Islamists fight Yemen law banning child marriage

[laconicsax]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/16/AR2009041603003.html

She was 2 years old when her father promised her in marriage to a man in his 30s. It was a swap, so the father could marry the man's sister without paying the obligatory bride-price.

At age 9, the girl was put on a sack of rice to appear taller next to the bridegroom in the wedding picture. At 11, she was taken to her husband's house to live. Despite promising not to consummate the marriage before she reached puberty, he tied her to a bed, stuffed a rag in her mouth and raped her, she says.

...

In February, parliament passed a law setting the minimum marriage age at 17. But some lawmakers are trying to kill the measure, calling it un-Islamic. Before it could be ratified by Yemen's president, they forced it to be sent back to parliament's constitutional committee for review.

...

Legislator Sheik Mohammed al-Hazmi, one of the most ardent opponents of a minimum marriage age, says the new law is a "Western plot aimed at Westernizing our culture."

Yeah...it's a western plot. There's no other reason why someone might find oppose selling a toddler into marriage. I'm not terribly well-informed on Islam--is it un-Islamic to outlaw the practice?

[doctor jazz]

1. There are salad-bar Muslims just like there are pick-and-choose Christians.

Whatever dogma is convenient to any particular agenda can be justified by some interpretation of "holy writ"

[laconicsax]

2. Thanks, that's what I thought.

I've heard so much about the Qur'an being free of contradiction that I wasn't sure how much of it is easily open to interpretation.

[doctor jazz]

3. There may be a resource on the Koran similar to this one I like on the Xian Bible

http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com

I haven't looked very hard but I bet it's out there somewhere. :D

[laconicsax]

6. The same site does the Qur'an too.

I just haven't put any time into studying it--there or anywhere else.

[LiberalFighter]

4. I checked and my belief is that if they are really serious about their Koran

then they could not reasonably consider marriage or sex with a girl acceptable. From what I could determine marriage is only referenced to women not girls.

If any of those religious leaders have any honor they would rebuke any supporters publicly. Better yet they should have a meeting with them and castrate the bastards.

[Why Syzygy]

5. Where was the girl's mother?

Why was the father of a 2 y/o seeking another wife?

If I wanted to "westernize" them, I would do away with girl/women SWAPPING altogether!
A minimum age when such a deal can be done is a MINOR concession.

[laconicsax]

7. The article implies that the girl's mother was dead.

According to the article, when she was 11, her father died and she was sent to an orphanage. Her brother then showed up and convinced her to move in with the man she was sold to nine years prior.

If her mother was alive, she probably wouldn't have been sent to an orphanage. I would have to assume that either her stepmother (the one she was traded for) died as well or Yemeni law doesn't permit a widow to have custody of children.