The Legal Age of Marriage for Women in Omani Legislation Compared to CAEDAW and Legislations of the Arab Gulf States
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14421/ahwal.2025.%25xKeywords:
Age of Marriage, CEDAW, Women Rights, Oman, GCCAbstract
This research addresses the issue of legal age of marriage for women from a religious, legal, and international perspective, with a particular focus on the Omani legislation and its alignment with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). The study concludes that setting the age of 18 in the Omani law is not a direct response to international recommendations, but rather preceded them, aligns with them, and is based on well-regarded Islamic jurisprudential opinions, such as those of Ibn Abbas and Imam Abu Hanifa. The research also reviewed the relevant provisions of the Omani law, particularly Articles (7) and (10) of the Personal Status Law, which require mental capacity and the age of majority for the conclusion of a marriage contract, while granting the judge discretion in exceptional cases. Judicial applications by the Supreme Court were also analyzed, highlighting the principle of a woman's consent and her freedom in choosing to marry. The research included a comparison with Gulf legislations (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain), highlighting the variations in determining the legal age of marriage and the impact that the absence of official registration has on protecting girls’ rights. It concluded that the Omani experience offers a balanced model that reconciles Sharia laws with the requirements of international conventions, without compromising core principles or yielding to external pressures.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Saleh Said Al Mamari, Fahad Yousuf Al Aghbari, Ahmed Khalifa Al Rashdi , Zahira Hamood Al Shabibi, Nizar Qeshta, Salim Ahmed Al Musalhi
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