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Child marriage in the Dominican Republic

Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic), Oct 17 (EFE), (Camera: Orlando Barría).- At least one in five girls in the Dominican Republic ends up married or in informal unions as minors, and on many occasions, with men twice their age. At this time, two initiatives try to ban child marriage in the country, but statistics show that the problem is very deeply rooted and beyond the limits of the law. In fact, in 12% of weddings or unions registered in the country, the bride is under 15 years old, which is the minimum age allowed by law. This figure is far above the average for Latin America (5%), according to Unicef.FOOTAGE OF VICTIMS OF CHILD MARRIAGE. SOUNDBITES OF:-VIRGINIA SAIZ, DIRECTOR OF NGO PLAN INTERNATIONAL:"It has a lot to do with sexism, with the patriarchal culture which remains in the country's culture, apart from social or economic class. Similar practices can be seen in a poor family, on the border with Haiti, and also in a medium-high class family.""The fact that a girl under 18 years old gets married and becomes a mother means in most cases that her potential future as a worker or a student is interrupted. In most cases, these girls do not end the basic education, and therefore they will not be able to access a professional job."-VICTIM "It was very difficult for me and I had a big pregnant belly. It was my first pregnancy and I had any of my relatives around. I felt like it was a kidnapping, but knowing who the kidnapper was."-MAYRA JIMÉNEZ, DOMINICA REPUBLIC'S WOMEN'S MINISTER: "It is a shame for the country, from my point of view as a minister, as a mother and a citizen, I can assure that for us it is a shame that in the Dominican Republic child marriage is legal."