Woman ending up victims of injustice - MLP
Anomalies in the criminal code were leading to many women and their children ending victims of injustice, with family court orders not being enforced, Justyne Caruana, Labour Party spokesperson for the family and equality, said yesterday.
She said court orders for maintenance for children born out of wedlock were not being enforced by the criminal court because the criminal code referred only to married couples.
Article 338 (z) of the criminal code dealt with cases related to a decree or contract where a married party was bound to pay maintenance to the other. Failure to pay the maintenance gave entitlement to the injured party to report the matter to the police who would proceed in court to order payment of the maintenance. The procedure served both as a remedy and legal protection for the injured party, and as a deterrent against abuse.
Dr Caruana said recent judgements, even in criminal appeals, interpreted this article to be referring only to married persons. If a couple were not married an injured party could not legally claim for maintenance, even if this was awarded by the family court. The situation was creating serious problems for single mothers who may have been given the right of maintenance by the family court, because the criminal courts were not enforcing the payment of maintenance.
It was clear, Dr Caruana added, that this anomaly should be addressed without delay, and the law amended to deal with the new reality which was hurting children.
