It seems our government has been remiss in their responsibility for the care of teenage girls brought to Australia under a government visa program to marry old men. Two hundred 17 years old girls were granted prospective spouse visas and hundreds of older girls also received visas after being sponsored by much older men. The visa stipulates they must marry their sponsors within nine months.
A year 10 Lebanese schoolgirl arrived in Australia on a spouse visa for an arranged marriage only to find that her intended was decades older and a violent drunk who kept his previous wife and children in an adjoining house. When she went to authorities and sought protection, her own family threatened to kill her. "She will be slaughtered and killed," the girl's family said in a letter. "By God I will kill you at the airport and I will bury you in the grave. O you dog."
The Australian Childhood Foundation's Joe Tucci called for an urgent inquiry. "A thorough audit needs to be done to ensure these children are safe – is this a program the Australian community really supports?" he said. No, of course it isn't and we need to work out what is an acceptable age difference to save these girls from a lifetime of misery.
We have a higher regard for women in this country and a strong message needs to be sent to the Muslim community that this is not acceptable practice. It is yet another example of how Islam refuses to conform to our values, they continue to send for young girls to marry old men without a second thought for their feelings and something needs to be done to shut this arrangement down permanently.
No comments:
Post a Comment