Abstract

The practice of child marriage has been recognised internationally and regionally as a clear violation against the rights of children, attracting more attention from governments, international organisations and civil societies alike. This paper explores the hurdles underpinning the implementation of laws that fight against child marriages in a few countries of the developing world, focusing on South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Utilising secondary data, through a review of policy documents, reports and surveys, the paper argues that there are still legal inconsistences that threaten the effective enforcement of the laws on protecting children from child marriages. The challenges that are hindering the enforcement of these laws include harmful religious practices, harmful cultural practices, lack of awareness to legal practices, political ignorance and lack of clear prescriptive measures. This paper advocates for a practical approach to instituting laws that are against child marriages. It is recommended that religious beliefs that are suppressive to girls be banned, dogmatic measures that fight child marriages are introduced.

Keywords: Child marriages, law, hurdles, implementation, legal instruments