I was all fired up and about to write a very strong article with a view to calling for a protest after reading the headlines that the Nigerian senate had legalized underage marriage. In the course of my research I discovered that that was not what the senate had voted on at all. The issue debated was (in very simple terms) whether a woman under the age of 18 who is married should be considered old enough to renounce her citizenship. The senate attempted to drop the clause that allowed them to do so but Yerima who has an underage wife insisted that their right to renounce should not be taken away. The senate could not muster enough votes to delete the clause. However what this in effect means is that there are situations (basically under Islamic law) when underage girls can marry regardless of the provisions of the Child protection law and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The senate has by allowing that clause to remain confirmed that such marriages are recognized by the constitution. Whilst it is clear that Islam does not prohibit child marriages (for that matter neither does Christianity), there is nothing that shows that Muslims are compelled to marry children any more than their Christian counterparts are, regardless of who might have done it in the past. Those who are choosing that path are exercising a personal choice which has nothing to do with religion. The constitution is currently being reviewed and there could not have been a better time to take the bull by the horns and save the Nigerian girl child from continuous abuse by glorified paedophiles. It would be tragic if senators (especially the women) allow men like Yerima to intimidate them into not making good use of this opportunity with their ill veiled threats of what could happen if they dont "steer clear of Islamic marriage"!
Posted on: Fri, 19 Jul 2013 15:35:24 +0000
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