DPM: Child marriage illegal, meeting today
TAWAU: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail will discuss with the relevant government department and agencies today over the marriage between an 11-yearold girl and a 41-year-old man in Kelantan.
She said the meeting would involve, among others, the Social Welfare Department (JKM) and the Syariah Court.
“What we want to do is to meet with JKM, the Syariah Court and all the relevant agencies for the best interests of the child.
“This is important. Whatever it is, we have to take note of the matter and make the necessary considerations to protect the rights of the child,” she told a press conference after attending the “Majlis Himpunan Merdeka Rakyat” and Tawau parliamentary constituency Aidilfitri Open House here yesterday.
This followed several images of a man marrying an 11-yearold girl as his third wife in Gua Musang, Kelantan, which went viral on the social media since last Friday after the pictures were shared by the man's second wife.
Earlier, Wan Azizah said the marriage between the 11-yearold girl and the 41-year-old man is illegal.
She said this was because the marriage had not received the consent of the Syariah court as the girl was under the minimum legal age for marriage.
“The marriage is not legal and they must be separated,” she told a press conference after officiating an Aidilfitri open house with 2,000 asnaf orphans organised by Insaf Malaysia at the Setiawangsa Mini Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.
According to the Islamic Family Law Enactment which applies in all states, the minimum legal age for marriage is 18 for a male and 16 for a female. Those under the legal minimum age will only be permitted for marriage if they get the consent of the Syariah court and their parents.
Child marriage issue once again came into the spotlight after the news of a 41-year-old man who took a girl 30 years younger than him as his third wife went viral on social media, drawing flak from various parties since Friday.
Initial investigations by the Kelantan Welfare Department found that the marriage took place in Golok, Thailand and the girl's parents were said to be Thai nationals.
Wan Azizah, who is also Women, Family and Community Development Minister said her ministry's officials were still unable to locate the groom.
In the meantime, she said the child marriage issue should be viewed in a holistic manner and whether such a case involved any elements of paedophilia, child exploitation and child pornography.
Wan Azizah also said that it was time for the minimum age for marriage for female be increased from 16 to 18.
In Kota Bharu, Kelantan police ruled out any criminal element in the marriage of the 11-year-old girl and the 41-year-old man.
State deputy police chief Datuk Din Ahmad said initial investigation revealed that there were no element of threats or coercion on the child to marry the man.
“The investigation into the case was launched after we received a police report lodged by the 34-year-old wife of the man at the Gua Musang District Police headquarters on Saturday.
“However, the case has been handed over to the Kelantan Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JAHEAIK) and it is learned that the case is being investigated under the Islamic Family Law Enactment 2002 for marrying an underage girl,” he told a press conference here yesterday.
Din said said police did not arrest the man, who is a scrap rubber dealer, as the marriage was agreed upon by both parties.
Meanwhile, the National Council of Women's Organisations Malaysia (NCWO) urged the government to act firmly, including amending the Sexual Offences against Children Act 2017.
In a statement yesterday, NCWO, which represents 77 national-level non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and 130 state-level NGOs, also wanted the government to prosecute the man according to the Criminal Procedure Code and bring up the matter to the Conference of Rulers, as well as streamline the Syariah laws with religious departments to stop underage marriage.
“Child marriage is clearly detrimental and that has been proven in various studies at national and international levels.
“All parties comprising government agencies, the society, researchers and international organisations including the Discourse of the National Council of Fatwa Committee Pertaining Islamic Religious Affairs in 2004, have concluded that the practice of underage marriage is improper and harmful to the children,” the statement said.