Background
Khatijun Nissa Siraj was born in 1925, the daughter of a wealthy businessman of Indian descent.
Khatijun Nissa Siraj was born in 1925, the daughter of a wealthy businessman of Indian descent.
Siraj was the first case worker for the court, which had authority over marriages and divorces. In addition to her work with the PPIS, Siraj worked with a number of other organizations that worked to improve women"s welfare. Women did not have a say in whether or not they wanted a divorce, and there was no requirement that the wife be informed of the impending divorce before it took place.
The organization pressed lawmakers to create better legal protection for women.
Their legislative victories included the outlawing of polygamy and the formation of a Syariah Court in November 1958. Siraj was the court"s first caseworker.
The court had jurisdiction over marriage and divorce, could order husbands to pay alimony, and before polygamy was outlawed, could force a husband to secure his first wife"s consent before marrying a second wife. The book Our Lives to Live: Putting a Woman"s Face to Change in Singapore credits Siraj, Che Zahara binte Noor Mohamed, and Shirin Fozdar as the main forces behind the court"s formation.
In 1961 the Women"s Charter, a significant piece of legislation for women"s rights, was passed.
Despite the passage of the Charter, and improvements to divorce and polygamy laws, women in the community were in need of social services. In 2014, Khatijun Nissa Siraj was recognized for her social and advocacy work by the Singapore Council of Women"s Organisations, which inducted Siraj into the Singapore Women"s Hall of Fame.
Before becoming an activist, Siraj spent her time as a volunteer at the Saint Andrew"s Mission Hospital and as a member of the management committees of the Singapore Children"s Society and the Family Planning Association.