An exploration of the ramification of divorce on international human rights of women in Qatar

Abstract

The aim of the study was to explore the effects of divorce on the international human rights of women in Qatar, with a particular focus on domestic abuse. The critical perspective was utilised under both the socio-legal and doctrinal analyses. The critical perspective was informed by several theories identified in the literature review, including Islamic feminism, post-structuralism, and intersectionality. The findings are based on the synthesised analysis of Qatari family law, implementation of human rights of women treaty obligations, reservations to CEDAW, and three original court decisions. The findings reveal that oppression and discrimination of women in Qatar occur on account of a set of five categories of factors - legal, social, cultural, political and economic. The effects of these factors which are systemic, systematic and structural, display intersectionality, such as the role of social and cultural factors on the legal aspects. The analysis of the legal frameworks that govern the family affairs, coupled with laws that sanction discrimination and domestic violence reveals a gap in the extent to which Qatar protects women from discrimination. First, since there are no explicit provisions sanctioning intimate partner violence, the position of the Qatari government against domestic violence is not supported by the existing laws and how those laws are applied to incidences of violence against women. The results are evident from the three judicial decisions, whereby, although emancipation through divorce enabled the female victims to escape domestic abuse, the sanctions imposed on the perpetrators of the violence were insufficient. These legal factors can be attributed to the presence of a socio-culturally constructed patriarchal system, which perpetuates the perspective that men are superiority than women. This power dynamic accounts for the differences in how men and women are treated, both under law and in practice. Within this patriarchy, the interests of women are overlooked in most contexts. Ultimately, while the law provides for women to utilise divorce for emancipation from abusive marriages, there are limitations to this option. Similarly, the analysis of laws relating to citizenship reveals that while Qatari men automatically transmit birth-right citizenship to their children, such an assurance is not available to Qatari women married to non-Native men. The available options for such children to acquire citizenship are through a naturalisation process that features numerous bottlenecks. The provisions have implications on the oppression of Qatari women, who, due to the economic subjugation within the institution of marriage, have to consider their options regarding their ability to survive in the post-divorce period. Second, an analysis of the extent to which Qatar has fulfilled its CEDAW treaty obligations reveals the imposition of reservations, understandings and declarations (RUDs) in at least 5 articles under the treaty provisions. Qatar has adopted a customised RUDs regime, whereby reservations are made with reference to specific components of the provisions under certain articles, rather than the provisions under an entire article. The approach is indicative of the degree to which Qatar is committed to adhering to as much of the provisions as possible. The RUDs are attributed to the incompatibility between the provisions under CEDAW regarding the empowerment of women, as well as their emancipation from discrimination of all forms, and the provisions under Shariah law. Ultimately, considering the integral nature of Shariah law as a component of Qatari law, the most possible outcome in terms of improvement in treaty obligations under CEDAW by Qatar is the quantitative improvement under the provisions that no reservations exist, rather than qualitative improvement through changes to the RUDs regime. Finally, the analysis of judicial decisions regarding the application of the laws to scenarios where Qatari women sought divorce as an emancipation from domestic abuse reveals two key outcomes. On one hand, the existing laws are insufficient to legislate against intimate partner violence, and other forms of abuse of women within the institution of marriage. The lack of willingness for the country to utilise laws that govern violence to bridge the gaps is indicative of the procedural failures in Qatari jurisprudence. On the other hand, the application of Qatari laws for emancipation of women from abusive marriages does not necessarily enable women to enjoy international human rights. The analysis reveals the apparent role of patriarchy in determining what parts of the law to apply, as well as the types of sanctions to impose on the perpetrators in remedying the infringements. However, in spite of the provisions therein, the three cases reveal that the bare minimum protections assured to the parties of a divorce proceedings, specifically towards women can be excluded from the settlement. The findings highlight the ways through which the option of divorce as an emancipation from domestic abuse can end up exposing the woman to additional suffering.