Today, is a very important day in our country as the Senate has approved the reform to the Civil Code that prohibits child marriage. It has been a long struggle, but finally this bill, which was reintroduced by PGA member Dip. José Horacio Rodríguez, makes us proud and brings us joy. At last, early unions and child marriages are definitely and firmly prohibited in Dominican Republic.

A warm greeting to everyone - finally we have achieved the goal for which we have fought for so many years. Dip. Magda Rodríguez,
Chair of PGA's National Group in Dominican Republic

 

Background

New York / Santo Domingo –  On November 18, the Chamber of Deputies of the Dominican Republic approved an important reform to the Civil Code prohibiting child marriage in the country. The bill modifies article 144 of the Civil Code to establish that a man or a woman may not marry under any circumstances before they have reached 18 years of age. The author of the bill is PGA member Diputado José Horacio Rodríguez.

The text of the bill (in Spanish) highlights that, according to a 2014 study by the National Statistics Office and UNICEF, 36% of Dominican women between 20 and 24 years of age were married or entered into a union before the age of 18 and 12% did so before the age of 12. It also points out that the rate of marriages or unions of Dominican girls and female adolescents is well above the average for Latin America and the Caribbean, which is 23% for those under 18 years of age and 5% for those under 15 years of age.

After the adoption of the bill by the Chamber of Deputies, it goes to the Senate for its approval before becoming law. PGA will closely monitor the legislative process and will continue to promote this initiative.

As the text of the bill indicates, child marriage is a harmful practice that particularly affects girls and female adolescents, exposing them to human rights violations. Since it ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1991, the Dominican Republic committed to “take all effective and appropriate measures with a view to abolishing traditional practices prejudicial to the health of children.”

With the approval of this bill, the Dominican Republic takes a step forward in fulfilling this commitment, as well as in the realization of Sustainable Development Goal 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and specifically target 5.3 (Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage).

The approval of the bill in the Senate and its conversion into law would represent a crucial advance in the eradication of child marriage in the Dominican Republic, as well as an influential example for other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean where children under 18 years of age are still allowed to marry; especially in the current context due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which is contributing to the increase in this harmful practice.

In 2017, then-Diputada and PGA member Gloria Reyes introduced a bill to eliminate child marriage which was approved by the Chamber of Deputies. However, the bill was not discussed in the Senate by the end of the legislative term and expired. Three years later, Ms. Reyes, appointed by President Luis Abinader as Director of the Progressing with Solidarity Program (Prosoli), continues to promote this initiative and will be part of the newly created Cabinet for Children, working in coordination with various Ministries to prevent and eliminate child marriages and early unions in the Dominican Republic.