AFPAFP
A member of a women's rights group meets with women in a remote village in Morocco, where a legal loophole has resulted in thousands of child marriages annually (AFP/FADEL SENNA)
Moroccan women prepare bread in Tamarwoute, a remote village in the Anti-Atlas mountains, where child marriages persist amid high poverty rates and a lack of opportunities for women (AFP/FADEL SENNA)
Moroccan women and rights groups agree that educating women and making them more economically independent are key to ending the phenomenon of child marriages (AFP/FADEL SENNA)
A member of a women's rights group meets with women in a remote village in Morocco, where a legal loophole has resulted in thousands of child marriages annually (AFP/FADEL SENNA)

Thousands of girls in Morocco are forced to marry off to violent husbands due to a legal loophole.

I went through hell. She said that the nightmare is behind her.

After a year of marriage, a woman from a remote part of the North African kingdom won a divorce.

She is learning to read and write now that she is 20 years old.

She said that she was encouraging other girls in the village to do the same as she wanted to be independent.

She has changed her name to protect her identity like the other women in the article.

The legal age of marriage in Morocco is 18 but there is a clause that allows judges to allow families to marry off children under that age.

The loophole has been called for to be closed.

More than half of the total applications were approved by judges in 2020.

The figure does not include minor marriages that are not recognised in law but are sealed with a simple reading of a verse from the Koran.

This tragedy is widespread in remote, landlocked and marginalized areas.

For the last 10 years, the association she heads has been taking an annual convoy through the mountains of Morocco to raise awareness of the dangers of child marriage.

Precarious livelihoods and long-held traditions make the group's mission particularly sensitive.

It's delicate work because it's a taboo subject, so it's vital that we earn the trust of the people we're meeting and most of all listen to them.

The battle for independence.

There was barely a soul moving among the hills of the nearby village of Tamadghouste.

A group of women are making bread at the communal oven.

Ikhich spoke with them in Amazigh, a language from Morocco.

The women's suspicious looks soon gave way to a flood of complaints over living standards in a village that has neither a school nor a pharmacy.

She was taken out of school at the age of six and married at 17 and she said she was trying to take control of her life.

I have always wanted to study but nobody helped me. She said that her sisters were married very young, at around 14 years old.

The most recent official figures show that more than 44 percent of women are uneducated.

Educating woman and making them more economically independent are key to tackling child marriage.

She was married at the age of 14 to a man who was 56 years old, four times her age.

She said that she got out by getting involved with associations.

At the communal oven in Tamadghouste, the women discuss making carpets or selling traditional bread to nearby hotels as ways of making a living.

All girls have the right to an education, that's what they agreed on.

Izza, who was married six years ago, said she was fighting for her daughter to have an education.

She said that she must build herself, become independent and avoid ending up in her situation.

ko/agr/par/jsa/jkb

  • Thailand is trying to increase the number of babies it has by offering parents a variety of services, including fertility and child care centers, as well as using social media to highlight the joys of family life. Thailand's demographic path is similar to other Asian economies, but as an emerging market relying on cheap labour and a growing middle class the implications for Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy are far more profound.

  • Wrinkles disappear even hard-to-erase.

  • AdAzure
    • Why this Ad?
    • Go ad-free*

    Work from anywhere with secure access to resources.

  • Hong Kong authorities are testing the entire population of 7.5 million three times this month.

  • The portrait of Princess Diana was unveiled at the palace this month as part of an exhibition.

  • Russian shelling hit a bridge that was used to evacuate civilians, causing residents and journalists to flee Irpin.

  • The best home equity and cash out refinance rates are 2.3%. View rates and calculate payment. 30 Year terms. You can view rates now.

  • The Omicron variant of COVID-19 has caused the highest number of new infections in about two years in mainland China. The data from the National Health Commission showed that there were 214 domestically transmitted cases on Sunday. Chinese authorities started counting locally found infections and cases arriving from outside mainland separately in March of 2020.

  • At Paris Fashion Week, the new line Vtmnts made its runway debut.

  • An 85-year-old woman was sexually assault by a 52 year old man at a Seal Beach nursing home.

  • AdMercy Ship
    • Why this Ad?
    • Go ad-free*

    The facial tumors grew large and painful. She had surgery that changed her life.

  • I have been surprised by how little they need, how much wear-and-tear they cause, and how quickly they grow up.

  • Earnhardt was reported missing on February 25.

  • The Little People, Big World star is pregnant with her third child.

  • AdRaid
    • Why this Ad?
    • Go ad-free*

    Enjoy this stunning graphics and deep game-play.

  • You were tired last night and probably didn't get to sleep until this morning. You are not alone. A recent report.

  • If you keep bothering her long enough, she will fall for you.

  • The Israeli Prime Minister traveled to Moscow to meet with Putin. He spoke to Zelensky three times in 24 hours.

  • Green technologies will be tested at SUSTIE, which will help buildings become more eco-friendly.

  • Demna Gvasalia, a refugee of the Georgian Civil War, called the Paris Fashion Week show a "dedication to fearlessness, to resistance, and to the victory of love and peace."

  • The ship left Fort Lauderdale for the Caribbean on Friday. Labadee and Nassau will be visited.

  • The family of a Ukrainian student evacuated their home after a bomb went off nearby.

  • AdVisible
    • Why this Ad?
    • Go ad-free*

    You can get unlimited data for $25 a month. 5G was included. Family plan savings. No family was needed. There are terms that apply.

  • How much does a private jet cost? You can learn more about how to get the private jet experience without buying one.

  • The public address system roared as a lone rider separated from a melee of horses and galloped towards a chalk circle drawn in the middle of a muddy field in the Afghan capital.

  • According to reports, the Capitol Police Board declared an emergency on Sunday as truck drivers protested in the D.C. area. The protests, which began Sunday and slowed traffic outside the capital, have been dubbed the "People's Convoy" and could last several days. Police can ask for help from the National Guard in addition to being able to pay for their hotel and food.