Malian Family Code

The Malian Family Code (French: Code de Famille) is the family law in Mali, passed in 1962.

In 2009, an amendment was proposed (which has not yet been enacted) as widespread protests forced the president to send the bill back to parliament for review. The bill sought to increase women's rights in the country, but was still opposed by some women. The bill was condemned by most religious scholars. It was passed in 2009, but withdrawn later the same year.

In 1962, Mali passed its first Family Code.

The proposed amendment would have recognised only civil marriages, while defining marriage as a secular institution, thus entitling a divorcee to a share of inheritance. Women would have also been allowed greater inheritance rights than what was stipulated by Shariah law, as they would not be required to obey their husbands. The "paternal power" would be replaced with "parental authority," and also said "no marriage can be renounced." Furthermore, the bill raised the legal age for marriage to 18 and allowed divorce if a couple had lived apart for at least three years. A child born outside of marriage would also be entitled to a share of any inheritance.

President Toumani Touré supported the bill, which was seen as a move toward secularism. The law was initially adopted by the National Assembly on August 3, 2009.

During the NGO Forum of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights in Banjul, an African women's rights groups called for the adoption of the bill, saying it "provides some crucial guarantees for Malian women's universal rights, [and] would constitute a fundamental first step towards bringing Malian laws into compliance with international and regional standards." The group cited Mali's ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 1985, the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa in 2005, and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990. It further said: "We are thus deeply concerned that the enactment of this legislation...is in suspense. Violations of Malian women's human rights are favored by this legislative gap. We stress the urgent need to adopt such a code...by ensuring that the second reading takes place without further delay and that the Family Code is enacted in its present form, without weakening of any of its provisions."

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