Ten-year-old Nujood Mohammed Ali from Yemen was honoured in
New York last week for her fight against early marriage.
Nujood was named Woman of the Year by Glamour Magazine
after successfully divorcing her 30-year-old husband in April.
Nujood’s father agreed for a local motorcycle courier
to marry his daughter, then only aged nine, on condition that
the groom would not consummate the marriage until she reached
puberty. This promise was not kept and Nujood’s married
life consisted of frequent beatings and rape.
Desperate to escape her situation Nujood travelled on her own
to her local courthouse and bravely asked the judge for a divorce.
Asim Turkawi of Anti-Slavery International said: “Nujood’s
divorce case was a historic victory against all forms of child
abuse and helped draw attention to the misery that many children
are facing in Yemen and in the entire region.
“Child marriage harms the wellbeing and development
of the child and leaves them vulnerable to future exploitation,
including sexual abuse and trafficking.”
The legal age for marriage in Yemen is 15 but the law is frequently
ignored, especially in poor rural areas where tribal customs
take precedence.
Early marriage in Yemen is often viewed as an economic necessity.
A prospective husband will pay money upfront for a bride and
the marriage of a daughter means a family has one less mouth
to feed.
The government of Yemen has ratified the UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child and so is responsible in taking for protecting
children from all forms of physical or mental violence, including
sexual abuse.
Nujood is now able to return to school and her childhood. She
hopes one to day to become a lawyer so that she too can defend
the human rights of those most in need.
