Alarm as hundreds of children under age of 10 married in Iran

The Telegraph ^ | 26 Aug 2012 | Robert Tait

[markomalley]

Iran has experienced a dramatic growth in under-age marriages that has seen the number of girls being wed before the age of 10 double in the space of a year, officially-compiled figures have revealed.

The trend has prompted child protection experts to warn of a surge in mental illness, suicides, teenage runaways and girls turning to prostitution as the nuptials frequently end in divorce.

While both genders are affected, statistics from the state-run civil registration organisation show the phenomenon to be more prevalent among girls. Some families are said to be marrying off their daughters to older men to pay off debts.

An Iranian NGO, the Society For Protecting The Rights of The Child, said 43,459 girls aged under 15 had married in 2009, compared with 33,383 three years previously. In 2010, 716 girls younger than 10 had wed, up from 449 the previous year, according to the organisation.

[rmlew]

It gets worse. The Iranian Shia practice Temporary Marriage. In effect the girls are pimped by their fathers for a day to act as a wife. This is an honorable practice for Shia. But stepping in a puddle that a Jew or Christian stepped in will soil them.