Cover image via MalaysiakiniOn 30 September, Prime Minister Najib Razak's wife Rosmah Mansor shared Malaysia's experience in overcoming the problem of child marriage. Speaking at Ford Foundation breakfast meeting, Rosmah claimed that child marriages were rare in Malaysia, thanks to the existence of a good education system and low poverty rate.
Image via The Star Online
However, Rosmah's claims have been refuted by the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG). In a statement, the coalition of women's rights group expressed its concern over Rosmah's claim.
Moreover, according to statistics collected from the Malaysian Syariah Court, UN Country Gender Theme Groups Census reports, Health Ministry reports, UN Progress reports on HIV and UN Populations Fund findings, put together by Sisters In Islam (SIS), shows very alarming facts about child marriage in Malaysia
It shows that in 2009, 32 Muslim girls aged below 10 underwent pre-marital HIV screening which is a prerequisite to tie the knot.
10 to 14-year-old girls constituted 445, but the highest number was 6,815 girls between the ages of 15 to 19, and 1,911 boys from the same age group.
These numbers weren't mentioned in Rosmah's speech.
Moreover, even if there is just one case of child marriage, it does not mean that child marriages are now rare in Malaysia, for even one incident alone is one too many!
Image via TMI
