Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Unfortunately I rise to speak on a subject that is not as happy as that of the member for Fowler. What I would like to raise this evening is the issue of child marriage.

Child marriage is a violation of human rights.    It robs girls of their childhood and adolescence, bringing those to a premature and unnatural end by imposing adult roles and responsibilities before the girls are physically, psychologically or emotionally prepared.    Child marriage also robs girls of their education, and it damages their health and their long-term prospects.

We know from overseas studies that complications from pregnancy and childbirth together are the main cause of death among adolescent girls aged 15-19 in developing countries—the main cause of death. We know that girls married young are more vulnerable to domestic violence and sexual abuse than those who marry later. We know that it is not uncommon for childhood marriage to impose social isolation upon those girls, bringing unwanted separation from their friends and family. It also entrenches them and their future families in poverty.

However, child marriage is not something that is restricted to poor, backward and isolated parts of the developing world—it is happening right here in our Australia today. Last week it was reported that a 26-year-old man was convicted of sexual assault matters after marrying a 12-year-old girl in a backyard Islamic ceremony conducted by an imam in New South Wales. She later became pregnant and miscarried. The so-called husband was only caught when he rocked up to Centrelink, seeking benefits for his 12-year-old wife, and the police were called. And yesterday, in another case, documents in a Bankstown court revealed that an unemployed man allegedly beat his 15-year-old child bride after marrying her in an Islamic ceremony officiated by a sheikh in Sydney's west last year. The case was only discovered when the 15-year-old girl took herself to a Bankstown hospital believing she had suffered a miscarriage. The court heard that the girl had stopped attending high school at the time of her marriage and was not working. Court documents also revealed the man allegedly threatened the girl bride's family over the phone, including her mother when she raised concerns. The accused said to her, 'If you start ... I'll finish it.'

These are not isolated cases. Dr Eman Sharobeem, the executive director of women's health services in Western Sydney said that these cases of underage marriages were 'just the tip of the iceberg'. She estimated there were at least 60 child brides living in south-western Sydney with many more destined for child marriage. Good Shepherd chief executive officer, Robyn Roberts, said of child marriages that evidence suggests it is prevalent in the community.

Child marriage has no place in Australia. Our Australian values hold that Child marriage is a violation of human rights. The values of Australia hold that the decision to marry should be a freely made, informed decision that is taken without fear, coercion, or undue pressure. It is a decision that should be made by an adult when the adult is ready. Australian values hold that those broad choices must be freely made, not only in regards to marriage but in all aspects of her life.

To paraphrase our Prime Minister Tony Abbott: no one should come to live in Australia and seek to enjoy the benefits that our values and freedoms have delivered while at the same time denying and rejecting those very same values and freedoms. We cannot allow this violation of girls' rights. This discriminatory and primitive idea around the value of women and girls in our society is festering in our suburbs under the guise that it is just another multicultural practice. We cannot allow the sexual exploitation of our children under the name of child marriage. We cannot afford the lost opportunity, the waste of talent that child marriage causes.

We must re-evaluate our laws. We must re-evaluate our immigration practices. We must re-evaluate our education standards to ensure that we stamp out this most abhorrent practice of child marriage.