Summary
Colombia has banned child marriage after 17 years of advocacy and eight failed legislative attempts, closing a 137-year legal loophole that allowed minors to marry with parental consent or cohabit as informal spouses.
The new law, “They are Girls, Not Wives,” aligns Colombia with international standards and makes it one of 12 Latin American countries to entirely prohibit marriage under 18.
Advocacy groups celebrated the historic victory but emphasized the need for policies addressing poverty, machismo, and systemic inequalities that fuel child marriage, particularly in rural and Indigenous communities.
Well the downside to the “you break [the virginity] you buy it” mindset (aside from the literal objectification) is that having to formally marry the child also means the child is formally married to (and stuck with) the pedo. At least the informal version is probably less legally complicated to flee from.