'Divorce using SMS valid'

'Divorce using SMS valid'

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysian Muslim men can now seek a
divorce just by sending a message to their spouses on their
mobile phones, according to a senior cleric.

Divorce declarations sent via short message services (SMS) on
mobile phones are valid, Hashim Yahya was quoted as saying by
Friday's edition of the Malay-language Berita Harian.

Under Islamic laws, Muslim men who want a separation must
first make a simple declaration -- "I divorce you" -- to their
wives, before taking it to a sharia court.

Muslim women who receive the divorce messages must report to
the sharia courts, which would then validate the declarations
with both husband and wife, he added.

Malaysia's move to validate divorce declarations via mobile
phones followed a recent similar decision by Singapore to accept
such divorce messages, the newspaper said.