Freedom of marriage... is it a right?

[amdfangirl]

http://www.smh.com.au/national/girl-16-gets-court-to-halt-marriage-20110929-1kzds.html

A COURT has placed a 16-year-old girl on the airport watch list to prevent an arranged marriage taking place in Lebanon.

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, applied to the Federal Magistrates Court for an order to restrain her parents from taking her out of Australia to marry a man she had met only once.

Makes you wonder, does the girl really have the right to break her social and cultural continuity.

Where is the line that has to be drawn between "we accept your culture and beliefs" and "that's not acceptable by our western standards".

Is it really fair that our Western legal system can impose restrictions on what would have invarably happened out of normality in Lebannon?

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

The concern obviously is, does anyone meet someone one time, then decide to make a life long commitment to that person.
Having less experience in the ways of love arent too far from that of everyday things.
Would it be acceptable for a child to determine forever the shoes he wears, permanantly?
The shirts? Clothing of any kind, not knowing about weather changes?
Theres a million examples, and in each, anyone has the right, yo say clothe themself, but which clothes can be the problem

 

[Onus]

Please reread, AND read the article. The girl does NOT want to be made to accept a pre-arranged marriage. It is her parents who are trying to make her marry a stranger. She got herself added to the watch list so if her parents try to fly her out, they will HOPEFULLY be prevented.
I say, GOOD FOR HER!

Edit: So yes, freedom FROM FORCED marriage is indeed a right.

 

[nikorr]

Agree with u ^ jtt283.

Once u are citizen of another country, u have to obey the laws of that country.

Freedom for who? For that girl? Freedom decided by her father? What about her right to refuse?

Right, she has no saying in that. >Shocker<

She will probably end up death, killed by her father or brother, with no right to refuse.

Sad, but its the truth.

 

[nikorr]

Let's hope she doesn't now fall victim to an honor killing.

Odds are not in her favor.

 

[jsc]

Is it really fair that our Western legal system can impose restrictions on what would have invarably happened out of normality in Lebannon?

If they wanted to live under Lebanese standards, they should have stayed there.

 

[nikorr]

If they wanted to live under Lebanese standards, they should have stayed there.

Agree. U can't have it both ways.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

You usually dont see a country back away from its laws to appease others, foreigners, with a different set of laws.
My previous post was under the general misunderstanding of it being her choice, BUT, regardless, what I wrote still applies

 

[Pyree]

To be fair, everyone has the right to preserve their culture. Her parents have every right to make that arrangement. But our law does not allows it. In Australia, it would be violation of human right and it is a big no. So that gives the power for the girl to reject it, which is a good thing. But as soon as they persuade her to Lebanon, there is absalutely nothing we can do to protect her and it would be normal for her to get merried, which is both the social norm and accepted by law.

If we have a western mindset, it is a terrible thing, but if we are Lebanses, it would be a celebration of the union of two family, a happy day (at least for the people enjoying the festivity, but may be not he for the bride and/or groom).

I understand that parents from ethnic background want their child to marry someone from the same ethnic group. You don't have to tell me, my parents alway introduce Chinese girl of the same age to me. In my opinion, the best thing the parent can do is what my parents do. They have their hope up that I may merry a Chinese, but I also have the freedom to met the people I want.

 

[cuecuemore]

Makes you wonder, does the girl really have the right to break her social and cultural continuity.

No, it makes you wonder. To me it's obvious that she has every right to object to this.

 

[nikorr]

"Her parents have every right to make that arrangement. "


They have that right, but if she can be put through potentially life endangering journey, the authorities should step in. She has rights too. And they must be protected.

Its not the first time it is happening.

This girls rights wore not protected in time.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/01/24/honor-killings-buffalo-arizona-trials-prove-happening/

 

[Pyree]

@Cuecuemore

Her right to reject the wedding is because she is in a western society. If she is in Lebanon, she will be forced to do it.

In Australia, we want the wedding to stop and we are right. But if we stop her wedding in Lebanon, we are wrong.

@nikorr

Her parents have every right to make that arrangement regardless of which contry they are in. But in Asutralia, the gril has the right to not go to Lebanon for the wedding, so what her parents did just embarrass themselves. Hopefully it wouldn't cause any problem for that girl. I know the honour killing is nasty and hopefully her parents can come to their sense in time to prevent that tragedy. However, in Lebanon, that girl is doing something wrong by rejecting her duty and that could be her punishment, which is also illegal (killing people is illegal in pretty much every country's law). However, they go un-noticed because the group of people doing the killing, often relatives of the girl often make it looks like an accident and the authority is not making an effort to stop it. Killing someone you don't know is hard enough, I have no idea how they can kill someone they know.

 

[nikorr]

Hey Pyree,

I am not in disagreement with u. It just sucks for her.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

To me, this is about disrespect
Of course for the girl, where opinion obviously doesnt exist
But also, for Australia, and its people, and its sovereign rights

 

[Pyree]

@nikorr

I am just pointing out how the situation could look like if we are in Lebanon. If this discussion was in a cafe in Lebanon and we are a bunch of old conservative Lebanonese, we would condemn that girl to hell!

@jaydeejohn

For many Asian culture, the opinion of the child deserves no respect. The child respect the parents. That being said, everone respect the law and their culture regardless where they are from. I think Her parent needs to figure out the balance and priority between the two; wether they will respect the Australian law more or the traditional Lebanese culture/social norm more.

 

[nikorr]

@nikorr

I am just pointing out how the situation could look like if we are in Lebanon. If this discussion was in a cafe in Lebanon and we are a bunch of old conservative Lebanonese, we would condemn that girl to hell!

Yeah, they are keeping the "lid" on the freedom over there.

 

[Pyree]

It is difficult becasue of the geographic location they are in. As far as I can understand, they are democracy but just not working very well. IMO, we should help them, not by using military means, to liberate the people in Lebanon politically to become a democracy, should the majority of the people in Lebanon wants it. However, the social liberation is a sensitive issue. We do not fully understand their culture and therefore, it is for the Lebanese people to figure out which social norm and aspect of culture is deem offensive in modern standard and should be discourage and demolished. Pretty much like the in China foot binding, arranged merriage and oppression of female rights is no longer praticed. Unrelated to this article, but I strongly support an orderly political change in mainland China where they can at least make some prograss politacally.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

I find whats happened in Saudia Arabia a chance at this, with women getting the vote

 

[nikorr]

I find whats happened in Saudia Arabia a chance at this, with women getting the vote

King over there knows, he must sit on two chairs to stay in power, or else...

 

[Pyree]

I just hope the women there can vote the king out.

 

[nikorr]

That would lead to Al-Qaeda rule.

Can't say it would help the local woman much, instead it would turn slowly into Afghanistan's direction.

 

[Pyree]

I think Saudi Arabia contains too much oil, Uncle Sam will never let it fall on the hands or AQ like Afghanistan.

 

[nikorr]

I think Saudi Arabia contains too much oil, Uncle Sam will never let it fall on the hands or AQ like Afghanistan.

Same with Iraq. Bad apples know, that it would destabilize the free world markets and our living as we know it. IMHO

 

[iam2thecrowe]

"Makes you wonder, does the girl really have the right to break her social and cultural continuity. "
She is a human being, It is her right to live the way she wants, its not her culture, its her parents culture. I think backward countries like that can go to hell with their beliefs and stay in the dark ages and stay the hell out of my country. Its no longer 2000 BC any more people, wake up!

 

[ltrazaklt]

1) in most of those US sates allowing under age marriage, it is With Parental consent ..
2) the choice of wording of 'imposing' western values is a little too late imho , the young girl has obviously been 'exposed' to these western values, and has made a choice for herself ..in fact the very Contact of different cultures , the simple exchange of ideas from group to another can have 'imposing' affects ..from the Conquistidors stopping the Human sacrifices of Aztecs , to the Island of Japan's Centuries of self Isolation from fear of outside influence affecting its culture and religion to even in Modern Times where can find video of, in Africa, a culture where if the woman is simply accused of adultery , the way they prove her innocence is to take an iron skillet , heat up over an open fire , then she has to lick the bottom of skillet 3 times , if her tongue burns she is guilty , if it does not burn , she is innocent; to the meeting European and Native Americans (where Europeans to smoke, and Natives learned to Drink)

The simple geographic intersection of different cultures meeting one another is going to Affect each culture; simply talking to each other has an affect , this is why some cultures Isolate themselves and other cultures venture out for new ideas. ..

that being said , the Parents chose to live in Australia ..and thus chose to live by that Countries laws (even if not it's Culture) ...and That being said , if the situation were reversed ..say an Australian family living in Lebanon ; I doubt the Australian Family would try to 'impose' it's culture (although it bring up another question, what an Aussie Family living in Lebanon, had a Lebanese 16 yr old come to them for help to stop a marriage?) ..
also , there seems to be a presupposition that the arranged marriages in other cultures are totally %100 accepted the by Both the man and the woman invovled (sometimes it the Man who doesnt want to marry the girl) ..and in many cases it is , many cases it is not. of course we are talking cultures that also make it illegal for women to learn to read ..
But the 'Imposing of Western Values' is too late , the simple exchange of ideas has already affected obviously this girl ..and MANY MANY others as well may not express their desire to not have an arrange marriage for fear of the Consequences of going against their own culture. ..take for example the Internet and its ability to allow Every Culture to interact with one another. from the use texts to rally a Million Philipinos to the street to oppose a law being passed, to the Protesters in Iran , to Tianamin Square , to the Movements in Iraq, Egypt , Syria , Libya Tunisia, South Africa, ...while they were not living in another country ..they are still having the western value 'imposed on them' ..simply by being 'exposed to them' ..
Luckily the for US and the West ..freedom has a certain 'contagious quality' to it.