The family law court will no longer refer Muslim women to the imam for religious divorce.

Employees at Familieretshuset can no longer refer Muslim women to Mariam Mosque in Copenhagen if they have problems getting out of an Islamic marriage contract.

The public institution has changed its guidelines.

According to the news site Zetland (), in a series of articles about Islamic marriage contracts that keep some women trapped in potentially dangerous relationships, there is a contract that is not valid in Danish law but that some Muslims sign under religious vows. And they need to have it annulled if their divorce is to be recognized in religious terms.

The man himself must initiate the religious divorce, but if he refuses, the woman can still apply for a religious divorce from a religious authority.

'The religious divorce can only take place if the husband takes the initiative. If he does not want to end the marriage, the woman can still apply for a religious divorce from a religious authority,' according to the Danish Institute for Human Rights ().

Many public institutions, such as municipalities, have had a long-standing policy of not interfering in religious divorces because they are outside Danish law. This also applies even if a woman is being held against her will in a potentially violent marriage. For example, Odense Municipality, in an internal document cited by Zetland, has described a no-cooperation policy with 'religious institutions, including imams.'

- If a woman approaches us with a request to help contact or put pressure on an imam, it is important to remember that Odense Municipality has a no-cooperation policy, according to the medium.

Familieretshuset has been the exception to the rule so far.

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'Social workers trapped in a dilemma'

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The normal practice for having an Islamic marriage contract annulled is for the man himself to take the initiative or at least to agree. The marriage contract can be annulled by an imam, but it can be daunting for the woman herself to make contact, out of fear that the man might find out.

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> Now women are left with nothing.

> Jesper Petersen, Islam scholar and lecturer at the University of Copenhagen

So what do social workers do if they encounter a woman who is trapped in a dangerous marriage but, according to the rules, cannot help her by referring her to that one place where she can be freed from it?

Sherin Khankan, who is an imam at Mariam Mosque in Copenhagen and the founder and director of Exitcircle, which helps domestic violence victims, has helped 168 women with Islamic divorces since 2016. (Photo: © Anne Bæk, Scanpix Denmark)

This is the impossible dilemma that public employees and help providers face.

As Islam scholar and lecturer at the University of Copenhagen Jesper Petersen, who has conducted ethnographic fieldwork on the subject, interviewed parties in Islamic divorce cases, and studied hundreds of Islamic divorce documents, tells P1 Morgen (), many social workers and public officials are forced to act outside the rules.

- When I collect applications from mosques and imams, I often see that they come from social workers' private email accounts, he says to P1 Morgen.

- Social workers ask for discretion in these emails, as they know that they are dealing with something that could be career-ending or scandalous.

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What is Familieretshuset?

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Familieretshuset is a public authority that deals with legal matters related to family issues - including divorces, child custody, and cohabitation. The authority also handles cases where there is violence, abuse, and other forms of harm involved.

However, is it also problematic if official Danish authorities help annul Islamic marriage contracts and, in doing so, indirectly recognize something that we do not formally recognize in Danish law?

- Yes, that's a valid concern. My point is not that they should do it. My point is that we are forced to help these women in one way or another. Familieretshuset states that they will no longer refer to it, leaving women in the lurch, says Jesper Petersen.

- Now women are left with nothing.

Familieretshuset has not wished to give an interview but has confirmed to DR in writing that they have changed their guidelines:

- In Denmark, a marriage ends in legal terms when it is dissolved.

When Familieretshuset processes a divorce application, it is Familieretshuset's responsibility to work with the Danish legal framework (Law no. 1080 of August 14, 2023 on marriage registration and dissolution).

If Familieretshuset's employees notice that there may be honor-related or religious conflicts, they can, as part of their general guidance to the public, refer the public to seek help for the conflict that lies outside Familieretshuset's problem-solving capacity.

In cases where there may be a concern for honor-related conflicts, religious issues, or negative social control, the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) has advised Familieretshuset to involve security consultants under SIRI and RED (Center for Handling of Honor-related Conflicts, red.), who have expertise in the area.

It is on the basis of this advice that the workflow description is changed.

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168 women have received religious divorces in mosque

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Sherin Khankan is an imam at Mariam Mosque in Copenhagen and the founder and director of Exitcircle, which helps domestic violence victims. She emphasizes to all women who come to her for an Islamic divorce that it has no legal validity.

But it doesn't solve the problem just to tear up the religious contract, she says. A significant part of the violence is that 'the man does not want to give the woman her freedom.'

- The 168 women who have been with me and received an Islamic divorce have all said that they do not feel free, even if they are civilly divorced, she tells P1 Morgen.

- We cannot ignore the fact that the religious and spiritual significance has the same weight for some people as the legal does.

Sherin Khankan has also recently received inquiries from a Swedish crisis center about help with Islamic divorces. (Photo: © Linda Kastrup, Scanpix Denmark)

If one really wants to help Muslim women who feel trapped in a marriage, the legal and religious must work together, believes Sherin Khankan. And it should be done with the help of imams and mosques.

- We go into and operate in a parallel society that no one else can reach. Mariam Mosque challenges the patriarchal structures by, for example, creating a new marriage contract that gives women unrestricted right to Islamic divorce without the husband's consent.

- One can challenge a parallel society while recognizing the importance of religion. It doesn't have to be either or.

Warning: This article was translated by a Large Language Model, in case of doubt, you can always visit the original source.