"Underage marriage is widespread in the United States, where about 170,000 children were wed between 2000 and 2010 in 38 of the 50 states where data was available, according to activists.
Although age 18 is the minimum for marriage in most of the nation, every state has legal loopholes allowing children to wed.
Christie conditionally vetoed the measure, sending it back to the state legislature with proposed changes. He said it should have an exception so a judge can approve marriages for under age 18.
"An exclusion without exceptions would violate the cultures and traditions of some communities in New Jersey based on religious traditions," Christie said in a statement.
The bill as it was already approved by both houses of the legislature would have made New Jersey the first state to outlaw child marriage altogether, according to Unchained At Last, a group that opposes arranged and forced marriages.
Most such marriages are underage girls married to older men, it said.
Communities and ethnic groups in the United States known to practice arranged or forced marriage include Orthodox Jews, Muslims, Mormons, Sikhs and Hmongs, according to Unchained At Last."
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário