Child Marriage Victim in Gonbad-e Kavus: Citizen Dies by Self-Immolation Due to Severe Depression

A citizen who had been a victim of child marriage died by self-immolation one year after losing her only child. According to Tohra, Turkmen Sahra human rights activists reported that on the night of Farvardin 27, 1400 (April 16, 2021), a resident of Gonbad-e Kavus lost her life as a result of self-immolation. The identity of the individual has been given as “Behnaz G.”

A source close to the family told Tohra that the deceased was 17 years old. “Behnaz got married two years ago when she was only 15. Last year, she gave birth to a child, but lost her three-month-old baby in an accident. After that, she suffered from severe depression, and ultimately, as her depression worsened last night, she set herself on fire.”

In Iran, the minimum legal age for marriage is 13 for girls and 15 for boys. However, Iran’s Civil Code states that marriage below these ages is possible with the permission of a guardian and the approval of a competent court.

Marriage of individuals under 18 in Iran—who may be considered physically mature—is a controversial issue. From the perspective of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other human rights standards, given the definition of a child as any person under 18 and the prohibition of child marriage, states that are signatories to the convention, particularly Iran, are obligated to prevent the marriage of children under 18.