By Constantinos Psillides
WITH DIVORCE rates steadily on the rise – 2036 divorces out of 5806 marriages in 2012 compared to 1514 divorces out of 5881 marriages in 2005 – bitter child custody battles are an ever increasing concern.
Apart from cases where the mother is non-Cypriot and the father Cypriot, family courts heavily favour the mother, awarding her single custody in nine out of 10 cases and agreeing to a visitation plan for the father.
But proposed new, ground-breaking legislation would allow parents to request equal time with their children. Under the new proposals, the noncustodial parent would be allowed to spend the same amount of time with their child as the custodial one provided strict criteria are met and the child agrees.
Roulla Mavronicola, the EDEK MP who is spearheading this initiative, told the Sunday Mail that the sole concern driving this proposal was the welfare of children.
“The studies we have seen, conducted in Belgium, Holland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway, all come to the same conclusion,” she said. “Spending time with both parents is beneficial for child development. We want to incorporate these findings into our legal system and allow loving parents to spend more time with their children should they choose to do so.”
She said the aim was not to intervene but to help.
“If a couple agrees upon a visitation schedule that satisfies everyone involved nobody will force them to change it. This is not how this works. The proposed legislation comes into play only when the couple is in disagreement and go to court to solve their differences. The legislation is there to ensure that both parents, despite of who is awarded custody, have the chance to spend equal amount with their children.”
The EDEK MP said she was well aware that the issue was complicated and that there were many factors to consider. Safeguards would be put in place to ensure that the outcome was best for the child.
“We want the child to feel equally comfortable spending time with both his parents. We don’t want the child packing a bag every time he/she visits the noncustodial parent.” She said.
In a custody dispute the judge makes a decision based on a report drafted by the Welfare Services. Mavronicola said that their goal was to set up a committee that would evaluate the parent requesting for more time, to determine whether they met the set criteria.
This would include whether the parent was abusive, whether they could afford to provide the child with stable living environment and whether they really want to spend more time with their child or simply want to get back at their former spouse.
Asked about the child’s part in the process, Mavronicola said that the child’s wishes would be of paramount importance.
“We won’t force a child to spend more time with a parent if the child doesn’t want to,” she said. “But, in our experience, most of the times when children are asked which parent they wish to stay with they want both. You have to remember; it’s the parents that are getting a divorce, not the children.”
The benefits of spending time with both parents are also backed by experts.
Dr Αnthi Loutsiou, licensed clinical psychologist and director of clinical training in the department of psychology at the University of Cyprus, told the Sunday Mail that scientific evidence from contemporary psychology “has led the field to a paradigm shift towards a perspective that sees fathers and mothers as equally important to a child’s healthy development, with complementary roles, and equally fit to take on the role of the primary caregiver in cases of divorce.”
Dr Loutsiou said that absent extraordinary circumstances, fathers and mothers are equally fit and equally important.
“Two parents, that are otherwise equally fit, should be treated as such, otherwise this is simply gender stereotyping and bias,” she said.
Regarding the proposed legislation, the clinical psychologist argued that from a psychological perspective there was no magic formula that fit all cases since many factors had to be considered. “Different visitation plans will best serve the needs of different children and different families. The compass should always be to serve the best interests of the child involved in the divorce,” she said.
Mavronicola hopes that besides contributing to the child’s development, the proposed legislation would also put an end to messy custody battles, where children end up being used as leverage.
“We heard just about everything. Fathers filing for more time with their kids to force their former wives to lower child support; mothers withholding visitation rights to their former husbands in exchange for more money or to get back at them and just about everything in between,” she said.
She said the proposed legislation would put a stop to this.
“Knowing that each parent can unilaterally ask for more visitation rights, and only have to prove to the state that they are fit to do so, will act as a deterrent for those parents who don’t hesitate in exploiting their child in such a manner.”
Giorgos Constantinides – a lawyer specialising in family law – also supports a change in the law.
“Unfortunately children are more often than not exploited in divorce cases to extract some sort of gain, usually monetary. Children are the real victims in divorce cases,” said Constantinides.
The legislation, he said, would likely even out the field for fathers who really care for their children.
“Fathers who honestly care and are not out to harm their wives would definitely benefit from this since they won’t have to jump through hoops to spend more time with their kids. In that respect, this legislation could be helpful,” he said, pointing out that in the case of a custody battle a two afternoon visitation a week and taking the children every other weekend was one of best settlements a father could hope for under present circumstances.
While the MP’s goals are definite, the amendment is still in its early stages.
“The legislation is currently under legal review. When we have a clear legal framework in our hands we will call on the experts, such as child-psychologists and Welfare Services. With their help and input we will polish the amendment and take it for a discussion to the House. If all parties are in agreement then it goes to the plenum,” said Mavronicola, pledging that she would do her best to push through legislation as soon as possible.
She acknowledged that there was opposition, and that she had received calls from mothers protesting her actions and accusing her of proposing legislation that attacks women.
The MP rejected that notion.
“Not only this amendment does not attack women, it actually protects both them and the children. It will aid them should they not be awarded custody. It will significantly reduce the number of lengthy custody disputes,” she explained.
“Children are the ones benefiting them most out of this and in the end that should be everyone’s goal.”
