A Lebanese baby recently became the country’s first ‘sect-less’ child, after his parents decided to leave the sect field blank on his birth certificate.
In Lebanon, a person’s religious sect matters significantly in professional, political, and social matters.
The baby’s parents, Nidal Darwish and Kholoud Sukkarieh, wanted to pass on their support for national Lebanese identity rather than sectarian religious identity. Earlier this year, they became the first couple to have a civil marriage in Lebanon. Now, their baby – one-month-old Ghadi – has reportedly become the first child registered there without a sect specified on his birth certificate.
A Lebanese baby recently became the country’s first ‘sect-less’ child, after his parents decided to leave the sect field blank on his birth certificate.
In Lebanon, a person’s religious sect matters significantly in professional, political, and social matters.
The baby’s parents, Nidal Darwish and Kholoud Sukkarieh, wanted to pass on their support for national Lebanese identity rather than sectarian religious identity. Earlier this year, they became the first couple to have a civil marriage in Lebanon. Now, their baby – one-month-old Ghadi – has reportedly become the first child registered there without a sect specified on his birth certificate.