PGO seeks charges against parents of 13-yo child bride

The Prosecutor General’s Office, (PGO) has forwarded a case to the Criminal Court, seeking charges against the parents of the 13-year-old child bride who gave birth in Maduvvari island of Raa atoll after being raped and impregnated by a man.

While the 36-year-old woman and 47-year-old man were arrested over negligence under a court order on 10 December, Criminal Court extended their remand by 10 days on 23 December.

PGO sought four charges against the mother of the child, who has since given birth, and one charge against the father, which have been forwarded to the Criminal Court on Tuesday.

The charges include providing false information to authorities, obstructing and interfering administrative law or other government function, being negligent in taking the appropriate measures to prevent offense against the child, having known the repercussions as well as disregarding the well-being of a child, having left a toddler under one year with no supervision.

The charge to be raised against the man is of obstructing and interfering administrative law or other government function as stated under Section 533 of the Penal Code.

Media official at the Maldives Police Service (MPS) revealed that they received the report of the family with extremist ideologies, stripping their children’s rights as well as refusing to vaccinate them among many other complaints of negligence, following which an investigation was launched and they were consecutively arrested and remanded.

Reports of the 13-year-old child bride being raped and impregnated by a man, Ismail Hammadh surfaced during November and met with public outrage. He was attacked by crew members on board a sea-cucumber fishing boat over an ideological disagreement on 22 November.

DNA reports have proven that the child is his. The rapist has since been remanded by 15 days.