Young girls as commodities
Editorial: 27/8/08
There have been several cases reported recently of young girls, some as young as seven or eight, being married off by their parents to men in their 50s, 60s or even older. In some instances, parents are literally selling their daughters to older men purely for financial reasons —- to settle debts or to gain a substantial dowry for their own use. The practice is repugnant. Young girls are being treated as potential sex slaves, commodities to be bought and sold at whim to satisfy the lusts of old men. It has to be stopped. The Grand Mufti has spoken against it and so too has the Saudi Human Rights Commission (HRC). Only this week, the head of the commission, Turki Al-Sudairi, called on the Saudi authorities to put an end to these marriages. There are several issues at stake in what is incontestably a human rights violation.
See: http://www.arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=113440&d=27&m=8&y=2008
Tags: Children, Saudi Arabia, Womens Rights