Stop child marriage

The July 3 news of the so-called marriage of a 11-year-old Thai girl with a 41-year-old Malaysian Muslim man has once again caused outrage and turned the spotlight on this unacceptable practice of child marriage. In this case it was done in secrecy and the girl child became the third wife of the Malaysian man in Thailand. The case became public only after it was reported to the police by one of the wives. While that is good, perhaps it is only the tip of the iceberg and one really does not know how many more such cases of child marriage occur both in Malaysia and in Thailand, or across the borders, that remain in silence.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC) to which both Malaysia and Thailand are signatories defines child marriage as “a marriage where one (or both) partners are below the age of 18 years”.

A recent study conducted in Malaysia by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia estimated that there were over 15,000 girls who were married before the age of 15 years by October 2010. Child marriage is therefore widespread, among both Muslim and nonMuslim communities. In Thailand, the Child Protection Act in Article 4 defines a child as “a person below 18 years of age but does not include those who have attained maturity through marriage” (Article 4). Moreover, Section 1435 of Book V of the Civil and Commercial Code defines “the minimum age of marriage as 17”; however, “parental consent is required if the spouse is under 21” (Section 1436). These legal provisions are not in compliance with the CRC, but more importantly, leave loopholes for cases as this recent one to occur again. It is time therefore that these legal provisions on child marriage are reviewed.

Unicef Malaysia has issued a statement expressing outrage on this case and stating it is a clear violation of the rights of the child and not in the child’s best interest. Subsequently, the Minister for Women, Family and Community Development in Malaysia has instituted an inquiry into this case, which is very welcome and hopefully will reveal the circumstances in which child marriage occurs in such situations.

It is time that both Malaysia and Thailand in keeping with its obligations under the CRC institute urgent law reform to set the legal age of marriage at 18 years — for both boys and girls — without exception. If we really value and respect our children, they deserve the right to be protected from child marriage.

VICTOR KARUNAN