E/C.12/YEM/CO/2 number of complaints filed by victims, remedies granted, and prosecutions and sentences imposed on perpetrators. 18. The Committee remains concerned about the persistent inequality of women in matrimonial and family matters in law and in practice, including forced marriages, severe discrimination against women demanding divorce and the inferior position of women in relation to the inheritance of conjugal property. The Committee urges the State party, as a matter of priority, to amend its matrimonial and family law with a view to eliminating discrimination against women in marital matters and ensuring its consistency with the relevant human rights standards under the Covenant and other international instruments. In particular, it is recommended that urgent steps be taken with a view to (a) ensuring that all marriages are registered in line with article 14 of the Personal Status Code, (b) prohibiting forced marriages, (c) guaranteeing the right of women to enter into marriage without the consent of a guardian; (d) ensuring equal rights of women in divorce proceedings, (e) guaranteeing equal rights of women under the inheritance law. 19. The Committee is deeply concerned that the amendment to the Personal Status Act No. 20 of 1992 by Law No. 24 of 1999, legalizing marriage for girls under 15 years of age with the consent of their guardians, remains in force and that in October 2010 the Parliamentary Sharia Committee prevented the entry into force of an amending act aimed at establishing a minimum age of marriage. The Committee is also concerned about the growing number of victims of child marriages (art. 10). The Committee recommends that the State party: (a) adopt and implement the Law on the minimum age of marriage and set it at 18 years of age in accordance with recommendations by relevant international bodies; (b) ensure access to effective remedies and other forms of necessary protection to victims of child marriages; and (c) undertake to raise awareness of the negative effects of child marriages. 20. The Committee expresses its deep concern about the continued harmful practice of female genital mutilation in the State party, especially in the coastal and rural areas (art. 10). The Committee recommends that the State party urgently adopt legislation criminalizing female genital mutilation and ensure the prosecution and adequate punishment of those performing it or imposing it on girls or women. It also recommends that the State party strengthen its awareness-raising and education efforts with the aim of completely eliminating this practice and countering its underlying arguments. 21. The Committee notes with concern that corporal punishment of children may be applied as a penalty in criminal proceedings, and that it is lawful and widely used in the home and alternative care settings as a disciplinary method (art. 10). The Committee recommends that the State party urgently adopt legislation explicitly prohibiting corporal punishment of children in all settings, including as a penalty in criminal proceedings, as well as at home and in alternative care settings. 22. The Committee is concerned about the lack of effective implementation and enforcement of the legal prohibition of child labour, leading to the exploitation of children on a large scale (art. 10). 5