South Sudan Marriage Laws

Human Rights Watch interviewed 15 girls who were married and participating in alternative education programs. However, the majority of girls we spoke to had dropped out of school and said it was difficult to continue school after marriage or get pregnant. Some of the reasons given by girls were lack of money to pay school fees, lack of childcare and lack of adult classes, or the need to do household chores. Others said their husbands did not allow them to continue school after marriage because they would have been unfaithful if they insisted on going to school. Nyanachiek`s plight has caught the attention of ChildBride Solidarity, which offers scholarships to girls whose parents leave them after resisting early marriage. With the help of the group, Nyanachiek is now studying in South Sudan`s capital. [11] Small Arms Survey, “Sudan Human Security Baseline Assessment: Women`s Security and the Law in South Sudan,” 2012, www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/fileadmin/docs/facts-figures/south-sudan/womens-security/HSBA-women-security-law.pdf (accessed October 2, 2012), p. 4. South Sudan has the 6th highest rate of child marriage in the world. [1] In 2008, South Sudan`s census found that 2 out of 5 girls marry before reaching the age of 18. [5] In 2010, 52% of South Sudanese girls were married by the age of 18 and 9% by 15.

[6] Polygamy is prevalent in South Sudan and 41% of child marriages involve more than one wife. [7] In addition, 28% of girls who marry as children become pregnant before reaching adulthood. [8] In the event of divorce, children usually stay with the father and his family. [20] Custody decisions are primarily made by the ordinary courts, which are decided in accordance with their customs, although they are supposed to be subject to the Children`s Act and the best interests of the child. [21] Some women choose to remain in abusive marriages rather than lose custody of their children. [22] Child marriage is driven by gender inequality and the belief that girls are somehow inferior to boys. In Sudan, child marriage is exacerbated by: 1. The family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and is protected by law.

(2) All levels of government shall promote the well-being of the family and enact the laws necessary for its protection. 3. Parents have the right and duty to care for and educate their children. (4) Children may not be separated against the will of their parents or persons legally entitled to care for them, unless this is done in accordance with the law. (Clause 39) Since 2013, the State Council for Child Protection in Kassala has reportedly led a campaign to abolish the practice of child marriage. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the harmful effects of this practice through capacity-building volunteers who then engage with local communities and the media. Child marriage is most prevalent in South and East Darfur (where 56% of women aged 20-49 were married before the age of 18), Central Darfur (55%), Blue Nile (50%) and Gadarif (49%). Sudan`s 1994 Muslim Personal Status Law stipulates that a guardian can marry a woman after puberty and from the age of 10 with the permission of a judge. Child marriage has consequences for children. Health studies show that young women have a higher risk during pregnancy than older women due to their premature bodies and smaller pelvis.

[10] Child marriages leading to pregnancy in South Sudan have contributed to the country`s high maternal mortality rate. The maternal mortality ratio in South Sudan is 2,054 deaths per 100,000 births. [7] Sudanese law recognizes the validity of non-Muslim religious marriages, provided that none of the main actors involved are Muslims. For more information on the legal and documentary requirements for such marriages, applicants should contact the relevant church officials or Sudanese legal counsel directly. [27] General Education Act, section 16. There have been many media reports about sexual relations between students and teachers. See, for example, “Teachers suspended for impungnating school girls,” Gurtong, January 11, 2013, www.gurtong.net/ECM/Editorial/tabid/124/ctl/ArticleView/mid/519/articleId/9123/categoryId/4/Teachers-Suspended-For-Impregnating-School-Girls.aspx (accessed January 20, 2013); “Teacher dismissed for schoolgirl pregnancies in Rumbek,” Sudan Tribune, December 3, 2011, www.sudantribune.com/Teachers-dismissed-over-schoolgirl,40897 (accessed January 20, 2013). Promote an enabling legal and policy framework: Appropriate legislation and enforcement measures are essential to defend the human rights of girls at risk of early marriage. Key elements include: ensuring that national legislation – in line with international human rights standards – maintains the legal age of 18 as the minimum legal age of marriage for men and women; promoting birth and marriage registration; and combating harmful customs, traditions and practices that do not respect human rights standards – such as tolerance of gender-based violence – through national and subnational laws and social programmes. The Convention on the Rights of the Child defines a child as any person under the age of 18. [175] South Sudan should amend the Children`s Act to reflect this standard. While South Sudan recognizes the common law as an integral part of its legal system, it must ensure that judicial and customary procedures adopt and apply the same definition of the child and the minimum age of marriage.

In general, child marriage involves the imposition of a lifelong partner on children. Child marriage is also considered forced marriage, as children are not legally able to give their free, full and informed consent to marriage. [102] Presents the latest data on child marriage in the Arab region, which includes members of the League of Arab States (Morocco to Oman). Explains how to end child marriage. In 2018, the Noura Hussein case sparked an international outcry. She was sentenced to death in May 2018 for killing the man she was forced to marry when he tried to rape her the second time. While the Court of Appeal overturned her death sentence in June 2018 in favor of five years in prison, her case highlights the link between child marriage and violence against women and girls. These gaps in the legal system create opportunities for families and husbands to intimidate women and force them into forcibly marrying or continuing marriages they did not want, with husbands who might be violent.