They approve a law that prohibits child marriage in Colombia – Diario La Página –

The Senate of Colombia approved this Wednesday a bill that seeks to eliminate child marriage and early unions, which will become law once it is sanctioned by President Gustavo Petro.

“I want to thank this plenary for such a rich discussion, that we have ended with an approval by acclamation,” said one of the speakers of the initiative, Senator Clara López, of the ruling coalition Historic Pact, after the bill was approved. law.

The initiative, titled ‘They are girls, not wives’, beyond prohibiting marriage, seeks to establish a national program of comprehensive care for life projects for boys, girls and adolescents, a plan that accompanies these minors and give life alternatives.

«Colombia leaves the shameful list of countries that allow child marriage. “The ban on child marriage and early unions has been approved,” Chamber representative Jennifer Pedraza, of the Dignity and Compromiso party, and another of the promoters of the project that will now become law, celebrated on social network X.

Worrying situation of indigenous girls
Colombia ranks 20th worldwide in unions of girls and adolescents before the age of 15, according to a 2022 Unicef ​​report.

It is also in 11th place worldwide in unions of girls and adolescents before the age of 18, according to the aforementioned Unicef ​​report, titled ‘Analysis of the situation of child marriages and early unions in Colombia’.

The case of indigenous girls is the most worrying because around a third of them are married before reaching the age of majority to men who are double or triple their age, which leads to serious consequences, such as sexual violence, early pregnancies and school dropout.

Currently, despite the fact that Colombia has signed and ratified international legal instruments that prohibit child marriage, such as the Inter-American Convention to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Violence against Women, the Civil Code allows adolescents from the age of 14 to marry. get married if their parents or legal guardians consent.