Bahrain

Gender Gap Index[1]

Legislation[2]

Family Code/ Personal Status Law

• In 2009, Bahrain adopted a personal status code for the first time, although this only applies to Sunni Muslims. Prior to this, matters relating to the family, marriage and inheritance were governed by the Shari'ah courts, and by Shari’ah and customary law, which differed according to which religious sect a woman belongs to.
• This is still the case for women who are not Sunni Muslims, including the Shiite majority, with the result that cases are decided on the basis of judges' personal interpretations of Islamic texts instead of codified law, often meaning that women's rights are ignored or violated in the courts.
• The civil courts govern personal status matters for non-Muslims.

Marriage

• As of 2007, the minimum age of marriage is fixed at 18 for males and 15 for females. Shari'ah courts have the power to make exceptions in cases of 'urgent need' (not specified)
• Only marriages concluded under Shari'ah law are legally recognised in Bahrain for its citizens
• The most recent figures on early marriage (from the UN in 2001) indicate that at that time 4.2% of girls aged 15-19 were married, divorced or widowed
• Parental Authority: It is unclear whether men and women have equal parental authority over children during marriage. However, the father retains legal custody following divorce. In addition, the husband is legally recognized as the guardian of his wife
• There is no criminal or civil legislation in place in Bahrain protecting women from domestic violence. As of 2011 a draft domestic violence law was under discussion.

Divorce

• Since 2009, custody of children is assigned to Sunni women for boys up to the age of 15 and girls up to the age of 17 or until married. The ages are 7 and 9 respectively for Shiite women.
• Women can only have physical custody, the father always retains legal custody.
• A woman also loses custody if she remarries
• Apart from a very narrow range of circumstances, only men are able to initiate divorce

Resources and Assets

• Women do not enjoy equal inheritance rights as wives and daughters, which is governed by Shari'ah law. However, in the absence of a direct male heir, Bahraini Shiite interpretations allow daughters to inherit the full estate of a deceased father
• Property and land ownership is governed by civil law in Bahrain, not by Shari'ah law. Under civil law, women have the same legal capacity as men
• Under Bahrain’s Constitution, Commercial Code, and National Action Charter, women have the right to own, access, and manage land and non-land assets (property other than land)
• Upon marriage, a woman retains control and ownership of any property that she owns unless stipulated in the marriage contract; she can manage and dispose of that property without her husband’s consent
• Women and men have the same legal rights to access financial services, including credit and bank loans (law not specified)

Employment

• Discrimination in employment on the basis of gender is illegal in Bahrain, and it is illegal to dismiss a woman from employment while she is on maternity leave.
• Pregnant women in Bahrain are entitled to 45 days' paid maternity leave, and a further 15 days unpaid. While on maternity leave, a woman receives 100% of her salary. Paid maternity leave is financed by the employer
• Under the new personal status law, married Sunni women must still obtain their husband's permission before taking employment outside the home.
• Migrant women workers face legal restrictions on their freedom of movement, as their legal status in the country is dependent on their employers. They cannot leave the country until their employer has cancelled their work visa, and must wait one year before they can change jobs within Bahrain.