137-Year-Old Loophole: Colombian Lawmakers Finally Ban Child Marriages
After a 17-year campaign by advocates, Colombian lawmakers finally closed a loophole in the South American country’s law and officially banned the marriage of minors. The Colombian legislative chambers erupted in cheers and jubilation after the announcement protecting those under 18. Colombia becomes the 12th country in Latin America and the Caribbean to outlaw the marriage of minors outright.
A 137-year-old loophole allowed for child marriages
For more than a century, the Colombian civil code had a loophole that allowed children under 18 to be married with parental consent. Additionally, minors were considered to be in common-law marriages if they cohabitated with an adult for two years.
According to UNICEF, 4.5 million girls have been married off to adults in Colombia. The number boils down to 1 in every four girls in Colombia entering marriage before they were 18 years old. Of that, 1 million girls entered into marriage before they were 15 years old. The trend has troubled the country’s advocates for children’s and women’s rights.
“We do not want to continue seeing the systematic violence and sexual exploitation of children. Colombia is making history because, for the first time, we have managed to ban child marriage after trying eight times,” Jennifer Pedraza, congresswoman for the Dignity and Commitment Party, who co-authored the bill, said according to The Guardian. “So it is a great message, not only for Colombia regarding respect for the rights of boys and girls but also for the world. Colombian childhood is important; we have to protect it, and we have to care for it.”
Culturally, this comes at a time when the sexualization of girls in Colombia entered pop culture
Recently, a group of Colombian musicians, including Blessd, Ryan Castro, J Balvin, and Karol G, released a collaboration titled “+57.” +57 is the country code for Colombian phone numbers. The song created controversy over a line that sexualized a woman who had been a ” Mamacita since she was 14.”
The song sparked outrage among fans and advocacy groups in Colombia who were fighting against the sexualization of minors. While Karol G offered an apology for the lyrics and the image they painted, Blessd, Ryan Castro, and J Balvin were defensive of the song and the criticisms it was receiving.
There are still states in the U.S. that allow for children marriages
According to information from Unchained at Last, 13 states and Puerto Rico have outright banned child marriages. Ten states allow children to marry at 17 years old, 20 allow children to marry at 16 years old, and Kansas allows marriages at 15 years old. California, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and New Mexico have no minimum age for marriage.
The fact that child marriages are still legal through loopholes of parental consent is alarming. Child marriages are still happening across the globe, with 96 percent of countries having minimum age requirements. Yet, according to the Pew Research Center, most countries mostly ignore the minimum age.
