Aisha Alert from modern, moderate Malaysia. “13-year-olds marry in mass ceremony,” from Agence France-Presse, with thanks to JE:
TWO 13-year old Malaysians were the youngest among 10 couples who were married in a joint wedding ceremony in eastern Terengganu state, a report said today.
Sukhri Ali and Mariam Din, who were neighbours in an indigenous people settlement, were married yesterday according to Muslim rites after courting for a month, The Star daily said in a report.
They were advised to tie the knot by the head of the village which is located on the fringes of the peninsula’s largest national park, Taman Negara, the newspaper said.
The families of the two teenagers did not object to the wedding, the report said. It was the custom of their community that a boy and girl who had reached puberty could get married.
The lovebirds had met while on a hunting trip, when “their eyes met” and “hearts fluttered,” before they started dating, the Star said.
The minimum legal age for marriage in Malaysia is 21 but those under 18 years who want to marry can do so with parental consent.