ABU DHABI // A rise in the number of cases of women abandoned by their husbands should be investigated and dealt with, a Federal National Council member will tell the Minister of Social Affairs this week.

During Tuesday’s session, when discussions on the country’s first law on Child Rights resumes, Musabeh Al Kitbi (Sharjah) will first ask Mariam Al Roumi about what he perceives to be a new phenomenon in the country.

He said abandoned women fear seeking government aid and those who do earn fewer benefits than divorcees, even though they faced similar problems.

“I want to know what is the role of the ministry in ending this problem,” he said. “We want to know how big of a problem is this and is it [morally] acceptable?”

He said men deserting their wives left them in limbo where they were “not considered a divorcee, nor a wife”.

He said the least the ministry could do was increase their benefits, currently a little over Dh3,000 monthly, by Dh1,000 to bring them in line with divorcees’ benefits.

And once the ministry is notified of cases, he said the Ministry of Justice should try to resolve any disputes or force the husband to resolve the matter either by staying with his wife or divorcing her.

“They need to bring them in and give them an ultimatum,” he said. “So that the woman knows where she stands.”

Mr Al Kitbi said a number of women feared turning to the courts because of threats from their husbands. Others do not want to be labelled as divorcees.

“Some husbands warn their wives that if they seek help, they would take the children,” he said, adding that women should not have to deal with abandonment, and that they had rights as well.

A number of other members also plan to question the minister on Tuesday, with Hamad Al Rahoomi (Dubai) bringing up the issue of Government centres for Emiratis with extreme disabilities and autism; and Salim Al Ameri (Abu Dhabi) asking about an increase in the number of Government nurseries.

Marwan bin Ghalita (Dubai) will also seek answers from the minister over the long delay in approving bylaws for a piece of legislation passed months ago by the President, Sheikh Khalifa, guaranteeing rights for children with unknown parentage.

During the second half of the session, members will resume the debate over the Child Right’s bill. The last debate ended on Article 14 of 77.

The public session will be held at the FNC Abu Dhabi headquarters starting at 9am.

osalem@thenational.ae