtained. Once a person has obtained a certificate for marriage or a licence, he is free to have his marriage solemnised in accordance with the law, religion, customs or usage of the parties or any of the parties to the marriage by an authorised person.

The family is the basic social institution. The way families are started through marriage and the stability of family life have far-reaching social consequences in any society. The Government, therefore, takes a serious view of the contracting of "marriages" which are void. Since the beginning of 1974, action has been taken against those who are found to have contracted void marriages contrary to the requirements of the Women's Charter. An educational and publicity campaign has also been conducted to make it known that it is the obtaining of a certificate or a licence before a customary marriage is solemnised by an authorised person and the solemnisation of a marriage by the Registrar that gives a marriage legal validity.

In September 1973, a grace period was given to couples who had contracted invalid customary marriages to have their "marriages" properly solemnised at the Registry of Marriages. A record number of 11,479 couples responded. Many people contract void marriages by contravening the provisions of the Women's Charter. A void marriage is no marriage at all. It is regarded as never having taken place. By virtue of section 93, subsection (2), of the Women's Charter, the child of a void "marriage" is deemed to be a legitimate child of his or her parents, and under our citizenship laws, if any one of his or her parents is a Singapore citizen, he or she is also a Singapore citizen. The child born out of cohabitation or out of wedlock is not a Singapore citizen unless his or her mother is a Singapore citizen. Since a void marriage is no marriage in law, the child of a void marriage should acquire Singapore citizenship on the same basis as an illegitimate child. It is not desirable that a child whose parents knowingly contracted a void marriage should qualify for Singapore citizenship more easily than an illegitimate child. So, under the new provision, if a man and a woman marry and they both know that their marriage is not a valid one, their children will be deemed to be illegitimate.

The change is particularly necessary in our social situation as there are work permit holders who are required to seek the approval of the Commissioner for Employment before they contract a marriage with a Singapore citizen. Some work permit holders are circumventing this requirement by contracting customary marriages in Singapore knowing full well that such marriages contracted on or after 2nd June, 1967, are void. Under the existing law, the children born of such void marriages are deemed legitimate and they will acquire Singapore citizenship on the same basis as a legitimate child acquires Singapore citizenship.

A marriage can be void for a number of reasons, such as when one partner is underage or is already married. Under the proposed amendment, the children of such marriages would be deemed to be legitimate, because under the new provision, both or either of the parents may have reasonably believed that the marriage was valid.

I now turn to the other amendment to the Women's Charter introduced in this Bill. A new section 168 will be added to the Women's Charter to make it clear that the customary marriages contracted before 2nd June, 1967, will continue to be valid, so long as they do not contravene section 4 or 10 of the Women's Charter in force at that time. In some cases, the High Court declared such marriages null and void. The decision of the High Court on these cases will remain unchanged despite this new provision.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House.

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill.-[Encik Othman Bin Wok].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.