FILE: Lakes State Governor, Rin Tueny Mabor - COURTESY

The Governor of Lakes State has outlawed child and forced marriage in the State.

The Governor of Lakes State has outlawed early childhood and forced marriage in the State.

Rin Tueny declared the ban during his tour of the Loreto Girls School in Rumbek town on Monday.

The governor disclosed that the state parliament recently enacted a law prohibiting early child and forced marriage.

This, he says, aims to protect girls’ education and ensure they don’t fall prey to perpetrators of child and forced marriage.

Tueny states that his government will be reaching out to parents to sensitize them about the law.

“Yes, I am here as the governor, I am here as a parent, we are as a people, we are here as a church, yes, we as the government,” Governor Rin made the remarks.

“I will declare here last week the law to protect the girl child education was passed here in our assembly here. No forced marriage no,

“We will have all the opportunities that will be granted by law so you will not be vulnerable to the parents who are thirsty about this animal called cows,

“You will be free to continue your education and you will be protected by the law, we will tell the parents that you have been given the chance to continue with your education.”

Loreto Rumbek School is one of many Loreto schools and colleges worldwide to have been founded by the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The institute itself was founded in 1609 by an Englishwoman Mary Ward who lived between 1585 and 1645;

She was a Catholic from Yorkshire, whose aim was to provide girls with an education comparable to that offered to boys at a time when there was almost no education for women.

Established in 2008 in South Sudan, Loreto Rumbek Primary and Secondary School educates girls from the ages of 5 to 20.

Sr Orla Treacy, the principal of Loreto Secondary School in Rumbek said at Monday’s event, that she looks forward to working with the state government in addressing the challenges facing girls in the state.

“He [governor] is aware of your challenges of education for all that you face and I think that as we move forward we can cooperate more together,” said Sr. Orla.

“We can work more in harmony and we can work in trying to develop together what we all dream of which is a better lake state, which is a better quality of young woman which is better for all industries within south Sudan.”