“این عکس یک مرد در حال گرفتن عکس از منظره‌ای زیباست”

“This photo shows a man taking a picture of a beautiful landscape.”
The scent of Mazafariyan.

Usually on the dates of International Day of the Girl Child and International Women’s Day, the issue of girls’ marriage is highlighted, but the marriage of boys has been less discussed in global forums. This is despite the fact that most countries have signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child and have accepted its provisions. The Convention does not directly address the issue of child marriage, which is one of its weaknesses. However, some articles of the Convention, as well as some articles of the Optional Protocols and various statements of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, can be used to prohibit child marriage.

Article 1 of the Children’s Rights Convention: A child is a human being who has not yet reached the age of eighteen, unless the age of majority is determined earlier according to the current laws in the relevant countries.

Article 3 (Best interests of the child), paragraph 1: In carrying out any action related to a child, whether in the public, private, administrative, non-administrative, or any other sector, the best interests and health of the child take precedence over all other matters.

Article 16 (Right to privacy): The personal and private sphere of any child is inviolable. This sphere, which includes all aspects related to family, residential, status, and personal communications, must not be intentionally or unlawfully violated.

In Article 18 of the Children’s Rights Convention, regarding the care of children by parents, it is mentioned that both the father and mother are responsible for the upbringing and growth of the child, and governments must support and protect parents in order

Although the average age of marriage for men in their first marriage in Iran in 2014 was 27.6 years and studies show that the age of marriage for both genders has been on the rise, there are still some boys in Iran who marry before the age of 15 and these marriages are registered in courts.

Recently, the United Nations Children’s Rights Committee has recommended in a statement to Iran that the Iranian government should pay more attention to the situation of child marriage in Iran and should increase the legal age for marriage to 16 years old. Currently, the law does not have a specific age limit for marriage, but it requires the consent of the father and a valid court decision.

A look at the situation of boys’ marriage can be important from several perspectives:
1. The improvement of boys’ social and educational status in society should be given as much attention as girls. Accepting family responsibilities can also prevent boys from continuing their education.
2. Boys who become victims of early marriage for any reason, take on many responsibilities. One of these responsibilities is providing for the family’s livelihood and economy.
3. Early marriage of either parent and the young age of parents reduces the likelihood of improving the conditions and quality of family life; as the main reason for early marriage is to escape poverty, while poverty remains and is unknowingly passed on to the next generation.

A look at the statistics of 1393 (2014-2015) shows that 321 marriages of boys under the age of 15 have been registered in Iran. This number is considered in a situation where a large number of marriages that take place during the year are not registered. The first row of this table clearly shows how many of these 321 marriages were with girls of what ages. 15 cases were with boys under the age of 15 and girls under the age of 10, 111 cases with girls aged 10 to 14, 139 cases with girls aged 15 to 19, 41 cases with girls aged 20 to 24, 11 cases with girls aged 25 to 29, and 4 cases with girls aged 30 to 39. Although in previous years’ tables, some marriages of boys under the age of 15 with girls over the age of 30 to 60 have been registered, in 1393,

Although the global society pays more attention to the marriage of girls, we should not forget about boys in all this hustle and bustle. Because the effects of marriage on girls and their future also inevitably affect the lives of boys. The reason why the world focuses less on the topic of boys’ marriage and its effects is that it happens less frequently for boys compared to girls.

Previously, the influential factors of marriage on the lives of girls have been classified; what can also affect the lives of boys will be similar factors. As mentioned, early marriage either eliminates or delays educational opportunities for boys. In traditional societies where this phenomenon occurs for boys, it actually introduces them to a world where they are forced to take on responsibility before the appropriate time and accept that they must provide for their families; while for boys, not having enough life experience and skills can be a danger for future deviations. In any case, it is not possible to keep a newly matured child, who has also chosen a spouse, away from sexual relations. These children enter the fatherhood stage while they have not fully left their childhood behind.

Some of the factors that should be considered in reducing child marriage are:
1. Reviewing the child rights agreement
2. Selecting and proposing a specific day dedicated to the issue of child marriage
3. Amending the laws in Iran and increasing the minimum age for marriage
4. Conducting extensive field research and identifying the causes and problems of child marriage
5. Allocating a special budget for managing the reduction of child marriage in Iran.