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As the national debate continues on the topic of child marriages in T&T, The Children’s Ark has weighed in on the matter by calling for greater education on the topic as well as legislative changes.
In a release one day after the leaders of 17 religious organisations met with Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi and unanimously agreed to support government’s intention to increase the legal marriage age to 18, non-profit organisation The Children’s Ark is hoping that with widespread dialogue on the matter, the various religious sects would refrain from demonising one another and their cultural traditions.
Committed to promoting the rights and welfare of the child, the NGO referred to the laws which had in fact given rise to the raging controversy.
The Hindu Marriage Act, the Muslim Marriage Act and the Orisha Marriage Act all contain provisions enabling minors to enter into legally valid marriages, The Children’s Ark said T&T had also signed and ratified the UN Convention on Rights of the Child, which also carried with it a sense of duty and responsibility to protect children’s rights.
For people in the Hindu faith, the minimum marriageable age is 18 for boys and 14 for girls; while in the Muslim community, the minimum marriageable age is 16 for boys and 12 for girls; with the Orisha Faith setting the minimum marriageable age as 18 for boys and 16 for girls.
President of The Chrildren’s Ark, Simone de la Bastide said, “Trinidad and Tobago has signed and ratified the UN Convention on Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and so our country is duty bound to ensure that our laws honour our obligation to promote and protect the rights of children.”
She added, “The laws which allow the marriage of minors are in direct contravention of our international obligations. These laws put in peril the welfare and best interests of the child.”
Referring to internationally acclaimed activist against human trafficking, Anuradha Koirala, who recently addressed a luncheon hosted by The Children’s Ark at the Hyatt Hotel, de la Bastide said in answer to a question about international efforts to end child marriages, Koirala mentioned there was currently a campaign in Nepal which encouraged parents to educate their children rather than marrying them off early.
De la Bastide said while it was no defence, one could argue that it constituted a method of dealing with teenage pregnancies which was also a matter that had to be urgently addressed.
She said, “Marriage is difficult for adults, as attested to by the divorce and infidelity rates. A caring society would not foist such difficulties on a child.”
The Children’s Ark suggested that Government and society make the interest of children paramount, by listening carefully to all sides while searching for commonalities.
De la Bastide went on, “Under our laws, contracts made by persons under the age of majority are invalid and unenforceable. The policy is obviously to treat such persons as not sufficiently mature to protect their own interest. How can we justify applying a different standard to what would normally be the most important contract of one’s life—that is, the contract of marriage.”
Concluding with a call for all responsible citizens to support the move to amend the laws of the land to prevent child marriages, The Children’s Ark said, “By doing so, we would be acting in the best interest of our nation’s children, guaranteeing them the opportunity to develop to their greatest potential, without fear or harm to their inherent vulnerabilities.”
Head of the Inter-Religious Organisation, Bro Harrypersad Maharaj, is among those insisting that the current minimum age of marriage for both Hindus and Muslims, which is lower than the age for sexual consent which is 18, remain unchanged.
Following Wednesday’s meeting with the AG, the Anglican Church and SWAHA have both voiced support for the legal minimum age to be increased.
Roman Catholic Archbishop Fr Joseph Harris has denounced child marriages as nothing more than legalised statutory rape and has indicated his support for government’s plan to increase the age limit to 18.
Criticised for his verbal attack on Harris last week in which he said the head of the Catholic Church could go to hell, head of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS), Sat Maharaj, said the groups who attended Wednesday’s meeting did not represent the views of the SDMS and that he would need at least two weeks to consult with the different groups affiliated with the SDMS before indicating their official position on the matter.