21st century Europe

Two stories from today's BBC News website that paint a powerful, if nauseatng, view of 21st century Europe.

This article tells us about the increse in child brides in the Netherlands:

'A 14-year-old girl has gone missing from a Dutch asylum centre. Police say Fatema Alkasem was nine months pregnant and may be in need of medical care.

She is also thought to be a "child bride", and her case has highlighted the problem that the Netherlands faces in providing asylum for girls who married in Syria but are below the Dutch age of consent.

The government in The Hague is rushing to close a loophole in the asylum law which has so far allowed child brides to be reunited with their husbands in the Netherlands.

The practice has inflamed debate about how the Netherlands is responding to the refugee crisis, with some arguing it is condoning paedophilia.

As many as 20 girls between the ages of 13 and 15 have been given legal permission to join their older partners at Dutch asylum centres, according to regional news channel RTV-Noord. The figures were reportedly obtained from a leaked immigration service document.

"A 12-year-old girl with a 40-year-old-man - that is not a marriage, that is abuse", says politician Attje Kuiken, whose Labour party is a partner in the ruling coalition.

"We're talking about really young children, girls 12, 13 years old. I want to protect these children.

The government should take them into foster care and protect them, because before the new law comes into force, they can still be subject to abuse."'

The second story  is about the rise of polygamy in Germany:

'Germany will not recognise polygamy or marriages involving minors, Justice Minister Heiko Maas has said

"No-one who comes here has the right to put his cultural values or religious beliefs above our law," he told Bild.

In some Islamic countries, men are allowed to take up to four wives, but in Germany polygamy is banned by law.

Concern about polygamy and underage marriage has risen recently, as Germany has been taking in record numbers of migrants, many from Muslim countries.

The law in Germany is clear: no-one is allowed to be married to more than one person at a time, and that includes recent arrivals in the country.

But in practice polygamous relationships are often quietly tolerated, the paper reports. For example, if a man dies, his inheritance may be distributed between his two wives.'

How 21st century Europe is benefitting from Islamic immigration.