UNDERSTANDING STATELESSNESS IN THE SYRIA REFUGEE CONTEXT  child should not be penalised for the actions of others must come into force. In this context it is clear that the best interest of the child to have a nationality (and so not be stateless) should override concerns about legitimising child marriage by allowing the offspring of such marriages to be registered without fear of prosecution of the parents for their illegal marriage. The response to child marriage differs from country to country. In Syria, the minimum age for marriage with parental consent is 13 for girls and 15 for boys, and polygamy is allowed.190 In Lebanon the official minimum age is based on the personal status law of the different religious confessions. The minimum age (with authorisation) for marriage for Shi’a and Sunni girls is 9 and there is, therefore, significant discretion given to Sharia court judges to allow a marriage above that age as they see appropriate.191 However, there is little knowledge among the refugee population of the regulations on child marriage.192 In Turkey, child marriages are officially considered to be illegal – the revised 2002 Turkish Civil Code raised the statutory minimum age of marriage to 17,193 which means child marriages are not officially recorded.194 Syrians who married before the minimum age may pretend to be older at the registry offices to avoid any possible legal sanctions. This can lead to them making fraudulent statements which could have negative implications in the future. Similar problems arise where Syrian girls or women enter into a marriage as a second wife, which is also considered to be illegal in Turkey. Because polygamy and child marriages are not allowed in Turkey, mothers in such marriages may be discouraged from giving birth in hospital or registering new-borns, out of fear of prosecution.195 In Jordan, child marriages are very common even though, if caught, the husband and father may be imprisoned and/or fined.196 The age of marriage in Jordan is 18, although marriages for persons aged between 15 and 17 can be approved by the Chief Justice of the Sharia courts. In practice, this makes parents in child marriages less likely to register their children.197 Soumaya was 14 when she got married in Jordan, to a Syrian man, several months after she and her family had arrived in the country. She immediately got pregnant and had the baby at 14. She did not register the child’s birth as she was worried about the consequences – her family and her husband knew that the marriage was illegal and they have not officially registered it, so they discouraged her from approaching the authorities. Her child is currently not registered, and they have passed the deadline for registration. Soumaya plans to wait until she is 17, then go to register her marriage and subsequently the birth of her child.198 190 See legislative decree No. 26, of the private Syrian Registration of 2007. 191 See, Frontiers Ruwad, Marriage Registration in Lebanon: a guide to procedures and practices, available at: https://www.anamawjoud.com/resources/wedding-registration-en.pdf. 192 NRC, Update on Marriage Regulations Procedures for Refugees from Syria, 2016, available at: https:// www.nrc.no/resources/reports/update-on-marriage-registration-for-refugees-from-syria-july-2016. 193 Article 124, Turkish Civil Code. 194 S. Reynolds and D. Grisgraber, Birth Registration in Turkey, supra n137, page 10. 195 Ibid, pages 10-11. Interview with NRC, Geneva Switzerland, June 2016. 196 Save the Children, Too Young to Wed, supra n188. 197 Interview with Personal Status Department, Amman Jordan, July 2016. 198 Interview with Sumaya, Irbid Jordan, July 2016. RESEARCH REPORT 39