page_title: Child abuse
section_title: Child marriage
hierarchical_section_title: Child abuse / Examples / Child marriage
context_page_description: Child abuse or child maltreatment is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to act by a parent or a caregiver that results in actual or potential harm to a child, and can occur in a child's home, or in the organizations, schools or communities the child interacts with.
  The terms child abuse and child maltreatment are often used interchangeably, although some researchers make a distinction between them, treating child maltreatment as an umbrella term to cover neglect, exploitation, and trafficking.
  Different jurisdictions have developed their own stance towards mandatory reporting, different definitions of what constitutes child abuse for the purposes of removing children from their families or for prosecuting a criminal charge.
context_section_description: A child marriage is a marriage in which one or both participants are minors, often before the age of puberty. Child marriages are common in many parts of the world, especially in parts of Asia and Africa.  The United Nations considers those below the age of 18 years to be incapable of giving valid consent to marriage and therefore regards such marriages as a form of forced marriage; and that marriages under the age of majority have significant potential to constitute a form of child abuse. In many countries, such practices are lawful or — even where laws prohibit child marriage — often unenforced. India has more child brides than other nation, with 40% of the world total. The countries with the highest rates of child marriage are: Niger (75%), Central African Republic and Chad (68%), and Bangladesh (66%).
  Bride kidnapping, also known as marriage by abduction or marriage by capture, has been practiced around the world and throughout history, and sometimes involves minors. It is still practiced in  parts of Central Asia, the Caucasus region, and some African countries. In Ethiopia, marriage by abduction is widespread, and many young girls are kidnapped this way. In most countries, bride kidnapping, in which a male abducts the female he wants to marry, is considered a criminal offense rather than a valid form of marriage. In many cases, the groom also rapes his kidnapped bride, in order to prevent her from returning to her family due to shame.
  Sacred prostitution often involves girls being pledged to priests or those of higher castes, such as the practice of devadasi in South Asia or fetish slaves in West Africa.
caption: Bride kidnapping is common in Central Asia
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