Shafie rapped over comment on legal age of marriage

KOTA KINABALU - Sabah Umno has criticised Chief Minister Shafie Apdal over remarks seen as endorsing the state mufti’s controversial stand that the legal minimum age for marriage among Muslims be lowered to 14.

Sabah Umno Youth chief Abdul Aziz Julkarnain said the comment by the Warisan president, in which he reportedly said that an 18-year-old could “sometimes” be considered “too old”, was “shocking”.

Aziz said Sabah Umno supports the move to raise the minimum age of marriage for Muslims to 18.

“This is also in line with the demands in this time and age,” he said.

Yesterday, Shafie said the state would consider all views before deciding to amend laws on the legal minimum age of marriage.

“Sometimes (I also feel) 18 is a bit lanjut (late). Some people even marry at 17,” he was quoted as saying.

This comes after Sabah mufti Bungsu @ Aziz Jaafar was criticised over his call to lower the legal age of marriage for Muslims to 14 for girls and 16 for boys.

Aziz said marrying off girls at a young age was an outdated practice.

“The government should stand firm to halt any suggestion to reduce the current age limit as this was a step backward,” he added.