Saudi child marriages under scrutiny

'The woman must express real consent'
Denouncing the custom, Sheik Abdul-Aziz Al Sheik, the kingdom's grand mufti and top religious authority, said recently a guardian should not impose his will on his children or promise them to their cousins.

"Islam has stipulated that both parties agree to the marriage contract," he said, according to Al-Madina newspaper. "The woman must express real consent to the suitor, and a guardian must not impose his choice of husband on her ... or force his son to marry someone he doesn't want."

Al-Muabi, the marriage official, told Lebanese-run LBC TV that because marriage in Islam takes place in two stages — a marriage contract can be signed months or even years before a woman moves in with her husband — that means a 1-year-old girl can be married off.

A man "can enter a marriage contract with a 1-year-old girl, not to mention 9 years, 7 years or 8 years," said al-Muabi. "This is just a contract indicating consent, and the guardian in this case must be the father."

Al-Muabi maintained such unions make sense in some cases, such as when a man is the sole guardian of many daughters.

"Isn't it better to marry his daughter to a man with whom she can stay and who can protect her and support her, and when she reaches the proper age, have sex with her? Who says all men are ferocious wolves?" said al-Muabi.

However, Sheik Abdul-Mohsen al-Obeikan, a legal adviser at the Justice Ministry, said a girl's consent is crucial.

"A marriage official should not conclude a marriage contract without the woman's agreement and without her signature," al-Obeikan, who is also a member of the appointed Consultative Council that acts like a Parliament, told Al-Madina. "Officials who ignore such instructions expose themselves to punishment."

Until laws are put in place to protect children, Saudi human rights groups have been speaking out against the practice.

"When girls are married off at a young age they will be deprived of education and of enjoying their childhood," said Suhaila Hammad of the National Society for Human Rights, a private Saudi group. "Their bodies won't be able to tolerate pregnancy and delivering children."

But there's only so much the groups can do.

Muraiziq al-Rashidi, the 11-year-old boy's father, told The Associated Press he will delay his son's marriage only by a year.

"God willing, we will hold the wedding next year," he said.

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