France raises female marriage age to 18

The French parliament today passed a law raising the minimum age at which women can marry from 15 to 18.

The new law will also crack down on domestic violence and forced and fake marriages.

It was the first time the marriage age had been changed since Napoleon ruled France.

In 1804, the minimum age for women to marry was set at 15 and for men at 18.

The new law brings France into line with most other European Union member countries, where the minimum age for marriage is 18 for both sexes.

The law, authored by the opposition Socialist and Communist parties and supported by the centre-right government, was passed by the upper house, the Senate, last March and passed in the lower house today.

The higher marriage age was an effort to discourage forced marriages that occur in some immigrant communities.

A panel set up by the prime minister’s office estimated in 2003 that 70,000 teenagers were affected by forced marriages.

The law also stiffens punishment for domestic violence among couples who are married, living together or even separated.

Politicians cited studies showing that a woman dies every four days from violence inflicted by her partner in France.

Judges may order suspects to move out of homes in cases of alleged domestic violence.

The law also introduces new punishments for female circumcision and sexual tourism.

The government is also seeking to reduce fraudulent marriages that some immigrants use to acquire residency rights.

Justice Minister Pascal Clement said yesterday that one out of three married couples in France are people of different nationalities.

While the vast majority of such marriages are legitimate, he said, “the number of fraud cases referred to prosecutors by mayors and consular and diplomatic agents is growing.”