Although Pakistan has defined underage marriage as illegal,still tribal areas who call themselves out of legal obligations and people with little and no understanding of law undergo this act. In certain families it's considered as an appropriate decision and some people use it as weapon to fulfil their greed of inheritance . Underage marriage is also used as a mean of human trafficking in some areas whereas some literature communities call it as an act of liberty.

That’s an interesting question, marriage age in the uk is 16years old, before that age if an older person, has a intimate relationship with with someone under 16 years of age, the older person, can be prosecuted for statutory rape, or grooming.

The question is, what constitutes a marriage? In many countries, it means a legal union between two, mentally competent (thus adult) individuals and a consensual one with both parties understanding the emotional, moral, and social implications and consequences of a married life together.

As soon as one or both of the partners does/do not meet these requirements, it is not a marriage in the true sense of the word.

When young girls, under age, are forced to enter a relationship with an older man it is not a marriage. It looks more like domestic and sexual slavery. However that is reality in many patriarchal societies, and considered to be “normal”. It is given the label “marriage” to make the practice seem respectable.

No doubt many will not agree with this definition and come up with the usual arguments such as “protecting the honour”, “keeping safe” and so forth.

I want to agree with Hupkens's view. In my culture there is no definition of what can be called "early marriage" because when two people have reached an age of being able to take decisions (after puberty stage which is above 16 years in South Africa), and they decide to be together in marriage they are avoiding a dangerous situation (producing bastards). In short, here in RSA once you are 16 years old and you agree with your partner you can take your Identity Cards, have two witnesses and get married. The common issue that makes people marry later is the ability to provide for the family. It is a fact that when you get married you are expected to have your own house, children, money, and so forth...so all these are factors that determine what you call "early marriage" but for prevention of producing children outside wedlock I do argue that this concept of early marriage must be deleted from people's vocabulary

Blessed regards

Mohammed X

Mohammed Xolile Ntshangase

I agree with your reaction. However, two very young persons who get married in order to avoid the stigma of illegitimate children, may solve a societal moral problem, but it also prevents their further development as to schooling and chances of success in life. Perhaps it would be better for all concerned if there was readily available anticonception aid; preventing too early pregnancies occurring at all.

That would give them ten years extra for getting an education, finding jobs and what also named.

I believe that early marriage was a widespread phenomenon in past eras, but nowadays we are witnessing the opposite trend, reflected in rising rates of delayed marriage and increased cases of singlehood. In general, early marriage has significant implications for family stability, which in turn affects the cohesion of society. More often than not, these experiences result in failure, leading to divorce due to the lack of intellectual and behavioral maturity of the spouses. As a result, most countries, including mine, have implemented a mandatory minimum age for the legal registration of marriage contracts