{"id":146,"date":"2017-04-13T08:40:01","date_gmt":"2017-04-13T08:40:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/?p=146"},"modified":"2017-10-10T19:26:17","modified_gmt":"2017-10-10T19:26:17","slug":"human-rights-watch-urges-lebanon-to-pass-bill-to-end-child-marriage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/human-rights-watch-urges-lebanon-to-pass-bill-to-end-child-marriage\/","title":{"rendered":"Human Rights Watch urges Lebanon to Pass Bill to End Child Marriage"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Beirut) \u2013 Lebanon\u2019s<\/a> parliament should quickly pass legislation to end child marriage in the country, Human Rights Watch said today.<\/p>\n

Lebanon has no minimum age for marriage for all of its citizens or any civil code regulating personal status matters. Instead, religious courts set the age based on 15 personal status laws, some of which<\/a> allow girls younger than 15 to marry. A draft law, introduced on March 28, 2017, would set the minimum age for marriage at 18, with no exceptions.<\/p>\n

\u201cLegislation prohibiting child marriage is long overdue for Lebanon,\u201d said Lama Fakih<\/a>, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. \u201cSetting 18 as the national minimum age for marriage will go a long way toward protecting children from the horrors of early marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n

The draft law would penalize anyone contributing to or complicit in the marriage of a child<\/a> with fines equal to 10 times the minimum wage and prison sentences ranging from six months to two years. The bill was prepared by the Lebanese Women\u2019s Democratic Gathering<\/a> and introduced by Elie Keirouz, a member of parliament.<\/p>\n

According to a 2016 UNICEF report<\/a>, six percent of women in Lebanon ages 20 to 24 married before they turned 18. Child marriage appears to be on the rise among the more than 1 million Syrian refugees in the country, with one 2017 study<\/a> finding that 24 percent of refugee girls ages 15 to 17 are married. Women\u2019s rights organizations in Lebanon, including Kafa<\/a> and Abaad<\/a>, have long worked on campaigns to set the minimum age for marriage at 18.<\/p>\n

Early marriage<\/a> can have dire lifelong consequences, often halting or harming a girl\u2019s ability to realize a wide range of human rights, Human Rights Watch said. Girls who marry early are more likely to leave school<\/a> and are at heightened risk<\/a> of marital rape, domestic violence, poor access to decent work, exploitation, and a range of health problems due to early childbearing.<\/p>\n

The benefits of ending child marriage are transformative and far-reaching. Tackling child marriage is a strategic way to advance women\u2019s rights<\/a> and empowerment in several areas, including health, education, work, freedom from violence, and participation in public life, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n

In addition to passing the law and ensuring enforcement, Lebanon\u2019s authorities should pursue criminal cases against adult spouses, parents, and local authorities who continue the practice. Authorities should also develop programs to prevent child marriages such as empowering girls with information and support networks, ensuring girls\u2019 access to quality education, and engaging and educating parents and community members about the negative effects of child marriage.<\/p>\n

Lebanon is party to a number of international conventions that explicitly prohibit or have been interpreted to prohibit child marriage, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The United Nations committees that oversee their implementation have also called for state parties to set the minimum age for marriage at 18 and to take measures to eliminate child marriage.<\/p>\n

A number of other countries in the Middle East and North Africa have set the minimum age for marriage at 18 or higher, with some allowing exceptions in limited circumstances. These include: Algeria<\/a>, Egypt<\/a>, Iraq<\/a>, Libya<\/a>, Tunisia<\/a>, Morocco<\/a>, Jordan<\/a>, Oman<\/a>, and the United Arab Emirates<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Lebanon\u2019s parliament should take additional steps to protect women\u2019s rights in the country, Human Rights Watch said. It should criminalize marital rape and repeal article 522<\/a> of the penal code, which allows rapists to escape prosecution by marrying their victims.<\/p>\n

\u201cSetting 18 as the minimum age of marriage is a common-sense measure that will have a real impact on the lives of girls in Lebanon,\u201d Fakih said. \u201cParliament should pass the law without delay.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Beirut) \u2013 Lebanon\u2019s parliament should quickly pass legislation to end child marriage in the country, Human Rights Watch said today. Lebanon has no minimum age for marriage for all of its citizens or any civil code regulating personal status matters. Instead, religious courts set the age based on 15 personal status laws, some of which …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":147,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[12],"tags":[39,38,24,8,19,6],"post_format":[],"flags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/lebanon_parliament.jpg?fit=728%2C485&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa0Zsl-2m","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":575,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/notbefore18campaign-is-working-to-end-child-marriage-in-lebanon\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":0},"title":"#NotBefore18campaign is working to end child marriage in Lebanon","date":"October 11, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"There is no minimum age for marriage in Lebanon, where each religious sect has distinct\u00a0personal status laws governing marriage, divorce, and inheritance. Some of these laws\u00a0allow\u00a0girls younger than 15 to get married. According to a\u00a02016 UNICEF report, six percent of women in Lebanon between 20 to 24 of age got\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yf2_45167778.jpg?fit=574%2C383&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":235,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/rdfls-campaign-aiming-to-set-the-minimum-age-of-marriage-in-lebanon-notbefore18\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":1},"title":"RDFL’s campaign aiming to set the minimum age of marriage in Lebanon #NotBefore18","date":"June 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The campaign focuses on the health risks of child marriage, which can put the lives of both the child mother and her fetus, in case of pregnancy, at fatal risk. Before the age of 18, the body is still growing, the uterus is still underdeveloped and the pelvis is not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/\u0644\u0644\u0637\u0641\u0644\u0627\u062a-\u0648\u0627\u0644\u0623\u0637\u0641\u0627\u0644-2-sm-crop-u19670.jpg?fit=870%2C389&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1656,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/notbefore18\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":2},"title":"#notBefore18","date":"May 27, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The lack of a national agreement on the minimum age for marriage in Lebanon has been a source of concern. All legal procedures relating to matters relating to marriage, divorce, and inheritance are governed by the personal status laws of the various religious denominations. This means that the minimum age\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Campaigns"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/\u0645\u0634-\u0642\u0628\u0644-18.png?fit=954%2C623&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2133,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/the-lebanese-women-democratic-gathering-discussed-a-draft-law-to-set-the-marriage-age-and-criminalize-child-marriage-in-lebanon-in-the-parliamentary-human-rights-committee\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":3},"title":"The Lebanese Women Democratic Gathering discussed a draft law to set the marriage age and criminalize child marriage in Lebanon in the Parliamentary Human Rights Committee","date":"April 5, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Lebanese Women Democratic Gathering discussed with the Parliamentary Human Rights Committee, headed by Michel Moussa the law proposed by RDFL for setting marriage age, the session was attended by RDFL\u2019s Vice-President Sarah Al-Outa, Campaign Coordinator Rasha Wazneh, and\u00a0 the lawyer Ghada Nikola in the presence of some parliamentary members\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/330385575_744563690661385_8738927148220387497_n.jpg?fit=592%2C395&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":137,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/rdfl-submits-a-draft-law-aiming-to-protect-children-in-lebanon-from-early-marriage\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":4},"title":"RDFL submits a draft law aiming to protect children in Lebanon from early marriage","date":"April 5, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"When a young girl is pushed into marriage, the damage can last long after her wedding day. Research shows that girls who marry before the age of 18 receive less schooling than those who marry later, face a higher risk of domestic abuse, and suffer a lifetime of adverse effects\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/stop-ma.jpg?fit=420%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":150,"url":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/a-historical-overview-of-womens-achievements-in-lebanon\/","url_meta":{"origin":146,"position":5},"title":"A Historical Overview of Women\u2019s Achievements in Lebanon","date":"May 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"--- Article developed by Lebanon Support in partnership with the Lebanese Women Democratic Gathering (RDFL). You can check links and timeline on the original source, following the link in the end of the article.---- Literature describes women\u2019s organisations as the \u201cfrontrunners of societal change\u201d, as they further the debate surrounding\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reports"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/lebanon_women_rights.jpg?fit=634%2C475&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":148,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146\/revisions\/148"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146"},{"taxonomy":"post_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_format?post=146"},{"taxonomy":"flags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rdflwomen.org\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/flags?post=146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}