Sabbe, A. (2013, October 16). Determinants of Child and Forced Marriage in Morocco: Stakeholder Perspectives on Health, Policy and Human Rights – BMC International Health and Human Rights. BioMed Central. Geraadpleegd op 13 maart 2022, van bmcinthealthhumrights.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-698X-13-43 Human rights activists are calling for the abolition of articles in the Family Code that allow judges to certify marriages if the girl is 16, loves her partner and can have children. Level of education: A quarter of Moroccan girls with no education were married by the age of 18, compared to only 7% of girls with secondary or higher education. Poverty: Child marriage provides a certain level of financial security and reduces girls` perceived burden on their families. Some family court judges reportedly allow child marriages for economic reasons in poorer areas. Gender norms: Women and girls are often expected to conform to strict and traditional roles as wives and mothers and to have little decision-making power. Reports have shown that the Arab Spring has reinforced conservative beliefs about gender roles. Premarital sex: Some families marry off their daughters if they suspect they are having sex outside marriage, which is still considered a crime under article 490 of Morocco`s penal code. Harmful traditional practices: Child marriage predominates in the form of temporary marriages, which are used as a way to circumvent Islamic restrictions on extramarital sex. In addition, most child marriages, especially in rural areas, are carried out in accordance with customary Muslim law (Al Fatiha).

Finally, judges are obliged to recognize the marriage retroactively. Violence against girls: In 2012, 16-year-old Amina Filali committed suicide after being forced to marry the man who raped her. The controversial article 475 of Morocco`s penal code allowed rapists to escape prosecution by marrying their victims, even if they had not yet reached the legal age of 18. A 2011 study by Morocco`s High Commission for Planning shows that younger women who marry without consent are almost three times more likely to experience intimate partner violence. Family honor: A 2013 study shows that parents, and in some cases, aunts and uncles, play an important role in the decision to marry off girls, often for reasons of honor preservation and fear that their daughter will be rejected if they are not married at a certain age. Religion: In a 2017 study, participants pointed out that a misinterpretation of religious principles enables child marriage in Morocco. Some people believe that Islam tolerates girls marrying once they start menstruating. In 2019, there were more than 30,000 marriage proposals with minors in Morocco. (2020, January 22). Middle East Monitor. Geraadpleegd op 13 maart 2022, van www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200122-2019-saw-more-than-30000-requests-for-marriage-to-minors-in-morocco/ If we compare the figures for the period after the introduction of the new legislation with the figures for the period before the new legislation, there do not yet seem to be any significant changes.

And the numbers have remained almost the same. This is mainly due to the fact that the reforms are flawed. The 2004 reform under the new government was announced as Moudwana (Family Code). To marry, women no longer need the permission of their male guardians. Despite the legal prohibition of marriages under the age of 18, child marriages still occur. In Massachusetts, the general age of marriage is 18, but minors can be married with judicial approval. Unlike many other states,[2] child marriage in Massachusetts does not automatically emancipate the minor or increase his or her legal rights beyond allowing the minor to consent to certain medical treatments. [3] Delaware, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Rhode Island,[21] New York, and New Jersey do not allow underage marriage. The other states allow a minor to marry in the following circumstances: The judge refused to marry Meriem`s marriage because the husband was 20 years older and she had never met him, but her family continued. Child marriage also strengthens economic and social stability, as marriage comes with money, status and property. Often, these girls come from families that suffer from poverty. Because girls marry early, they lack educational opportunities and are therefore completely dependent on their husbands.

As a result, poverty and illiteracy are drivers of girls` futures and exacerbate cycles of poverty. People from the United States may face difficulties when trying to avoid and/or escape forced marriages in Morocco. While Morocco has some of the most progressive laws on women`s equality in the Islamic world, enforcement of these laws has not been uniform in practice. Rural women and girls face particularly difficult discriminatory practices and barriers to safety and justice.1 There are many reasons why child marriage is so prevalent in Morocco. Above all, it is a long-standing cultural tradition as well as a widespread practice in Islam. As soon as a girl starts menstruating, she has reached “marriageable age,” according to Moroccan society. In addition, girls in rural Morocco must preserve their virginity until they marry. Because the act of childbearing is so important, families marry off their daughters at a young age because they “allow young women to have more children than those who are married later.” Child marriage is driven by gender inequality and the belief that girls are somehow inferior to boys. In Morocco, child marriage is exacerbated by: there is little difference over time or between states in laws without parental consent. [1] Prior to 1971, about 80% of states reported an age of 18 for marriage without parental consent for women and about 85% declared an age of 21 for men.

[1] Men and women enjoy equal access to divorce and annulment under Moroccan law, but in practice there are many barriers, which prevent women from dissolving marriage. Educating women and making them economically independent is key to tackling child marriage, said Karima Errejraji, YTTO`s coordinator in southern Morocco. Tamarwoute (Morocco) (AFP) – Nadia was just 16 when she was married to an abusive husband old enough to be her father – an ordeal thousands of young Moroccan girls face every year due to a legal limbo. Although child marriage has long been a problem in Morocco, legal reforms and efforts by activist groups are encouraging. These are signs that Morocco is moving closer to a culture without child marriage and, therefore, a future without poverty. However, the Family Code had been formally reformed in 2004 to raise the minimum age of marriage for girls to 18 and give women more rights in marriage. These include inheritance law and the division of matrimonial property. Although the law still allows polygamy, it is only legal under strict conditions. Activist groups such as the Moroccan women`s rights movement have campaigned for these changes to give more rights to women and girls. However, challenges remain. According to Morocco World News, Morocco`s family code, also known as Moudawana, is at the root of the problem of allowing child marriage. In 1958, Morocco created Moudawana, a traditional family law that allows practices such as “polygamy and forced marriage.” Traditional family law is the main legal framework for legitimizing forced child marriage.

Gender does not affect a person`s ability to marry in Morocco. In certain circumstances, polygamy was permitted under Moroccan law, but the Family Code required a man who wanted more than one wife to prove to a judge that he could support two families and prove an objective and exceptional reason for contracting several marriages, and the judge could grant the request only if the first and second spouses agreed. According to UNICEF, the risk of girls marrying before the age of 18 in Morocco is less than half what it was three decades ago. However, statistical information can be contradictory, as many child marriages are not officially registered. In recent years, the trend has been to adjust the general age of marriage downwards and to raise the age of women to that of men. In 1971, about 80 percent of states had a general age of marriage of 18 for women, while for men, the general age of marriage was 21 in about 85 percent of states. [1] According to Reuters, 16% of Moroccan girls under the age of 18 marry illegally, although the revised Family Code prohibits it. Since the 2004 reform, the number of underage marriages has increased by nearly 50% through 2016, although some campaigners say this statistic should be higher. Families circumvent the Moudawana through loopholes in the law, allowing them to marry off their daughters in previous years.

According to the Moroccan Ministry of Justice, 98% of marriage applications to underage girls in 2019 came from rural areas.