Police interrupt marriage of 5-year-old girl and 7-year-old boy
November 3, 2008 by afridi
Filed under Shameful News
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Authorities stepped in to prevent the marriage of a 5-year-old girl to a 7-year-old boy in rural Pakistan, authorities said Friday.
A Muslim cleric was in the process of marrying the two children when police entered the room and took several people into custody.
Apparently, the children are ill and both families arranged the marriage, officials said. The ceremony was reportedly attended by more than 100 people.
The boy, Mohammed Waseem, and the girl, Nishain Karachi, were taken into protective custody and their parents were arrested. Authorities said the marriage of the two children was arranged to end an ongoing feud between the two families that has been going on for about eight years.
Authorities said the marriage of the two children was arranged to end an ongoing feud between the two families that has been going on for about eight years.
Pakistan law forbids marriage below the age of 18.
The maximum penalty for the parents is a one month jail sentence and a fine of approximately $1,000.
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This practice is very common in the rural areas, normally the children fall victim to this unfair and bad practice. The elders are busy in their so called old disputes for ages and after that they sit together and find the solution of becoming a family. If we see the law and the tradition over here we will realize one think that there is a need of independent courts to enforce the law, but when the judiciary in a country is suspended by military dictators and independent courts are not welcomed by many countries.
The only way to discourage this practice is to restore the judiciary.