Egypt's cabinet approves draft law criminalizing child marriage

CAIRO - 12 April 2022: The Cabinet under Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli on Tuesday approved a draft law criminalizing child marriage.

The bill is aimed at putting an end to this negative phenomenon, as children under 18 years are not psychologically, culturally, mentally and physically qualified to raise a family.
 

The draft law suggests that every person who participated in the marriage of a minor younger than 18 years old is punished by five years in prison and a L.E.100,000-200,000 fine. The crime does not fall under the statute of limitations and the consent of the minor is disregarded even if they turned 18 later in the marriage.

That includes the guardians of the minor, the husband spouse of they are older than 18, those who produced the official or the urfi paperwork. The penalty is toughened by hard labor for those who used threats, force, offered money, gifts, or any form of privilege to persuade the child into marriage. Those who produced forged medical certificate or identification documents to pass the marriage as if the child is an adult deserves the same penalty.

A person who hides one of the defendants, the documents, any of the money granted to pass the marriage, or any evidence related to the crime is punishable by five years in prison and a L.E.50,000-100,000 fine. The same penalty applies to a person who reveals the identity of a victim, a witness, or the person who reported the marriage. If that person facilitates communication between the defendants and the victim of gave the victim false information about their rights or disrupted the victim’s mental health, they are punishable by the same penalty.

Meanwhile, people who knew of the marriage and did not report it are punishable by six months in prison and a fine of L.E. 10,000-20,000, unless they are public officers, in which case they are punished by five years in prison.

If one of the defendants reported the marriage to the authorities, they may be exempt from the penalty if subsequently the rest of the defendants are apprehended, and any involved money is ceased.

The promotion of child marriage by any means is punishable by five years in prison with labor and a fine of L.E.100,000-20,000.