These are the kinds of things that make you shake your head and mutter things under your breath in total absolute disbelief that they could even happen. Wasn't there "talk" just a short time ago of determining a minimum age for marrying girls? Wasn't there "talk" that a marriage contract wasn't going to be valid unless both parties consented? Guess it was just that. All talk. No action. The poor child in this particular instance doesn't even know that her father has sold her off to a
The 58 year old groom has "a verbal undertaking with the girl's father that he would not consummate the marriage until she turns 18." Ten years. The groom will be 68 then. A lot can happen in ten years. Until then, though, the CHILD, the eight-year-old girl, can dream about the story book wedding she has always wanted to her Prince Charming and how they will live happily ever after... Dayum. Is she in for one rude awakening when she finds out that she wasn't having a dream, but a nightmare!
Poor girl, maybe her mother will be able to find a more sympathetic judge in a few years. In the meantime, here's hoping for a heart attack.
ReplyDeleteOh, forgot to ask: how does the father know the marriage will not be consummated until she's 18? When will she go live with her new husband?
ReplyDelete"In the meantime, here's hoping for a heart attack." Like I said, Angela, "a lot can happen in ten years."
ReplyDelete"How does the father know the marriage will not be consummated..." Because there is a verbal agreement. Isn't that quite enough to guarantee that your child won't be sexually assaulted by a pedophile???
The article doesn't specify when the CHILD will have to go live with the man old enough to be her grandfather. Probably "puberty," though, whenever that is...