Iran is witnessing a significant increase in the number of girls under the age of 10 becoming child brides as such numbers have doubled in the past year.
The increase in the number of divorces in Iran has led to warnings from human rights bodies about the increasing number of psychologically ill individuals, suicides, youth runaways and girls resorting to prostitution.
Although both sexes are very much hurt from this trend, the damages caused to girls are far worse. Families give off their young girls in order to pay their debts.
‘Supporting Children’s Rights NGO’ says the number of girls under the age of 15 that were wedded reached 43,459 in 2009. While the year before there were 33,383 cases.
716 girls under the age of ten were given for marriage in 2010, while the year before there were 449 such cases.
“Families give accept this due to poverty. However, cultural and educational poverty is also very effective in this regard,” said the spokesman of the Supporting Children’s Rights in an interview with the state-run Mehr news agency.
“The number of divorces of young marriage is much higher. 15,000 teenage girls between 15 and 19 divorced their husbands from 2007 to 2010,” he added.
The laws of the Iranian regime permit marriages for young girls. Despite the fact that marriages of girls under the age of 13 and boys under the age of 15 is only permitted with their parent’s approval and a court ruling, this law is easily violated in many areas across Iran.
“9-year-old girls are “religiously” and legally permitted to get married,” said Mohammad Asafnani, head of the Legal and Judicial Commission in the Iranian regime’s parliament.
(Al Arabiya – July 30, 2015)
