Felat Bozarslan / Diyarbakır, Nov 3 () - In southeastern province of Diyarbakır, the prosecutor sentenced a man to more than 8 years in jail, after he abducted and married a 14-year-old girl.

In Çınar district of Diyarbakır, C.T. kidnapped young M.T., “with her consent” to marry her, when he was 31 years old, in 2006, according to the indictment.

As medical officers have identified the age of M.T. having arrived to a hospital for examination, they have informed security forces.

"I have given consent"

M.T. and her family, on the other hand, have told they were not going to register a complaint against the man. The young girl has claimed she has called the defendant to kidnap him, refusing her father’s attempts to marry her with another man. “I left with my own consent; I was in love with C.T. When his family paid a bride price of 10,000 liras, I have made peace with my family.

On the other hand, the prosecutor told the crime was not subject to a consent, as the girl was younger than age of 15 at the time.

The prosecutor sentenced the defendant for “sexual abuse of child”, to 8 years in jail.

One in three marriages involves child brides

A third of marriages in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces involve brides of minor age, with a significant proportion under the age of fifteen, a study by KAMER, an NGO focusing on the improvement of women’s conditions and rights in the area has shown in 2014.

The study, based on interviews with 60,000 women across 23 provinces,

The legal age for marriage in Turkey was recently raised to 17 from 15, but many families still change the date of birth of their daughters so they can marry legally.

Experts highlight that laws lack persuasive power and are not enough on their own. Instead, many say, the importance of raising awareness on gender equality should be stressed.