Moves to Let Children Meet Separated Parents in Malls and Play Areas

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

A proposal to widen where children can meet a separated parent has been recommended for approval by Parliament’s Services Committee, opening the way for visits in shopping malls, family cafés, play areas and other child-friendly sites.

The amended proposal, tied to Article 139 of Bahrain’s Family Law, seeks to move some visits away from closed or formal spaces and into settings closer to ordinary family outings.

It was submitted by MPs Basema Mubarak, Ahmed Al Salloom, Lulwa Al Rumaihi, Jalal Kadhem and Eman Shuwaiter.

The committee said it had agreed revised wording with the MPs behind the proposal, including a change to the number of the related article in the Family Law.

The proposal says a wider choice of venues would give children a calmer setting when meeting a parent who does not have custody, while keeping the visit rooted in the child’s welfare.

Its explanatory note says the change is based on the best interests of the child and falls within Bahrain’s Family Law, Law No. 19 of 2017, which governs visitation rights.

It argues that visits in closed or formal surroundings can raise anxiety and leave the child linking the meeting to court rows or family breakdown.

Shopping malls, play areas and family cafés, the MPs said, can give children a greater sense of ease and belonging during contact with the visiting parent.

The proposal also says public venues can help build a healthier bond between the child and the visiting parent by allowing more natural contact, away from the strain between separated parents.

It adds that the effects of divorce on children can be eased when they are still able to enjoy ordinary social and leisure activities like their peers.

The MPs said children’s needs differ by age, making it useful to offer a wider range of places suited to each child’s stage of growth.