- Advertisement -
ISLAMABAD, Jul 8 (APP):Legal expert Waiza Rafique of the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) has called for the nationwide enforcement of 18 years as the minimum legal age of marriage for both boys and girls, terming it a fundamental human rights obligation rather than a matter of cultural tradition.
Speaking on recent legislative progress, Rafique welcomed the passage of the Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 2025 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), which sets 18 as the minimum age for marriage for both sexes. She said the step was widely appreciated by civil society and child rights advocates but is currently under review by the Federal Shariat Court amid opposition from conservative quarters.
“Early marriage is not a private cultural matter—it is a violation of a child’s rights to education, health, and bodily autonomy,” Waiza said. “It must be treated as a national human rights emergency.”
Waiza pointed out that Pakistan’s legal framework on the issue remains inconsistent. Sindh had set the precedent by passing a similar law in 2013, but other provinces—including Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan—still follow the outdated Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929, which permits girls to be married at 16.
“This legal disparity reinforces gender inequality and contradicts the Constitution of Pakistan,” Rafique noted, referencing Articles 25 and 25-A, which guarantee equal rights and access to education.
Waiza rejected claims that raising the legal marriage age is un-Islamic, citing reforms in Muslim-majority countries including Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia—where marriages below 18 now require judicial approval. She added that Pakistan’s own Federal Shariat Court had upheld Sindh’s legislation, declaring that regulating marriage age does not violate Islamic principles.
According to UNICEF’s 2023 data, nearly 18 percent of Pakistani girls are married before turning 18, resulting in early pregnancies, school dropouts, and long-term poverty. Waiza said early marriage also increases the risk of domestic violence and limits young women’s participation in the formal economy.
Waiza also cited the Azka Wahid vs province of Punjab case as a landmark legal precedent, where the court ruled that marrying girls at 16 violates constitutional rights to education and gender equality—strengthening the case for a uniform national standard.
Waiza highlighted that the 2022 floods, which affected over 33 million people, led to a spike in child marriages as struggling families turned to early marriage as a coping strategy. This, she said, underscores the urgent need for legal protections, particularly in disaster-prone areas.