Duma discuss proposal to oblige parents to bring up their children jointly after divorce
Russia’s State Duma discuss a proposal to oblige parents to bring up their children jointly after their divorce
01.04.2025
Article published on the moscowtimes.ru website
State Duma deputies are working on a bill that would oblige divorced parents to continue raising their children together so that he or she grows up to be a “patriotic and socially responsible person”.
Dmitry Kuznetsov, a member of the Duma’s International Affairs Committee, told MKS1 that this proposed legislation would help protect children and secure Russia’s future. He said that in divorce proceedings, the courts will more often than not decide to leave the child with its mother, while the father is left with the role of “Sunday animator”, which leads to an erosion of traditional values and lack of patriotism.
“When there’s a crisis, your child is likely to make a dash for Verkhny Lars (a checkpoint on the border with Georgia, through which many Russians have fled to escape mobilisation to fight in the war in Ukraine) because he hasn’t had a male role model to follow”, said Kuznetsov. It is possible that a woman will want to receive maintenance payments and divide up property but not allow him to be involved in their child’s life even at weekends, he continued. The deputy believes that men are afraid to have a family under current legislation, which he is seeking to amend.
Under proposed amendments to the Federation’s Family Code, the courts will be able to determine the schedule by which the child’s time is spent equally between both parents in the event of their divorce. However, parents will also be able to suggest their own conditions.
Homeless people, migrants, relocatees as well as those who have been denied parental rights or those who pose a danger to a child, may be exempted from their obligation to contribute to its upbringing.
The law also mentions cases in which a person “refuses to co-parent”, or “evades his/her responsibilities”. What sanctions are envisaged for the latter is not specified.
In the bill’s Explanatory Note, the deputies say that children are no longer an impediment in their parents’ decision to divorce, and are calling for an end to this “social reality”. The legislators are confident that this proposed initiative will help keep couples from separating.
It has been reported that MPs from *BRICS countries and Israel have been involved in the drafting of the bill, which will be submitted to the State Duma in two months’ time.
“The sooner the bill is adopted, the fewer victims there will be. If it takes five to ten years to agree, more children will need psychological help. This is a legislative decision not to build paradise on earth but to avoid descending into hell”, said Kuznetsov.
*BRICS is an inter-governmental organisation consisting of ten countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
