A 7 Year Old and 4 Year Old To Be Wed?

A wedding between a 4 year old girl and a boy of 5 was called off by the police in Karachi, Pakistan, after the father of the 4 year old girl attempted to conduct the marriage between the two.

"We had noticed some gatherings at this house for a couple of days. Last night I went there and saw that the little girl was actually getting married. So we called the police," Nazakat Hassan, a government official explains.

Nazakat then says that the father was marrying off his daughter for 500,000 rupees ($6, 138 ), the father then explains that this was a part of a custom where young girls are wedded to pay off a debt or settle a dispute. Residents claimed that there had been a longstanding argument going on between the two families.

There are also other laws, claiming that young girls can marry before 18, however they at least have to have hit puberty.

The father of the boy has been arrested however the father of the 4 year old girl has not.

Even though there are laws claiming that young girls can marry before 18, why would you? The girls do not understand what the meaning of the word ‘marriage’ is? Let alone be forced to marry a boy who is either overage or under the age of 18. If families are having disputes why not settle it between the parents, instead of bringing the children under the age of 18 into the argument.

The question is should this be allowed?