Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s message to protest against the bill for children’s marriage has given rise to a broad discussion online.
President Asif Ali Zardari signed the Islamabad Capital Territory Children’s Marriage Retention Bill in the law on Friday and set the minimum age for marriage after 18 years.
The new legislation criminalizes solemn marriages where either the boy or the girl is minor.
In response, Jamati disadvanted disgust-e-islam-fazl (Jui-F) Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Saturday a nationwide protest against the government’s proposed legislation aimed at limiting children’s marriages, arguing that the bill contradicts Islamic teaching and threatens Pakistan’s religious identity.
Many users criticized the relocation and questioned why such a attitude was taken to a question of child protection.
Numerous users criticized religious leaders for opposing a law aimed at protecting minors. One user noted that these groups have never objected to abuse of children, but are furious at the bill for children’s marriage.
Read more: Na passing Bill who criminalizes marriage with children
Photo: Screen Grab
Photo: Screen Grab
Others emphasized the importance of confronting religious conservatives who use religion to justify marriages of children, and warned that failure to resist would only the office such views further.
Several votes on social media called for organized counterprotests of the rational and progressive segments in society to stand up against the protesters who oppose the bill.
Photo: Screen Grab
Users claimed that defending children’s rights should be a non-conveyable priority and expressed strong support for the new law, which emphasizes that early marriage often leads to serious health, psychological and social consequences for children, especially girls.
Read more: Child marriages plague poor girls
According to the new law, which banned both minor marriages in boys and girls, offenders stand with up to one year in prison and a fine of RS100,000, while a man over 18 marries a minor girl can have a string prison of up to three years. Courts are also authorized to intervene and protect the identity of those reporting such cases.
Despite the clear intention of the bill to protect children from exploitation, it has been subjected to fierce opposition from religious political parties and the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) strongly criticized CII for raising objections to the recently adopted Islamabad Capital Territory Thesmor marriage restriction, and called the relocation a serious attempt to prevent legislation on important child protection legislation.
Read more: CII exempting bill about children’s marriage
When he spoke at a press conference in Peshawar, Fazl claimed that the proposed law is affected by foreign agendas. “Pakistan’s identity is Islam and this identity is threatened,” he said, warning that the bill undermines the country’s core values.
FAZL accused the government of drafting legislation based on demands of international bodies such as International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the United Nations (UN) rather than complying with Islamic principles.
“The UN attitude is used to pass laws against marriages of early age. The president also refuses to sign the religious seminars,” he added.
The Jui-F leader criticized the proposed law as a violation of the Qur’an and Sunnah and claimed that such movements weaken democratic processes and unintentionally strengthen extremist narratives.
“Democracy loses its case, and such actions strengthen the stories of armed groups,” warned Fazl.
