US embassy cable - 05CARACAS786

UNCLAS CARACAS 000786 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, SCUL, SOCI, KWMN, VE 
SUBJECT: CHILD MARRIAGE 
 
REF: STATE 36341 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (U) Underage marriage in Venezuela poses significant 
problems to minors and tends to perpetuate poverty, 
abandonment and mistreatment.  Needed programs are lacking, 
and no U.S. institutional support currently exists.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
2. (U) The following responses are keyed to reftel 
questions: 
 
A: Age of Majority: 18 years old.  Legal age of marriage 
with consent: 
- Boys: 16 years old. 
- Girls: 14 years old. 
 
Required for consent: 
- Approval of Judge on Minors (no appeal allowed), plus 
approval from: 
- Both parents, or in their absence, 
- Two grandparents, or in their absence, 
- The legal guardian. 
Source -- Venezuelan Civil Code (1982). 
 
The Organic Law for the Protection of the Children and 
Adolescent LOPNA (2000) contains no provisions regarding 
underage marriage. 
 
B: Marriage by minors in 2003: 
- 643 girls under 15 years of age 
- 22 boys under 15 
- 12,584 girls between 15 and 19 
- 3,896 boys between 15 and 19 
Legal Reference: Venezuelan Statistics National Institute 
 
Avelina Isabel Mejias, Protection Manager, Federation of 
Private Institutions to Attend Children, Adolescent and 
Family Matters (FIPAN), says underage marriage poses a 
significant problem in the general population, as well as 
within minority groups.  Underage individuals are unprepared 
to face the responsibility of marriage, she said, leading to 
a high number of divorces. 
 
Jackelyn Guijarro, Dynamics Clinical Psychologist at 
Venezuela's Central University (UCV), asserts that underage 
marriage is not positive because minors have not reached 
biological, psychological and social maturity.  Pregnancy 
exacerbates the problem, she said, perpetuating the ring of 
poverty by isolating the adolescent mother from the 
educational system.  In her experience, pregnancies more 
commonly result in informal relationships rather than 
marriages.  In rural areas, underage marriage is considered 
a normal practice, she said. 
 
C:  Currently no US institution is known to be addressing 
this issue in Venezuela.  Guijarro recommends prevention 
programs and programs focusing on encouraging underage 
couples (formally or informally together) to continue their 
formal education.  In addition, programs offering parenting 
skills to underage parents could reduce abandonment and 
mistreatment of their children. 
BROWNFIELD