A number of Muslim NGOs have lent their weight to the proposal that Muslim men should marry single mothers instead of "young virgins" if they are to take additional wives.

petrol hike talk 170406 zaid kamaruddin Jamaah Islah Malaysia (JIM) president Zaid Kamaruddin (left) welcomed the suggestion, adding that the proposal was in line with what is preached in Islam.

"It may raise eyebrows because it is about polygamy, but I can understand the reasoning behind the proposal," he said.

"If a man was to take another wife, it would be good to consider this. If one is going to practice polygamy, it might as well be beneficial to someone else," he said.

He was responding to Kelantan executive councillor Wan Ubaidah Omar's suggestion to help thousands of single mothers in the state, which has one of the highest divorce rates in Malaysia.

"Even if I don't make the suggestion, these men are going to marry the second, third wife anyway but I have to emphasise that under Islam, only those who have the social and economic capacity can have additional wives," said Wan Ubaidah, who said her proposal was not meant to encourage polygamy.

Polygamous marriage is allowed in Islam, and Muslim men can marry up to four women with the consent of the Islamic Syariah Court.

However, Zaid stressed that the concern for the welfare of single mothers should not stop at the making them second, third or fourth wives.

"The better thing would be to take single mothers as first wives," said Zaid.

Polygamy common in Kelantan

Mohamad Raimi Ab Rahim, secretary-general of Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim), also lauded the initiative.

"There is no injunction in Islam to wed more than one person. And given that polygamy is quite common in Kelantan compared to other states in the Peninsular... this (the proposal) is not something that comes as a surprise," said Mohamad Raimi.

Nevertheless, Mohamad Raimi stressed that the practise of Muslim men taking multiple wives require strict monitoring.

"The couples need to register their marriage, and even when it comes to the point where the couples have to dissolve their marriage... it must be facilitated," said Mohamad Raimi.

"This is the ensure that polygamy is just and fair to all parties."

Mohamad Raimi also said that the welfare of single mothers or widows must be look after even for those not married.

Different categories of ‘beautiful women'

musa awang syarie lawyers association pgsm Meanwhile, Syarie Lawyers Association vice-president Musa Awang (left) suggested slotting single mothers into different categories to better help them.

This is to ensure that single mothers need not work in order to raise her children.

"Maybe we can priortise single mothers who have low income and many children, say more than five. This is the category that needs help," he said.

If she is a "beautiful woman, who has a successful career and no dependents", she would fall into a different category, he added.

"People who want to marry widows or single mothers will still need to follow the legal process. If they do not follow the law, and they get married in Thailand, and this would increase the divorce rate," said Musa.