S 987 RFH IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 2, 2010
December 2, 2010 Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs To
protect girls in developing countries through the prevention of
child marriage, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the
Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of
America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act
may be cited as the ‘International Protecting Girls by
Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2010’. SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings: (1) Child marriage, also
known as ‘forced marriage’ or ‘early marriage’, is a harmful
traditional practice that deprives girls of their dignity and
human rights. (2) Child marriage as a traditional practice, as
well as through coercion or force, is a violation of article 16
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states,
‘Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full
consent of intending spouses’. (3) According to the United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), an estimate