Prostitution . . . Marriage . . . What’s The Difference?

TEHRAN,
Iran — Iran’s hard-line interior minister is encouraging temporary
marriages as a way to avoid extramarital sex, a stance many in this conservative
country fear would instead encourage prostitution. A temporary marriage, or
"sigheh," refers to a Shiite Muslim tradition under which a man and
a woman sign a contract that allows them to be "married" for any length
of time, even a few hours. An exchange of money, as a sort of dowry, is often
involved.

This does indeed sound like a workaround for the legalities and moralities
of prostitution, but the sigheh, or nikah
mut‘ah is actually an old tradition, even older than Islam itself.
Sexual relations are not the only purpose behind the sigheh; sometimes cohabiting
partners might use it to ease dress restrictions while living under the same
roof. Though the practice began in Arabia, Sunni Islam forbids this practice,
and it is mostly observed by Twelver Shia.

What I find remarkable is not that the sigheh is used to form ‘marriages’ lasting
only hours, but that it is used for relationships sometimes lasting many years,
with a expiration date set by the two parties (thus eliminating the need for
a divorce).

Why not? The libertarian in me loves the idea of things being reduced to contracts,
and if two parties consent, who else has a right to butt in?

Update: Er, I had forgotten that the girls’ age of consent for marriage in Iran is now nine-years-old. The libertarian in me does not condone the marriage, temporary (especially) or otherwise, of people too young to know what they are consenting to.

Crossposted from WILLisms.com