Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
The National Action for Quality Education in Zambia (NAQEZ) has commended president Hakainde Hichilema’s directive for the arresting of perpetrators of child marriages must attract national support and instituting of various cultural and legal amendments.
NAQEZ Executive Director Aaron Chansa says the resultant and hoped-for amendments of customary law, which permits underage marriages, will make underage marriage an actionable offence.
Mr. Chansa is suggesting that the customary law be written down in line with the marriage act. Article 17 of the marriage act allows marriage at the age of 21 years, not below 21.
He has told QTV news in a statement that the concern from the highest office in Zambia has come at a time when Zambia has one of the highest child marriage rates in the world.
Mr. Chansa says statistics are showing that 31% of the girls under the age of 18 are married, this simply means that two in five girls in Zambia are child brides.
He says the 2-in-5, underage-marriage figures should shake and provoke all Zambians into annoyance and affirmative action aimed at reversing the destruction being caused by child marriages.
Mr. Chansa says while the directive is good and timely, the police will have insurmountable challenges in fulfilling this presidential decree because most of the girls in rural areas are married off by their parents or guardians under customary law.