Forced marriage: Difference between revisions

[[Arranged marriage]]s were very common throughout the world until the 18th century.<ref name=jo2008>Jodi O'Brien (2008), Encyclopedia of Gender and Society, Volume 1, SAGE Publications, page 40-42, {{ISBN|978-1412909167}}</ref> Typically, marriages were arranged by parents, grandparents or other relatives. The actual practices varied by culture, but usually involved the legal transfer of dependency of the woman from her father to the groom. The movement towards the emancipation of women in the 19th and 20th centuries led to major changes to [[marriage laws]], especially in regard toregarding property and economic status. By the mid-20th century, many Western countries had enacted legislation establishing legal equality between spouses in [[family law]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/201237/family/232344/Family-law#ref794409|title=family – kinship :: Family law|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=10 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714213945/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/201237/family/232344/Family-law#ref794409|archive-date=14 July 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The period of 1975–1979 saw a major overhaul of family laws in countries such as Italy,<ref>{{Cite journal |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2014/493052/IPOL-FEMM_NT%282014%29493052_EN.pdf |journal=Citizens' Rights and Constitutional Affairs |title=The Policy on Gender Equality in Italy |access-date=9 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924004439/http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2014/493052/IPOL-FEMM_NT%282014%29493052_EN.pdf |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Human Rights Council |title=United Nations, General Assembly |url=https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session20/A-HRC-20-16-Add2_en.pdf |website=www.ohchr.org |access-date=7 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171001141421/http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session20/A-HRC-20-16-Add2_en.pdf |archive-date=1 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In Europe, during the late 18th century and early 19th century, the literary and intellectual movement of [[romanticism]] presented new and progressive ideas about [[love marriage]], which started to gain acceptance in society. In the 19th century, marriage practices varied across Europe, but in general, arranged marriages were more common among the upper class. Arranged marriages were the norm in Russia before early 20th century, most of which were [[endogamous]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Hutton |first=M. J. |year=2001 |title=Russian and West European Women, 1860–1939: Dreams, Struggles, and Nightmares |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-7425-1043-2 }}; see Chapter 1</ref> [[Child marriage]]s were common historically, but began to be questioned in the 19th and 20th centurycenturies. [[Child marriage in the United States|Child marriages]] are often considered to be forced marriages, because children (especially young ones) are not able to make a [[informed consent|fully informed choice]] whether or not to marry, and are often influenced by their families.<ref>

In Western countries, during the past decades, the nature of marriage—especially with regard to the importance of marital procreation and the ease of [[divorce]]—has changed dramatically, which has led to less social and familial pressure to get married, providing more freedom of choice in regard toconcerning choosing a spouse.<ref>

Forced marriage was also practiced by authoritarian governments as a way to meet population targets. The [[Khmer Rouge]] regime in Cambodia systematically forced people into marriages, in order to increase the population and continue the revolution.<ref name="Anderson_HB">{{cite book | last = Anderson | first = Natalae | chapter = Historical background | title = Memorandum: Charging forced marriage as a crime against humanity | chapter-url = http://www.d.dccam.org/Abouts/Intern/Natalae_Forced_marriage.pdf | pages = 1–3 | publisher = Documentation Center of Cambodia | date = 22 September 2010 | access-date = 8 January 2013 | archive-date = 20 October 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171020153617/http://www.d.dccam.org/Abouts/Intern/Natalae_Forced_marriage.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref><blockquote>These marriage ceremonies consisted of no fewer than three couples and could be as large as 160 couples. Generally, the village chief or a senior leader of the community would approach both parties and inform them that they were to be married and the time and place the marriage would occur. Often, the marriage ceremony would be the first time the future spouses would meet. Parents and other family members were not allowed to participate in selecting the spouse or to attend the marriage ceremony. The Khmer Rouge maintained that parental authority was unnecessary because it "w[as] to be everyone's 'mother and father.'"<ref name="Anderson_HB" /></blockquote>

In Islamic law, consent is needed for a valid marriage.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Black|first=E. Ann|title=Modern Perspectives on Islamic Law|year=2013|isbn=9780857934475|pages=130|publisher=Edward Elgar }}</ref> Islamic marriage is concluded (but not excluding the bride) between the guardian ([[wali]]) of the bride and bridegroom, not between bridegroom and bride but her permission is still necessary. and her wali, guardian, merely represents her.
The guardian (wali) of the bride can only be a free [[Muslim]].<ref name="Islam, New Edition p. 27">The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition, Vol. VIII, p. 27, Leiden 1995.</ref> The wali has the power to initiate a marriage contract on behalf of a child before puberty, but once the child attains puberty he or she can accept or reject the marriage. The marriage contract can be annulled on grounds of coercion.<ref name=":1" />

During the [[Sri Lankan civil war|Sri Lankan Civil War]], a 2004 report in the journal ''Reproductive Health Matters'' found that forced marriage in [[Sri Lanka]] was taking place in the context of the armed conflict, where parents forced teenage girls into marriage in order to ensure that they do not lose their chastity (considered an increased risk due to the conflict) before marriage, which would compromise their chances of finding a husband.<ref>

In July 2014, forced marriages were criminalised to protect individuals who were forced to marry against their will ({{lang-langx|sv|äktenskapstvång}}). The maximum sentence is four years.<ref>