Underage Marriage

Underage Marriage

Human rights organizations and child protection advocates, including Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, have raised alarm over the rising number of forced marriages among underage girls in Iran. Based on Iranian government statistics, human rights group Justice for Iran reported on July 7 that more than 30,000 girls under the age of 15 were married in 2013. The report also states that marriage for girls under the age of 10 is on the rise.

The UN defines forced marriage as a contemporary form of slavery.