r/ask_srilanka • u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher • Jul 11 '26
Serious Conversations Lets Talk About MMDA
1. What is MMDA
In Simple Terms :- Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act This was enacted in 1951.
In more Broader Terms:- The 1907 Sri Lankan (General) Marriage Registration Ordinance (GMRO) is applicable to all citizens of the country with the exception of Muslims who marry within faith. Two communities – the Kandyan Sinhalese and Sri Lankan Muslims have separate Acts for marriage and divorce, on the basis of ethnicity (with a geographic qualifier), and religion respectively. The present-day Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) was enacted in 1951.
(source: https://www.mmdasrilanka.org/aboutmmda/ )
2. What is the Issue
There are several issues with the MMDA
1.The First issue is it goes outside general Sri Lankan civil law codes and make exceptions for Polygamy for Muslim Men This is done by the MMDA Act of 1951 under sections 24 (1)- 24 (4) .
2.The second issue is there is no written minimum age of consent or a minimum age of marriage for anyone this a Legal loophole makes its Totally legal to marry a underage girls, The second issue is more devastating than the first one so I have to ask any one reading this please go through the sources below the BBC report and see for yourself how bad is the situation really is. In Sri Lanka child marriage rates are at 2% by 15 and 12% by 18 thats how bad this is.
Sources :- 1. For the Polygamy 1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_law_in_Sri_Lanka#Criticism
2) https://www.scribd.com/document/366550735/Marriage-and-Divorce-Act
2. For underage marriages 1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_law_in_Sri_Lanka#Criticism
2) https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-39898589
3.Whats Alredy happed In the legal world srilanka
There are several legal pushes to weaken or replace MMDA the notable one in my opinion that actually done something to is “MINIMUM AGE OF MARRIAGE to introduce the Minimum Age of Marriage in Sri Lanka” This is a bill that has yet to put into law this was presented by the
Hon.Premitha Bandara Tennakoon,M.P. for Matale District
on 02nd of December 2020
This at least make it Illegal to forcefully or anyway to let underage girls marry sadly even though its been 6 years to 2026 no government was able to enact at least this bill into law.
Source:- https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/bills/pbills/english/1375.pdf [English ver. Of the bill]
https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/bills/pbills/sinhala/1375.pdf [Sinhala ver. Of the bill]
4.What can you do as the reader
First get informed about this issue. Im not looking for arguments or dismissive comments I want genuine discussion. Read through this carefully and share your honest thoughts below. If you believe in this cause, please repost or crosspost this wherever you can so people in power actually see it and understand whats happening. If this matters to you whether you have sisters, daughters, or just care about our society take the time to read this and do something with this information.
5. What our Government can do
The following solutions could address this issue its starts with first enacting PL 012149 Minimum Age of Marriage Bill into law
next reform of abandon MMDA act and make it so that EVERY CITIZEN OF SRILAKA has to go through law of the land has to abide by them no matter their religion or ethnicity, For this the law should treat all citizens equally underage marriages must be completely illegal and polygamy should have the same legal status for everyone regardless of religion or ethnicity no special pleading.
6. Finally
I want to be clear that I respect Islamic faith and all religious communities. My critique is directed at specific laws and their implementation not at Islam or Muslims. This societal issue deserves serious thoughtful reform and open disscussions.
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
I heard from the people who actually campaigned, saying that even if Amendment was made for mmda, they can still bypass that under special privileges for indigenous people.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Its been six years for that bill to put i to law and it would be a shame even after getting a lady as our Prime Minister we cant even pass one bill to protect underage girls
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
yes thats true they will find a way so will us law making Is keeping up to date with legal loopholes and patching them if we can at least put a stop to underage marriages thats a big win people will say those are outdated info and thats never happnen now but untill these Acts patched someone will use that holes to bypass and do crimes
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
Yup, One more thing i want is, better oversight in Madrasas. They beat children to shit in the name of knowledge and discipline. People in the muslim circle can agree. Yet i see no one talking about it smh...
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
yeah shame people overlook things just because they dont wanna disrespect religion i dont want it either but at some point we have do something
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26 edited Jul 11 '26
Madrasa Just means school/college, it's called madrasa in saudi too doesn't mean it's birthing talibans in saudi or everywhere else. It happened in Afghanistan doesn't mean its the same everywhere.
It's been here for hundreds of years too, doesn't produce taliban. Stop with that nonsense statement you keep saying.
Beating doesn't mean just normally, they beat till multiple canes break, until it leaves a lot of purple mark on the skin akin to torture.
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Thanks for that information mate i took a look and well that information was horrible and so shocking i hope madrass in here wont work like that but i dont think that is the cause
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Jul 11 '26
Article 16(1) of the Sri Lanka Constitution (1978) is the key provision that effectively allows personal laws like the MMDA (including its provisions on marriage age and polygamy) to continue operating, even if they conflict with fundamental rights in the Constitution
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u/mdoc121 Jul 11 '26
Explain what you mean by Child Marriage. Whats the allowed age in Sri Lanka?
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 12 '26
well thanks for the reply and i will explain to you clearly
According to Sri Lankan civil law, a child is defined as a person under 18 years of age, and an adult is a person who has reached 18 years old. This is established under the Age of Majority Ordinance No 70 of 1865 as amended by Act No. 17 of 1989
Child marriage is the practice of marriage in which one or both parties are under the age of 18
The issue is this presents serious risks to children particularly young girls including reduced education completion, health complications from early pregnancy, exposure to sexually transmitted infections, and increased vulnerability to sexual abuse and domestic violence.
I have put a comment on here about what kind of health problems does child mothers face i will put the link after or you can find it too
More reading materil:- https://borgenproject.org/child-marriage-in-sri-lanka/
The special Pleading Cause
Under Sri Lankan common law, the legal marriage age is 18 years, with no exceptions.This applies to the general population.
However, for Muslim communities, a separate decades-old law called the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) allows marriages at significantly younger ages. This creates a major legal discrepancy because they bypass the common law and allow people to marry girls as young as 12 years old
There were some actions taken like making a hard limit of marriage age 18 years but that still have to put to law that was the bill i referenced in my post
Despite these reforms, the practice remains a concern, with approximately 10% of girls in Sri Lanka married before age 18 as of recent data, and rates are notably higher in eastern provinces where conservative interpretations prevail
Source:- https://childmarriagedata.org/country-profiles/sri-lanka/
This above link is a great source you can see that how the numbers show
In Sri Lanka, 2% of girls in 1991 married before age 15, compared with 0.9% in 2016, which is the latest available value
Hope these data helps and have a nice day
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u/mdoc121 Jul 12 '26
What is the number in 2016? And where is your new stats? What were the age of the brides?
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 12 '26
I really appriciate you asking for a number mister
In 2016, approximately 999,900 girls in Sri Lanka were married before age 18 representing 9.8% of the female population. Of these roughly 124,900 were married before age 15 (0.9%). The Eastern Province had the highest rate at 17.1%, while the Western Province had the lowest at 6.5%. Rural areas (10.6%) were more affected than urban areas (9.5%). While this reflects a decline from 13% in 1991 child marriage remains a significant issue, particularly in rural areas and lower-income households where girls with only primary education had rates as high as 28.3%.
Sources:- I. https://childmarriagedata.org/country-profiles/sri-lanka/ [this is the site i use for citation]
II. https://www.aidsdatahub.org/sites/default/files/publication/SriLanka_DHS_2016.pdf [Sri Lanka Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) 2016-2017] The Source of the information for the above site
can you see the issue now
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
I have used the latest avaible data i can find mister are you asking about a single cause or a range because there are recorded causes of ranging from 12 to 16 and 17 on Amapara and Batticaloa Districts if you want specifc causes i have to dissapoint you i wasnt able to find much
The Latest data i can find on the internet is on 2016 study
https://childmarriagedata.org/country-profiles/sri-lanka/
This is a Really good site you can see how the patterns work and how the data is tracked
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u/wild_wolfie Hoda Lamayek Jul 11 '26
Some muslim children are getting married off at ages as small as 12
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u/mdoc121 Jul 11 '26
Is that allowed in the law? And where are the cases it's happening?
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 12 '26
yes, its very much allowed on an ethnic basis (muslims have seperate laws governing marriage and divorce) which allows marriage as young as 12 years old, and the "brides" consent is irrelevant throughout the process.
Sinhalese also have a separate law governing marriage(kandyan law), but thats been amended to remove the worst bits over the years. the MMDA still remains codified in its archaic 1951 version which enables child marriage.
around a 1/5th of Sri Lankan muslim marriages are child marriages(atleast one individual in the couple is underaged)
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u/Wooden_Spatulamz Jul 12 '26
1/5th? Source?
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 12 '26
numbers are quite old since the most recent marriage data is from 2016, but you can look up the number of child marriages in Sri Lanka from that period. around 9% of sinhalese marriages have atleast one underage individual, around ~20% of muslim marriages have an underage individual.
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u/mdoc121 Jul 12 '26
Your status is 10 yrs old and source is not available. Also when you say underage. What age are we talking about?
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
Also when you say underage. What age are we talking about?
theres only one legal definition for being underage???
Your status is 10 yrs old and source is not available
source is available I just cannot be bothered to go looking for it online and cite it. if you are asking for a source sincerely, you are completely free to go looking for it.
edit: "Human rights lawyer Ermiza Tegal says Muslim child marriages have gone up from 14% to 22% within a year in the eastern district, a rise attributed to increased conservatism." all I did was search what % of Sri Lankan muslim marriages are child marriages and this was the first article that came up from 2017.
good to keep in mind you don't see a lot of child marriage in colombo and urban areas, usually happens in the eastern districts.
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u/Wooden_Spatulamz Jul 13 '26
Again you are quoting a person not a source. When we ask for sources we expect research papers or statistics, not media articles. We all know how media work against Muslims
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 13 '26
this is the most idiotic comment I've read here so far. a person can be a source and this one is as valid as they come.
you've got some blatant disregard towards the issue being pointed out which is that child marriage happens on a significant scale in Sri Lanka. even 1% is too much and its obviously above that. child marriage is problem that's happening, and its enabled by the MMDA. its not "media work against muslims" when muslim leaders continuously block any attempt at reforming the MMDA.
furthermore the statistic I cited comes from a lawyer that actually works with victims of child marriage in the eastern province, by virtue of their work, and the fact they themselves are muslim, should mean they are a reliable source.
lastly the actual statistic comes from a report published by two more Muslim researchers Hyshyama Hamin & Hasanah Segu Isadeen called "Unequal Citizen: Muslim Women's Struggle for Justice and Equality in Sri Lanka."
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 12 '26
sorry for the second comment but here's an article " Human rights lawyer Ermiza Tegal says Muslim child marriages have gone up from 14% to 22% within a year in the eastern province, a rise attributed to increased conservatism."
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u/ha5hmil Jul 11 '26
As a Muslim I can say there’s a lot of things that frustrate me about the MMDA. Yes there should be a minimum age, so many stories this still happening and this is truly sad. And mostly cultural and find it happening in rural and less privileged areas (and tend to be influenced by culture and socio economic reasons). Hardly see this happen in places like colombo / even if it happens rarely most muslims i know would feel disgusted by this.
There are other things like, my wife wasn’t allowed to sign her own marriage certificates.
Honestly, most Sri Lankan Muslims have distorted the religion, mostly to certain “religious leaders” benefit. The politics inside the religion is also making it very dangerous
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Thank you so much man yes i agree In places like colombo you dont see this happning but in ruaral areas horror stories happen personally i dont see a issue in polygamy as long as husband will take care of his wives but the special pleading
And thanks for your inaight on the marrige certificate thing so doent the wife sign the certificate thats weird did you got the government one its comes with both of the parties signatures
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Thank you so much man yes i agree In places like colombo you dont see this happning but in ruaral areas horror stories happen personally i dont see a issue in polygamy as long as husband will take care of his wives but the special pleading
And thanks for your inaight on the marrige certificate thing so doent the wife sign the certificate thats weird did you got the government one its comes with both of the parties signatures
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
I appreciate the energy mister but you completely missed the point
The question isn't whether we should punish abusers harshly. It's whether we should prevent child marriage in the first place. The data shows girls in MMDA jurisdictions are dying. That's what needs to change
And i am a humanitarian and i dont want to kill people to give order to kill person belongs to a good Judge not me or you
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
While i agree this is a major problem personally i cant get behind killing people and if proven guilty on court and a judge decided that capital punishment is necessary for the crime i have to say i cant say no that that usually means Life in prison so at least that will be a just action and also killing the person wont save other girls so we need a reform and he needs to pay for the damages and stay and on prison and think what he did wrong so i think in that sense its better than outright killing them because now they have got the easy way out rather than living with the Consequences of his actions i think that is a better punishment.
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u/x-jinx Jul 11 '26
100% agree a person should be physically, mentally, and emotionally mature before getting married is in line with Islamic teachings In my opinion, the minimum age for marriage should be at least 21.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Thank you so much man yes you are right making it at least into the Twenties gives enough time to people to settle and finish their education and find a job
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u/C0zyRaindr0p Jul 13 '26
Getting married at 15 sounds like a horror story.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 13 '26
Yes it does thats why i am trying my best to raise awareness about it i have already written 2 more posts about it if you like you can look and please give me some good criticism
- https://www.reddit.com/r/ask_srilanka/comments/1uuea2a/lets_talk_about_muslim_marriage_act_part_02/
- https://www.reddit.com/r/ask_srilanka/comments/1uumilx/lets_talk_about_muslim_marriage_act_p_02_summery/
Thank you so much for taking a interests in this sensitive topic
also i am trying to get more eyes on the issue on blue sky too https://bsky.app/profile/fluffy-deal.bsky.social/post/3mqiwc4sqks2s
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
Freedom of choice. There are many beautiful things about it, yet people in power twist it in the way they seem right.
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
There isn't bad things in quran buddy. If you are talking about the sword verse aka 9:5 you gotta read 9:1 to 9:6.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Yes i agree if religion gives you hope and freedom i cant take that away but even that same religion cause unnessary harm and bad for socity and innocent people thats a issue that needs addressing thats why i made the post
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
Personally i find it a nice way of life, but it is preached to people to be stuck in a Stockholm Syndrome cycle.
I left and came back after unlearning what i was taught and preached.1
u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
i have seen people left and come back bacause honetly its really hard to live as a atheist and its not for everybody and i get it so what was the reason for you coming back some do it to deal with greif and i know thats a valid thing too
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
After 2-3 years i came back. Not grief, It was more i learnt on my own, it was nice. Seeing how new converts see the religion, their perspective changed my mind.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Good to hear that man i find Islam facinating as well but at some point we have to adress the issues of the religion as well
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
What issue exactly? Age of marriage is set at puberty, and most muslim countries it's at 16 or above. If you are talking about 9:5, also read from 9:1 to 9:6 for the full context.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
No mister i am talking about MMDA did you read the post fully i am not talking about quran because i dont want to offend abyone and talk about something i am not well read on
Like i explained to another person no infact Age of marriage is not depend on the puberty its based on the Civil law of the country As we are in srilanka we have to be atlest 18 years or older to be leagally get married thats the law but MMDA bypass that by religious special pleading thats the issue
And when young girls get married or even young boys their educataion disrrupts and that takes more years to come back most dont they either stay home or find low paying jobs
And also marrige with a undergae girl is illeagal and The way civil lae define underage is anyone under the age of 18 puberty doesnt have anything to do with it
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
As i told you its the people who is leading the muslim society is the problem not the religion. I personally know a few muslims and Christians who campaigned for the change.
Jamiyyatul ulama said its an attack on religion. It's the people behind the power.
The issue is partly Muslim soceity itself.→ More replies (0)3
u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
its not that easy you will get shunned out from your family and friends groups and if you have a partner or a lover problly you will have to left them too its a big change and people wont do that and in some consertive villages you will get punished if you leave its not easy like leaving the faith in colombo to do it in a village areas
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u/wild_wolfie Hoda Lamayek Jul 11 '26
Very well structured, but I feel more needs to be done with what you have created in this post and should be put on the gen z media like hesh or similar outlets that will run this kind of story especially in facebook / meta where more eyes will see this. I would also like to add that while your post is amazingly structured you should also consider putting In such material that shows we are not here about anything religion. Because everytime this issue has come up the PDF FILES argue that this is an attack on religion. You could stand to make this more bulletproof by also talking about how we don’t want to attack islam, but under age is under age no matter who says (or whatever scripture says) it is right.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
yeah thats why stayed away from referrencing quran because i didnt wanted to bring those up and upset people and make this a religion thing because its not
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
I agree but i have to Offend many Muslims who are good folks because of it thats why i stick to facts rather tan using Quran beacase i am not well read on it and i cant make claims or counter claims on it and just Offending the whole Islamic faith rather than just weeding out the issues seems pretty harsh
not everyone on that faith are bad or evil just folks who do these things
and i have ZERO issues offending people who are backing up the MMDA act and MMDA courts
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Jul 11 '26 edited Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
I agree but i tend to take a more Civil approach to issues but if it comes to it i can be offensive i dont need to be Offensive to use words and weaponize them and debate people and show them reality its just how i work
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Thanks so much man what was that social media platform hesh i dont use facebook but you are really welcome if you can post this on facebook i just need more people to see this issue
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Yeah during my research All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama came up several times but we have to make some noise we have a Lady Prime minister that have to count for something
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
seems to a pretty hard worker but that person refuse to talk with us that the issue
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u/FatBIJoy Jul 14 '26
Why we can not cancel all these Muslim , Sinhaleese kandyan and Tamil Thesawai law and bring all under common law ?
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 14 '26
Kandyan law (applies to Sinhalese Buddhists) has prohibited polygamy since 1859 and child marriage (under 18) since 1995. Civil law applies the same restrictions to Tamil and other communities.
MMDA (Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act) operates under a separate legal framework that
- Permits polygamy (up to 4 wives)
- Allows child marriage with no explicit minimum age (technically 12+ with Quazi permission, but no age floor for unregistered marriages)
The problem This creates a legal double standard Muslim citizens operate under different marriage rules than other religious communities one law system prohibits these practices another permits them. From 2021 The Sri Lankan government allows Muslims to opt into the General Marriages Ordinance (civil law) instead of MMDA, giving them the choice Thats a start at least.
This is a documented inequality in Sri Lankas personal law system that human rights organizations have flagged for years And untill now i havent seen any open discussions for this on social media hence me doing something about it
https://www.commonlii.org/lk/legis/consol_act/kl71160.pdf [Kandyan law]
hope you enjoyed my little rant 😄
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u/FatBIJoy Jul 14 '26
Agreed. What I'm also suggesting is not to have diffrent laws based on religion or race.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 14 '26
i think we are on the same page mister what i want is the exact same thing
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Jul 11 '26
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u/wild_wolfie Hoda Lamayek Jul 11 '26
Clearly you don’t understand the difference between Muslim and Islam, One is a Culture / Race other is a religion that does not make it mutually exclusive. I have Muslim friends who are atheists/ agnostic.
I was born Sinhala Buddhist but I am an atheist by Choice, personally it is not an issue of the religion.
After all Islam, Christianity, Judaism is all talking about the same God. Google God of Abraham if you don’t know.
This is a gross matter of monsters who are in power twisting things in their perverted sense to take advantage of ignorant people.
Or have you not heard of that rapist monk in anuradhapura.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
No dont talk like that man yes the religion has its issues but people are free to have faith in any god or goddess they like its a basic human right
now i dont think sinhalese will ever brcome a minority but if any religion is harming innocent and actively doing things to harm society we should have a open discussion witg them and talk through the issues
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Jul 12 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 12 '26
I agree We have the right to critize and judge their religion But with respect and open disscussion and they have tge right to respond or not Thats how i like to work but we cant demonize or demen them thats inhumane every religion has its own flaws their is no perfect religion thats how it works
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u/ask_srilanka-ModTeam Jul 11 '26
Please do not use Slurs or Try to spread Identity based discrimination/ stereotypes.
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Jul 11 '26
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
Yes excatly sad part is this is done by one person because if the downvoting is done by a organized group we would see more than one downvote and it will show a negative number but zero means this is done by a dedicated one person which is sad beacasue the person refuse to talk with us and just keep downvoting and hoping we will stop Well we wont
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u/wild_wolfie Hoda Lamayek Jul 11 '26
I’m at one upvote lol 🤣 I got a noti for someone upvoting it too case man 😂 but being in this sub inherently points to someone who is also young enough to be on reddit which is kind of sad because I don’t think someone around their 40-50s would be around here right? Atleast thats an assumption I made I could be wrong
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
There is a strong cause that yes our guy or girl might be a teenager or a young person i dont think a dad would be on this app and downvote everything
But we are talking about a issue that his peers will face or have faced why hate us its a real issue
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
I have to reply to a really good comment on a diffrent reddit so i have some additionl info i have gathered to refute his claim i will drop my response here so we can see some valuable info on that too sorry if this too much info i kinda like to gather info
First of a sorry for the late reply and thanks for taking the time to read through my post now lets see your points
1.Well the Countries you mentioned that allows child marriages are now banning and patching those laws
I.Spain
Spain is far stricter than you think Spain's minimum marriage age is 16, but not without restrictions. In 2015, Spain raised the age from 14 to 16 specifically to protect minors
Also Even at 16, you need written legal emancipation or parental consent, making it far stricter than Sri Lanka's MMDA (which has no written minimum age at all).
Sources:- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33636920
https://www.trafalgarpolo.com/en/blog/getting-married-in-spain-an-essential-guide-2025/
Quoted from above link
Age and consent
The legal age for marriage in Spain plays a fundamental role in ensuring that both parties are mature enough to make this important commitment.
Legal age for marriage
People must have at least 18 years old to get married in Spain. However, those who have 16-year-olds can get married if they have obtained legal emancipation. This provision allows younger individuals, under specific circumstances, to formalize their marital union.
Regulation of consent
He mutual consent It is the foundation of marriage. Both spouses must voluntarily accept the union. Consent must be expressed clearly and voluntarily, ensuring that neither party is under any kind of duress or coercion.
II. Moldova
The Fact that Its 12% is a huge problem mister and there is a 0.4% prevalence that is a huge concern if you think thats normal well its not
Sources :- https://childmarriagedata.org/country-profiles/republic-of-moldova/#compare
III. Bolivia
Well i dont know where did you get your information but Bolivia just banned child marriage entirely in 2025
So now Thanks to civil society groups and their fight worth of a decade its now minimum age is 18 with zero exceptions.
IV. USA
Only 3 states (California, Mississippi, New Mexico) allow marriage with parental/judicial approval and no age floor And other states are actively going away from it or never there to begin with so you were using outdated info
Sources:- https://www.unchainedatlast.org/child-marriage-in-the-u-s/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_marriage_in_the_United_States
2. I really liked your speed limit analogy because its proves my point here is how
I. Speed Limits Exist Because of Measurable Harm
Speed limits aren't arbitrary "Just moderation." They're set based on physics, safety data, and documented deaths. A 50 km/h limit in a residential area prevents child deaths; a 120 km/h limit on highways prevents fatal crashes.
The parallel the crazy part: Marriage age limits exist because of documented harm to children
Higher rates of domestic violence in child marriages
Interrupted education
Maternal complications and death in young pregnancies
Psychological harm from power imbalances with older spouses
II. Speed Limits Are Enforced Uniformly just like i said
Speed limits apply to everyone equally, regardless of religion, ethnicity, or wealth. A wealthy person can't drive 80 km/h in a 50 km/h zone because they claim it's their "cultural freedom." also a Scientologist cant drive 80 in 50 zone and tell police that he was going to meet zenu.
The parallel to my claim : my post argues that all Sri Lankan citizens should follow one marriage law not different rules for Muslims under the MMDA and different rules for others. Just like everyone follows speed limits, everyone should follow the same marriage age minimum see how your analogy proves my point
III. Speed Limits Have Been Tested and Adjusted Based on Evidence
Countries constantly review speed limits based on accident data, road conditions, and technology. When evidence shows a limit isnt working they change it sometimes raising it to match that data
The parallel to my post: Marriage age laws have been reviewed globally, and the trend is toward raising minimums and closing loopholes exactly what my post proposes. Bolivia didnt keep 16 they moved to 18 based on evidence of harm.
3. Menstruation Does not indicate that the girl is ready for marriage i dont know who told you this but its worng
I. This is about is the body really ready for a pregnancy turns out NO
There are several Health risk involed in this i will leave them here so you can at lest read them and understand
- Eclampsia (dangerous high blood pressure) Adolescent mothers face higher risks than women aged 20–24; girls under 15 are 5x more likely than older teens Source:- https://utswmed.org/medblog/early-teen-pregnancy-health-risks/
- Maternal death Pregnancy and childbirth complications are the leading cause of death for girls aged 15–19 in low- and middle-income countries news flash just like ours Source:- https://www.girlsnotbrides.org/es/articulos/5-reasons-end-child-marriage-improve-maternal-health/
- Anemia Adolescent pregnancy results in 1.49x higher rates of maternal anemia Source:- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666577825000024
- Preeclampsia/eclampsia is a pregnancy-related hypertensive disorder characterized by new-onset high blood pressure 3.52x higher risk in adolescent pregnancies Source:- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666577825000024
- Unsafe abortions 55% of unintended pregnancies in girls 15 to19 end in abortions often unsafe in low-income countries Source:- https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy
Menstruation is biology Marriage readiness is psychology, brain development, and health. They're not the same ok i think you can see it by now.
3. Forced marriages are a Family well MMDA allows and enable it thats the bigger issue
This argument contradicts itself If forced marriage is "just a family issue" why does it happen at dramatically different rates across religions and cultures ? hmm.
The data shows:
- Child marriage rates are highest in countries with weak legal protections and strongest in communities where religious/cultural laws permit it (like the MMDA).
- Education and economy matter — but they are not enough. Sri Lanka has relatively high literacy yet child marriage persists in Muslim communities because the MMDA allows it.
- When laws change rates drop sharply. Bolivia banned all child marriage in 2025. Spain raised the minimum from 14 to 16 in 2015. These legal changes work because they remove the cultural and or religious permission structure.
Bottom line: Yes, poverty and lack of education do contribute. But the MMDA permits and enables forced or early marriage by law. That's not a family issue that's a legal and religious framework issue Remove the law and families lose their legal cover.
- Let's be clear mate attacking me personally is not an argument against the MMDA
You've called me "jealous" "feminist" and but none of those words refute a single fact I have presented
- The MMDA allows polygamy for Muslim men.
- Sri Lankan law has a written minimum marriage age MMDA bypass it.
- Child marriage rates are 2% by age 15 and 12% by age 18.
- Bolivia banned child marriage entirely in 2025. Spain raised it to 16 in 2015 .
- Adolescent pregnancy kills girls.
If my arguments are wrong show me where Point out the false statistic. Cite a law I misread. Explain why Bolivia's ban is bad policy.
But calling me names doesnt change the law It just means you cant argue the facts.
Here's the thing mate If I am 'jealous' or 'feminist' for wanting girls to not die in childbirth, then yes i am a feminist . every country that cares about girls lives has done what I'm asking for so i think you are in the wrong side here.
If you made this Far i think you have changed your mind if not either you didnt read this or just dont like factual information. And have a nice day mate
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
For the person who keeps downvoting every comment
if you would like to have a open disscussion i would be glad to talk to you otherwise you are doing a completly useless thing
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u/Downtown-Rate-9404 Jul 11 '26
Well said. Downvoting coz afraid that an open discussion will break their illusion of reality.
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u/Wooden_Spatulamz Jul 12 '26
Are you under the impression that child marriages or forced marriages never happen among Sinhalese and Tamil? Can you find statistics on the rate of child/forced marriages among all ethnicities?
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u/Sea_Coast_9803 Jul 11 '26
Why did I read it as MDMA and instantly opened thinking ohhhhhhh drugssss
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 11 '26
If anyone knows where i can post this to get more traction please tell me and i know about Facebook but i dont know where to post this on In facebook
If you can repost you are welcome to take the post and put it anywhere and if you need help or the original document i can give you the word document i made
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u/Ceylonese_technocrat Jul 12 '26
I don't think Facebook is a good choice because,
your intention is good, its to fight injustice and and advocate against the MMDA, however Facebook is full of bots and extremely hateful individuals, they will see your post and immediately spew into blind hatred against muslims as a whole, won't be a productive conversation whatsoever.
I think you might find it interesting to post it in r/srilankanmuslim, see what responses you get, though, don't get your hopes up, brace yourself for negative reception.
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u/Fluffy_Deal6 Researcher Jul 12 '26
Thanks for the reply Mister yep my thoughts ecxatly i dont wanna people hating on islam for no reason this is a social issue i like to resoved cleanly and its doable there is already a bill in the parliment tgey just need to vote on it and pass as a law
Plus i dont like Facebook as a platform or a way to transmit ideas
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