Betrothal: Development from the Law concerned Spouses to the Current Family law

Abstract

It was found from the study about the law concerned spouses until the current family law as follows: (1) under the law concerned spouses, the betrothed should be man and woman, but the law did not specify the age of the betrothed, so a boy could engage a girl. Under the family law, the betrothed should have completed seventeenth year of age. At present, under the law in process of amendment, the same gender could be engaged according to the concept of equal marriage, and the betrothed should have completed eighteenth year of age according to Convention on the Rights of the Child. (2) The law concerned spouses assigned on the part of man to give Khanmak and Sinsod to the part of woman. The family law specifies on the part of man to give Khongman to the woman, on Sinsod, the part of man may give or not give it to the part of woman. Under the law in process of amendment which the same gender could be engaged, the betrothed who gives Khongman and Sinsod to another betrothed could be man or woman. (3) The law concerned spouses allowed the parents to conclude betrothal on behalf of their children without consent. But under current family law, the betrothal should take place only with betrothed’s consent.It could be said that the law concerned betrothal has been changed according to the current concepts and social conditions, and Khongman and Sinsod are still currently important in the betrothal.