Aren't the "tween" years awkward enough?

Now, in Saudi Arabia, tween-age girls can be married off to old men by their fathers, but can't file for divorce until they reach the age of majority.

A Saudi court has rejected a plea to divorce an eight-year-old girl married off by her father to a man who is 58, saying the case should wait until the girl reaches puberty.

The divorce plea was filed in August by the girl's divorced mother with a court at Unayzah, 135 miles north of Riyadh just after the marriage contract was signed by the father and the groom.

Lawyer Abdullar Jtili said:"The judge has dismissed the plea, filed by the mother, because she does not have the right to file such a case, and ordered that the plea should be filed by the girl herself when she reaches puberty."

I suppose it's somehow internally logical that the girl is young enough that she has to follow her father's wishes to get married, and so is not old enough to file for divorce -- and even, though of course sexist, that her father can sign her marriage contract, but her mother cannot file her divorce.

But taking a step out of the rabbithole, and setting aside the "creepy 50-years-her-senior groom" thing: Doesn't it seem like if she's too young to sign the marriage contract, she's too young to get married?

Once a juvenile, always a sex offender?

I don't know anything about the details of this particular case, but it seems to me generally good news that a high court somewhere recognizes that an 11-year-old who commits a crime might not be destined to a life of such crimes.

Money quote:

"Hugh Southey, appearing for ['Teenager F'], pointed out that -- because there was no review process -- [F] could still be on the register 'aged 70 or 80,' even if he committed no further offence.
The impact of the notification regulations on young children, who were in the process of change and development, could be 'significant and dispiriting.'

He said: 'Children have to have the chance to mature and change.

'It is important that the state does what it can to encourage the development of children who have committed serious offences in a positive way, rather than a negative way.'"

We can argue about adults another time.