Author: Lenora D'Souza
Image source: https://exit.al/en/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2020/07/190509-child-marriages-main-kh_1aa8002ea84161efab15fda086722c38.jpg
“My sister was only 11 years old when she got pregnant”
In May 2015, Memory Bunda gave a ted talk on child marriage using the contrast with the lives of her and her sister to communicate an issue that is still present today. The ted talk titled, “A warriors cry against child marriage”, opened with a poem written by a 13-year-old girl called, “I’ll marry when I want to”, shedding light on child marriage and the deprivation of the right to lead an independent lifestyle for a lot of girls in Malawi. Whilst Memory’s sister was sent to an initiation camp where they were taught how to please men and prepped for marriage, Memory refused to go, resulting in two sisters leading two very different lives. By 16, her sister had three children and two failed marriages, a life not unknown to many in Malawi as well as in several other countries.
Child marriage has been a prevailing issue for decades, stripping billions of girls of the chance at education and an adult life the second they get their periods and are termed “all grown up”. It is estimated that 22,000 girls a year are dying from pregnancy and childbirth resulting from child marriage, new analysis from Save the Children released on International Day of the Girl reveals. Globally 21% (12 million) of girls are married annually of which 37% is in the Sub Saharan (76% Niger, 68% CAR, 67% chad).
Marriage before the age of 18 is declared a human rights violation. Women who get married before the age of 18 are usually less likely to remain in school and are more likely to experience forms of domestic violence. Sometimes, children are promised to be betrothed even before birth, instantly committing them to a life that is forced onto them. In economically disadvantaged regions, poor families see child marriage as a way to improve their lot in life. Such marriages play a role in the preservation of culture and strengthen the ties between important families. it locks the children, families, communities, and societies in an endless cycle of poverty that persists among several generations. Along with the “marriage” often comes a lifetime of sexualized violence and becoming a parent during childhood.
These girls are completely unprepared, both physically and mentally, to undergo pregnancy and childbirth. Many of them give birth prematurely to infants whose chances of survival will be lower than normal. Indeed, the experience of giving birth may prove fatal not simply for the infant but for the mother as well. Early marriage also impacts future generations. A child born to an educated mother is 50 percent more likely to survive past age five. And they’re twice as likely to go to school.
It seems like a distant imaginary to be married and to be the mother of 3 children by the age of 18, but it is anchored in reality. While we can sit down and write articles, go out and have a coffee, millions of children are pushed into initiation ceremonies and motherhood before they even have a chance. One would think that as the world progresses, practices such as these would be left in the past. But the unfortunate reality is that child marriage still persists and will continue to persist until and unless action is taken.
Only action will lead to change for millions of children whose human rights have been violated.
Listed below are different ways you can take action. It can be as simple as educating ourselves with pieces of literature or media or by donating to organizations that actively work against child marriage. Start now and help protect another child from the same fate.
Movies to watch:
Tall as the baobab Tree
Dukhtar
Difret
Mustang
Books to read:
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced (Nujood Ali, Delphine Minoui)
A Promise to Nadia (Andrew Crofts)
Love, Labour and Law: Early and Child Marriage in India (Samita Sen Anindita Ghosh)
Groomed to be a Bride (Maggie Hartley)
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