Underage girl's engagement prevented in Azerbaijan

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Security forces broke up the engagement of a 15-year-old girl in an Azerbaijani village, her father was fined.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, Azerbaijani activists considered government measures to prevent early marriages ineffective. They emphasized that the responsibility for early marriages lies with the girls' parents, and publicity helps to avoid forced marriage.

In the village of Muganly in the Shamakhi region, the engagement of an underage girl born in 2010 was prevented, Oxu.az wrote on August 16.

The message about the engagement was received by the district police department, the security forces stopped the ceremony, the parents of the young man and the girl were called to the station. Preventive conversations were held with them. A protocol was drawn up against the girl's father under Article 189 of the Administrative Code of Azerbaijan (conspiracy to marry a person under 16 years of age), he was brought to justice.

Amendments to the Criminal Code came into force in Azerbaijan on July 1. Article 176-2 stipulates responsibility for organizing early marriages with persons under 16 years of age. The punishment provided for this is a fine of two to three thousand manats (1.2 thousand dollars - 1.8 thousand dollars), or restriction of freedom for up to two years, or imprisonment for up to two years. As for the engagement of the aforementioned persons, liability for it is provided for in the Code of Administrative Offenses. The person who organized the engagement is either fined from one thousand to two thousand manats or sent under administrative arrest for a period of one to two months. Liability has also been introduced for persons managing public catering facilities where events related to early marriages are held. These are fines of one thousand to nine thousand manats, Trend reports.

Recall that the practice of early marriages also exists in Georgia, it is especially noticeable in areas populated by ethnic Azerbaijanis. In both Azerbaijan and Georgia, the law allows marriage only from the age of 18, but in the past, early marriages were allowed by religion, laws and customs, and in connection with the struggle of women for their rights, they began to cause condemnation, according to the material "Early marriages in Georgia: tradition or bad habit?", prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Feminists in Azerbaijan have repeatedly held protests against violence against women and early marriages. "Some men cover up their immorality with the veil of religious marriages, "marrying" teenage girls," activist Aytaj Tapdyg previously told the "Caucasian Knot."

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