The Convergence of Financial Violence and Polygamy in Pakistan

Shahyan Naeem is a final year law student at the University of London International Programmes and is currently working as a researcher in the human rights cell at Walker Martineau Saleem Advocates & Legal Consultants.

Introduction

In an inherently unjust society, such as Pakistan, the threat or use of violence against women is a pandemic which relevant stakeholders fail to adequately address and rather, silently authorise, exacerbating the ways in which women could be exploited and abused. Polygamy stands as one of such violent acts that plague Pakistani society – detrimentally affecting women not only physically, emotionally, and socially, but also financially. It is to be noted that financial violence, which forms the main basis for this paper, may exist independently of polygamy. However, in most case scenarios, polygamy acts as a catalyst which metamorphosizes into financial violence. This paper provides an outlook on what financial violence entails, along with the dissection of the existing legislative framework authorising polygamous marriages in Pakistan. Further, the nexus between polygamy and financial violence shall be delineated explicating the need to enhance financial protection for women, in addition to departing from the notion of collectivism to individualism.

What is Financial Violence?

Financial violence being categorised as a form of domestic abuse includes acts of withholding money, stealing money, debt manipulation, and restricting the use of finances. This is endemic in Pakistani society to the extent that even its diaspora is well-known to commit such forms of violence abroad. Other forms of financial abuse range from withholding money from partners, and one that is prevalent in Pakistan: refusing to pay household expenses. With a vast majority of women not being formally educated, and/or are stay-at-home wives, when struck with such situations, have no safety net to fall back on.

Women in Pakistan are subject to immense restrictions preventing them from attaining education, choosing their professions, travelling independently, and thus, a hindrance on how they may use their own finances only adds insult to injury. To obtain a glimpse of the wide range of financial abuse that takes place on Pakistani soil, statistics from the province of Punjab illustrate that this form of violence is present at a shocking 83.71%, which encompasses men accessing their wives’ incomes or assets without consent, using wives’ total income, and prevention of wives from working outside homes. In addition, other forms of financial violence such as withholding money and refusing to meet household expenses were reported at 39% in 2008, and it is conceivable for this value to have increased exponentially since.

Polygamy

The major contribution to financial abuse is the endemic polygyny in Pakistani societies, leaving women the choice to either divorce and be shunned by societal stereotypes or forever hold their silence. A substantial amount chooses the latter option considering the stereotypes involved, while many women sacrifice for their children aiming to provide them a life with a father. However, with this sacrifice comes a life long unbearable partnership with someone who may, among other forms, use finances as means of violence.

The proponents of polygamy contend that it is an unfettered right of men, relying upon Surah 4, Verse 3 of the Quran which reads as under:

“4:3 Each man may marry two or three or four but do not exceed this; but if you fear you will not be equitable towards them in terms of their expenses and individual share; then marry only one”

In Pakistan, statutory footing is provided to this ‘right’ via section 6 of the Muslim Family Law Ordinance 1961. Notwithstanding that a second marriage in the subsistence of a first marriage without the consent of the first wife is construed as a violent and ‘cruel’ act, which in turn amounts to a valid ground for seeking khula (divorce), it is the accompanying acts of violence which are of great adversity.

Taking up a second wife demands a man to bear responsibility for another woman resulting in further division of finances, assets, attention and time. The inevitable by-product of a second marriage is that the first wife who acquiesced to her husband’s second union is forced to accept a cut in her expenses (if she received any). It is of essence to note that subsequent verses of the same Surah uphold that a man can never maintain justice between his wives in the following words, negating the very requirement that acts as a prerequisite for a second or subsequent marriage for men:

“You will not be able to treat your wives with absolute justice not even when you keenly desire to do so”

The major lacuna in the jurisprudence is the lack of an effective legal provision maintaining financial protection of the first wife when the husband contracts a second marriage. Pre-existing framework provides a woman with the right to seek dissolution of marriage or in the alternative, a suit for maintenance. Latter, however, comes at the cost of estrangement of relationship with the husband. In addition to this, approaching the courts for either dissolution of marriage or suit for maintenance, would subject the woman to bear the delays and costs in suing her own husband. Women with restricted financial means often find themselves in a worsened position after opting for a legal recourse, due to these very exorbitant costs and inefficiencies in the legal system.

Polygamy’s Financial Trap

While polygamous marriages themselves exhibit a higher incidence of emotional difficulties ranging from anxiety, poor mental health, and less satisfaction with life, such marriages are often interwoven with familial and economic problems. In addition, women in Pakistan are subjected to restricted financial independence caused by the lack of economic participation and opportunities. This lack of financial autonomy when coupled with polygamy can have drastic consequences for the wife especially the senior wives, i.e., the women who were the first to marry the husband.

Such women remain under the sensations that they have failed their duties of being a wife and as a result of their husband’s second or more unions, lose emotional and financial support. When a man undergoes the economic burden of raising multiple families, it is nearly impossible for him to equitably divide his resources amongst his different families — the major chunk of which is disproportionately inclined in favor of his second or subsequent wives. Compounding the problem, the senior wives are rendered helpless as they neither have the financial means to sustain themselves nor do they have the support of their families to get out of the clutches of a toxic marriage as the women who seek divorce or other modes of dissolution of marriage are still prevalently seen as societal taboos. Research showing how senior wives in some circumstances have to ask the junior wives for finances to buy food as their husbands fail to provide for them exemplifies the nexus between lack of financial autonomy and polygamy.

Capitalizing on the cultural taboo associated with a divorced woman in Pakistan, the husband is able to further his dominion over his first wife, even obtaining her acquiescence to his second (or subsequent) unions. This dominant position is what men in Pakistan are notorious for exploiting to their wife’s detriment; a mentality which has arguably been worsened by the prevalence of a peculiar form of misogyny promoted by the likes of ‘Andrew Tate’. In circumstances where the first wife is a working woman, the husband may exploit her for money by either depriving her of the maintenance that he owes her or by syphoning of the sums so earned by the wife. Such blackmail may also encompass verbal or physical abuse. The prevalent socio-cultural reality of developing countries like Pakistan underscores the existential dependency of a wife on her husband – especially when the wife would rather choose to remain married to a man who not only commits polygyny, but who also subjects her to various forms of violence.

This existential dependency of the wife prevalent in South Asia is possibly because of the communal setup of the societies. The nature of such communities is inclined heavily toward collectivism, holding dear to it, notions of ‘honor’ and what ‘others might say’. The orientation of the Pakistani society entails that once married, the woman is not to leave her matrimonial home, at least not until she is dead. The inevitable backlash which a divorcee must face further seconds the prejudices directed by the collectivistic orientation of the society against women – all of which could be remedied by a move toward individualism.

Conclusion

Women ought not to be subjected to any duress or questions by their families or the family of their husbands if they decide to walk away from the shackles of a violent marriage. The society or any member of it has no right to direct any statements or questions, such as ‘Who would marry her now?’, ‘She should have thought about her children’, that strip away individual autonomy from women. Financial violence in marriage is only exacerbated because of the apparent helplessness of the wife to leave the marriage, which helplessness is greatly attributable to societal and cultural stereotypes. Therefore, for a change, society ought to respect the individuality of all, especially women. Without the move toward individualism, the wife, especially the first wife, would not be able to escape the clutches of financial violence.

Disclaimer: Any and all opinions and views represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to the author(s) of the blog and do not represent the opinions or views of the Centre for Human Rights.