Husband not entitled to wife’s pension: Bahrain Shura

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The Services Committee of the Shura Council yesterday rejected a draft law granting husbands a right in their dead wife’s pension. The committee ruled that the draft law is not equivalent to a rule that authorises widows a right in their husband’s pension.

The committee also pointed out the requirement that a husband is legally bound to provide for his wife and minor children. “The wife is not supposed to spend her earnings on her husband or her minor children, even if the husband is insolvent or unable to work,” the committee said. However, in exceptional circumstances, when a husband is physically incapable of working, he is granted a share. “But that is a humanitarian situation and cannot be generalised,” the committee said.

The Services Committee further warned that passing the law will substantially increase the financial burden on pension funds. The committee pointed out that the draft law contradicts the philosophy of social insurance systems and derails the termination process of a pension if support is no longer required.

For example, the payment will stop when a girl who benefits from her parents’ pension gets married. The son’s share will also stop when he reaches the age of twenty-two. All of these will be affected.