Yohana Susana Yembise : There is a suggestion for rising of marriage up to 20 years old

News24xx.com -  Indonesian Minister of Female Empowerment and Child Protection Yohana Susana Yembise said that her team is trying to approach a family in South Sulawesi that intends to marry their child off. 

This is because the child in question is still quite young and still study in middle school. She said it violates the Regulations number 1 year 1974 about marriage.

“There is team that is sent there to prevent it from happening. Because the Regulation number 1 year 1974 still applies, so special approaches are needed toward the family,” Yohana said in House of Representatives building, Parliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, Monday, April 16th 2018.

“We will be firm in showing our seriousness that the government still protects children’s rights, not letting them marry in such a young age. The government will be firm,” she added.

In the aforementioned Regulation, it is true that it is written that marriageable age is 16 years old and above. However, Yohana said that there are many demands to rise the age.

“It is true that in Regulation number 1 year 1974, it is said there that 16 year-olds can marry, that is why there are many demands from civilians and female theologians to rise the marriageable age soon,” she said.

From all the demands, the majority asked for the marriageable age to be changed from 16 and above to 20 and above.

“We are brewing it up between two ministries, our ministry and the Ministry of Religion, along with non-governmental organizations (LSM), which demand to rise the marriageable age and most of them tend to prefer 20 years and above.”

Before this, in Bantaeng, Sulawesi, there was a couple, who was only in Junior High School, who wanted to marry. The two of them are still very young. The boy is 15 years old and the girl is 14 years old. Their marriage became viral in social media.

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