level of education in exchange. Some of the raped girls have either contracted HIV/Aids or fallen pregnant. 448. Credit goes to the CSOs, which have responded by forming associations, such as Girls’ Clubs for fighting rape; sensitising girls about their rights; and assisting rape victims to access justice. However, redoubled efforts by both the government and civil society are required to fight rape of the girl-child in Mozambique. Premature Marriages 449. The CRM learnt that early marriages are commonplace in the northern provinces. Besides religions and traditions that permit child brides, absolute poverty among parents is forcing young girls into early marriages. Some parents even encourage their daughters to drop out of school and marry at a tender age because they can no longer afford to pay their school fees. 450. The CRM was also informed that, due to polygamous marriages, families are not coherent. This encourages divorce, whereby men abandon their families to take wives and leave their former wives and children stranded without fatherly care. These women, especially if poor, may encourage their daughters to get married in order to reduce the burden of childcare. These young girls are often married off to older men, who sometimes mistreat them. 451. However, with the assistance of the Human Rights League, the police and Children’s Courts, the government is addressing the challenge of men who desert their families and take new wives. Men are being arrested and forced to pay alimony to their ex-spouses and families. III. Recommendations 452. The APR Panel recommends that Mozambique should: • Devise ways and means of rehabilitating street children more effectively [MMAS]; • Strengthen government capacity at the regional, national and sub-national levels to fight child trafficking [MAI; Police; CSOs]; and • Devise means of providing adequate education to children, including those living in camps for internally displaced persons [MEC; CSOs]. Objective 9: To promote and protect the rights of vulnerable groups, including the disabled and the poor, internally displaced persons and refugees 154 A P R M COU N T RY R EV IEW R EP ORT NO. 11