Fast Fact Notes for the Oralists (Legal Sector Against)

International Convention on Civil and Political Rights

Question: Does ICCPR honour the discretion of the state to
impose their own marriage age?

According to the CCRP General comment No. 19 on Article 23

(The Family):
Paragraph 4: The Covenant does not establish a specific
marriageable age either for men or for women, but that age
should be such as to enable each of the intending spouses to
give his or her free and full personal consent in a form and under
conditions prescribed by law
o The Committee wishes to note that such legal provisions
must be compatible with the full exercise of the other
rights guaranteed by the Covenant
Looking at this passage, it can be concluded that it is implied
that ICCPR does honour the discretion of the state to impose
their own marriage age, for as long as the State Parties take into
consideration the provisions and conditions stipulated in the
Covenant

According to the UNICEF Report, Child Marriage and the Law:

In creating the laws for marriage, it is important that traditional,
historical, religious and cultural attitudes are not the sole basis:
Inequality in the enjoyment of rights by women is deeply
embedded in tradition, history, and culture including religious
attitudes. States parties should ensure traditional, historical,
religious, and cultural attitudes are not used to justify violations
of womens rights to equality before the law and to equal
enjoyment of all Covenant rights (page 13).

Argument for the Essential Marital Obligations:

Consent is not the only basis to validly and effectively enter into a
marriage
The law could not be any clearer in expressing that marriage
entails essential marital obligations. According to the Family Code of
the Philippines, Article 68 expressly states the duties and obligations of
a husband and wife: The husband and the wife are obliged to live
together, observe mutual love, respect and fidelity, and render mutual
help and support. Apart from this, another obligation that is not
expressly stated but is considered to be a universal principle is
procreation (Persons and Family Relations Law, Sta. Maria). The
succeeding articles stipulated in the rights and obligations between
husband and wife have to do with finances, taking care of the home,
family support, and property relations. Therefore, it is needed to be
kept in mind that consenting or agreeing to enter into married life,
means that the minor is also agreeing to fulfill the essential marital
obligations. Consent can only go so far in determining whether or not a
minor such as a fourteen year-old female or a sixteen year-old male
can actually live up to the expectations of married life, and more
importantly, live up to the nature of marriage as a permanent social
contract.

Additional Facts in relation to Essential Marital Obligations:

1. Under R.A. 9231(which amended R.A. 7610),
employment of children under the age of 15 are
allowed only in exceptional cases:
1. When the child works under the supervision of
the parents
2. When the childs participation for
entertainment or information through cinema,
theater, etc. is essential
2. Under R.A. 10533 (Enhanced Basic Education Act of
2013) - Section 4
A person typically finishes Senior High School
by the age of 18; only then will they have
adequate qualifications and better employment
opportunities to support the family
In effect, the SHS creates the following
opportunities:
o Standard requirements will be applied to
make sure graduates know enough to be
hirable
o Be able to apply for TESDA Certificates of
Competency (COCs) and National
Certificates (NCs) to provide better work
opportunities
o Partnership with different companies will
be offered for technical and vocational
courses
o You can get work experience while
studying; and companies can even hire
you after you graduate.
Furthermore, a child may choose not to attend SHS, but he will merely
be a grade 10 completer (http://www.gov.ph/k-12/)

Other Existing Laws that affects capacity and contract of

marriage:
An Act Providing for a National Policy on Responsible
Parenthood and Reproductive Health (RA 10354 Reproductive
Health Law)
Lowering the marrying age would be contrary to certain provisions of
the RH Law, specifically that of the state policy of raising a family
through responsible parenthood.

The relevant provisions are stated below:

Section 2. Declaration of Policy
The State recognizes marriage as an inviolable social institution and
the foundation of the family which in turn is the foundation of the
nation. Pursuant thereto, the State shall defend:
(a) The right of spouses to found a family in accordance with
their religious convictions and the demands of responsible
parenthood;
(b) The right of children to assistance, including proper care and
nutrition, and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse,
cruelty, exploitation, and other conditions prejudicial to their
development;
(c) The right of the family to a family living wage and income;
and
The State shall also promote openness to life; Provided, That
parents bring forth to the world only those children whom
they can raise in a truly humane way.

In most cases, lowering the marrying age (in relation to RA 9321

generally prohibiting children below 15 years old from working) may
circumvent responsible parenthood because the parties are still unable
to support themselves and their current or future children due to
insufficient income/livelihood or lack thereof.

Special Protection of Children Against Exploitation and

Discrimination Act
According to RA 7610, the definition of children refers to
person below eighteen (18) years of age or those over but are unable
to fully take care of themselves or protect themselves from abuse,
neglect, cruelty, exploitation or discrimination because of a physical or
mental disability or condition;
(http://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra1992/ra_7610_1992.html)

If the law acknowledges that persons over 18 years of age

can still be considered as children provided that they
cannot fully take care of themselves or protect themselves
from abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation or discrimination
 because of a physical or mental disability or condition, how
much more a person who has an age of 14-16 years old?
It deprives the right of a person who cannot fully take care
or protect themselves because of the lowering of age of
majority

If children of age 14-16 years old will be engaged in labor and

employment because of the legal capacity given by law, it will
endanger the normal development of the child which is the primary
objective in formulation of the program as mentioned in Section 4
Article II of the Law.