15-YEAR-OLD MARRIES FATHER OF 2
Teen, 44-year-old Rela member tied the knot in July
YET another case of marriage involving an underage girl has taken place in Kelantan. This time, it involves a 15-yearold girl, who married a 44-yearold People’s Volunteer Corp member, who is a father of two. She is the man’s second wife.
The union was approved by the Syariah Court. The akad took place at Masjid Kampung Laut here in July.
The girl’s parents said poverty drove them to consent to their youngest daughter’s marriage with the man, who is 29 years her senior.
Her father, 60, said he and his wife were introduced to the man from Gua Musang by one of their sons several months ago.
The couple, who run a small sundry shop in front of their house, has 13 children.
He said they made about RM200 to RM300 a month, hardly enough to make ends meet.
He said they gave their consent because they wanted their daughter to have a better life.
“No parent wants to see his or her child live in hardship.
“We do not want our daughter to live in difficulty like us, raising 13 children.
“We want our children to live a more comfortable life. All her siblings are married and have their own lives.
“We know that she is underage, but we wanted the best for her.”
The father, who has 30 grandchildren, said he and his wife agreed to marry off their daughter only after they were convinced that the man could make her happy.
“Even though he is married with two children, he applied for polygamy status from the courts and was granted permission.”
He said his daughter, who studied only up to Form One, did not object to the marriage.
The New Straits Times Press spoke to the girl, who said she was happy to be married.
She said she had no hesitation about marrying the man, although she had known him only for several months.
“I do not mind what people say about me.
“The most important thing is that I am happy with my husband, and I will try to make him happy for the rest of my life.”
The first case of underage marriage that created a firestorm from rights groups was also in July, when a Malaysian rubber trader married an 11-year-old girl from Thailand at a mosque in Kampung Padang Nyor, Sungai Golok, on June 18.
The girl is a friend of the rubber trader’s daughter.
The case was picked up after pictures of their marriage were uploaded on Facebook by the man’s second wife.
The man was charged at the Gua Musang Lower Syariah Court and ordered to pay RM1,800 in fines for marrying without approval and getting into a polygamous marriage without consent.
On July 22, a second case, involving the marriage between a 19-year-old man from Terengganu and a 13-year-old girl from Kelantan, made headlines.
They tied the knot at a mosque in Kampung Pulau Nibong here on June 20.
Women’s groups and social activists urged the government to take legislative action to put an end to child marriages in the country.
The Joint Action Group for Gender Equality said this must be done by raising the marriage age to 18.
It said Muslim-majority countries that raised the minimum age of marriage included Algeria (19), Bangladesh (18 for women and 21 for men), Morocco (18) and Turkey (18).
It said solemnisation of Muslim marriages in Thailand demonstrated loopholes in the Malaysian legal system.