Judge Lets Stand Marriage of Girl, 8

(Saudi Arabia) Last Saturday, a Saudi judge reviewed a case filed by the mother of an eight-year-old girl seeking to annul the girl's arranged marriage to a 47-year-old man.

[T]he judge, Sheikh Habib Abdallah al-Habib, dismissed a petition brought by the girl's mother because she "is not the legal guardian of the girl," the woman's lawyer Abdullah al-Jutaili said.

"Therefore, she cannot represent her daughter in these proceedings," al-Jutaili said.

Her parents are separated, he said.

According to the lawyer, the girl's father arranged the marriage in order to settle his debts with the man, who is "a close friend" of his.

The judge did ask for a pledge from the husband, who was in court, not to consummate the marriage until the girl reaches puberty, according to al-Jutaili.

The judge ruled that when the girl reaches puberty, she will have the right to request a divorce by filing a petition with the court, the lawyer said.

Therefore, it appears that the case was dismissed because the girl's mother doesn't have standing. Apparently, since the eight-year-old is now married, the mother no longer has a right to intervene in her life.

Hey, but there's nothing to worry about since the 47-year-old pledged to hold off on sex with the girl until she reaches puberty. It seems that pledges by middle-aged child molesters are relied upon in Saudi Arabia. Of course, since the girl was traded for the payment of debts, the issue of treating a person as chattel was apparently ignored by the court.