US embassy cable - 05MADRID1440

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Identifier:	05MADRID1440
Wikileaks:	View 05MADRID1440 at Wikileaks.org
Origin:	Embassy Madrid
Created:	2005-04-13 15:25:00
Classification:	UNCLASSIFIED
Tags:	ECON ELAB PHUM PGOV SCUL SOCI KWMN Other
Redacted:	This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.

UNCLAS MADRID 001440 
 
SIPDIS 
 
G/IWI, EUR/PGI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON, ELAB, PHUM, PGOV, SCUL, SOCI, KWMN, Other 
SUBJECT: SPAIN: CHILD MARRIAGE SURVEY 
 
REF: STATE 36341 
 
Spain does not have a significant child marriage problem. 
Answers to the three survey questions follow. 
 
A)  According to Spanish law, both a man and a woman need to 
be at least 18 years old to get married.  If they are between 
the ages of 14 and 18, they need the consent of a parent or 
guardian. 
 
B)  Underage marriage is not a significant problem in Spain. 
According to the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), 
541 underage girls and 71 underage boys married in 2002, the 
most recent year of available data.  Of the 612 underage 
brides and grooms, thirteen girls and one boy were younger 
than fifteen.  These numbers are very small in a country of 
42.6 million people.  The Spanish daily El Pais reported on 
April 9 that there are occasional unregistered marriages of 
underage Roma who marry in a traditional Roma ceremony, 
rather than via a Catholic or Protestant ceremony where the 
weddings are registered by the government. 
 
C)  Because child marriage is not a significant problem in 
Spain, there are not any significant U.S.-funded initiatives 
in Spain to reduce child marriage. 
MANZANARES