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Why is child marriage a form of violence

against women and girls?

stop to violence against women and girls. The

scale of child marriage means that we cannot
hope to achieve this without addressing a
practice that leaves girls vulnerable to many
different forms of violence.
Globally, 700 million women alive today were
married before their 18th birthday. Without
concerted action, this number will grow: the total
number of women married in childhood could
increase to over 1.2 billion by 2050.

Photo Credit: Graham Crouch|Girls Not Brides

Posted on Tuesday 7th Oct 2014

Gender-based violence

HIV/Aids
Violence against women and girls is a global
scourge that affects millions of women every
year. In fact, it is estimated that one in three
women and girls experience violence in their
lifetime. Child marriage is a manifestation of that
violence.
In many cases parents feel it is in their
daughters best interest to marry at a young age:
they believe marriage will protect her against
physical or sexual assault. Yet, this belief is often
mistaken. Child marriage puts women and girls
at particular risk of sexual, physical and
psychological violence throughout their lives.
Here are five reasons why this violation of girls
most basic rights should prompt action:
1) We will not end violence against
women and girls as long as girls marry as
children
There is a growing and vocal movement of
people around the world determined to put a

2) Child brides are more vulnerable to

physical violence
Girls who marry as children are particularly at
risk of violence from their partners or their
partners families. They are consistently more
likely to be beaten or threatened by their
husbands than girls who marry later. The greater
the age difference between girls and their
husbands, the more likely they are to experience
intimate partner violence.
Often married to much older men, child brides
are more likely to believe that a man is
sometimes justified in beating his wife than
women who marry later. Globally, 44% of girls
aged 15-19 think a husband or a partner is
justified in hitting or beating his wife or partner in
certain circumstances. In Africa and the Middle
East, this figure is above half.
3) Marrying young subjects girls to
insidious forms of violence emotional
and psychological

Melka, who married at 14, now teaches young

girls about their rights
Evelyn, a former child bride, became a
community activist for womens rights
Child brides often suffer emotional pressure from
their families, and husbands or in-laws can limit
their ability to make decisions about their own
lives and bodies. Forced sexual initiation and
early pregnancy often have long lasting effects
on the mental health of child brides for years
after.
Evelyn, from Liberia, was just 15 when she was
forced to marry. Early on, she found it difficult to
assert her wishes about whether or when to
have a baby and she soon realised that, were
she to use some form of contraception, her
husband would leave her. She constantly lives in
fear that hell find out.
Growing evidence from sub-Saharan Africa
shows that girls who marry early are at greater
risk of contracting HIV/Aids or other sexually
transmittable diseases. For instance, in Uganda,
the HIV rate for adolescent girls between 15 and
19 was higher for married girls (89%) than for
unmarried girls (66%).
4) Child brides are more likely to describe
their fi rst sexual experience as forced

Child brides rarely have a say in whom, whether

or when to marry. Melka, from Ethiopia, was 14
when she came home from school to discover
she was to be married that day to an elderly man
in her community. After the wedding, she
recalls, they took me to his house in the next
village. He started pushing me towards the
bedroom. I didnt want to go inside, but no one
would listen to me.
Melka is not alone in her situation. A study in
northern Ethiopia revealed that 81% of child
brides interviewed described their sexual
initiation as forced. In India, they were 3 times as
likely to report being forced to have sex than
girls who married later. Studies have also found
that child brides typically continue to experience
non-consensual sex throughout their marriage.
5) Action on child marriage will send the
clear message that violence against girls
and women can never be excused in the
name of tradition or culture
When girls marry before 18, their lives are all too
often marked by an unspoken, yet very real, kind
of violence; one that is happening, as Ela Bhatt
of The Elders describes, with the consent of
society.
Despite the progress we have made,
Archbishop Desmond Tutu blogged, this world
remains a cruel and arbitrary one for too many

women and girls who are subjected daily to

violence commonly accepted as tradition in
many societies.
CHALLENGING VIOLENT PRACTICES IN
GIRLS LIVES

Countering the normalisation of violence in the

lives of girls and women forced to marry early is
one of the greatest challenges ahead in our
efforts to stop gender-based violence. It will take
courage, determination and coordinated action
from all sectors of society to bring it to an end.

A complex practice of which the causes cannot

be generalised, child marriage relies on a core
assumption: that women and girls are somehow
of lesser value. This often leads to situations
where acts of violence against girls are easier to
justify.

This blog was originally published to mark

the International Day for the Elimination of
Violence against Women (25 November) and 16
Days of Activism to End Gender Violence in
2013.

The Impact of Early Marriage: Domestic

Violence and Sexuality

UNICEF defines child marriage as a

Home Page > Contribution > The Impact

of Early Marriage: Domestic Violence
and Sexuality

formal marriage or union before 18

years of age. While the legal age limit
for boys and girls in India are 21 years
and 18 years respectively, there are
many parts of the country where early
marriages take place.
Traditionally the culture of early
marriages had started during the
medieval period. The young were
married off for various reasons
protecting the females from being raped
by foreign rulers, preventing conversion

India has been developing at a galloping

of religion, to strengthen military and

political alliances between kingdoms

pace in terms of economy and threatens

many of the developed economies, yet it

and cast system. The Mughal period led

to a further degradation of the women in

continues to be stuck in the shackles of

social problems. Early marriage is just

the society.

one of the many social problems that

mars the development of the nation in

According to UNICEF and ICRW

the real sense.

(International Center for Research on

Women), India stands in the list of child

marriage Hot Spots at number 12 with a

whopping 47% of women marrying
before the legal age of 18 years.
According to WCD (Women and Child
Development Authority), it is estimated
that there are 23 million child brides in
the country. Now, these are seriously
alarming numbers!

and Convention on the Rights of the

Child (CRC).
Early marriages are a big threat to the
human rights and well-being of children.
It denies the young an opportunity to
grow and empower themselves. It
challenges the basic right of these
children to education, health, protection

Legislation prohibiting early marriage in

India was put in place way back in 1929,

and development. The girls are forced

into it a lot more in comparison to their

however, even in the modern times, in

spite of the new law (Prohibition of Child

male counterparts and impacts girls

with more intensity. Girls from poor

Marriage Act, 2006), the problem

continues to haunt states like Jharkhand,

households are twice as likely to be

married early than the girls from higher

Bihar, Chattisgarh, West Bengal,

Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya

income groups.

Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and

Kashmir. The problem is worse in rural

The rural moral police attach bizarre

areas in comparison to urban areas.

These marriages are low profile,
solemnized in complete secrecy and are
underreported.

notions to such practice. They claim that

a females morality remains intact if she
is married off early. Recently, with the
increase in rape cases in the country,
some Khaaps in Haryana suggested the
girls be married before 18. This speaks

There are International Human Rights

instruments that have been put in place

of rustic and highly patriarchal

approach. Other causes include poverty,

in relation to the problem of early

marriage. The key ones are Universal

bride price, religious and social

pressures, dowry, caste system and

Declaration of Human Rights;

Supplementary Convention on the

perceived inability of women to work

and earn a livelihood. Daughters are

Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade,

and Institutions and Practices Similar to

seen as a burden and are married off to

avoid cost of caring for them. The role of

Slavery; Convention on Consent to

Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage

women is looked down upon and

degraded to merely taking care of the

and Registration of Marriages;

International Covenant on Economic,

household chores, procreation and being

subservient to the husband and in-laws.

Social and Cultural Rights; Convention

on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

At an age where a child should be

basking in innocent games and gaining
education, young girls are married off

before they are mentally, physically and

psychologically prepared for the

their innocent little minds. Forced sexual

encounters lead to irreversible physical

responsibilities that a marriage brings.

At times they are married to, and even

damage. The psychological damage

cannot even be comprehended.

sold off to men who are a lot older than

these young girls. The young girls are

The girls are three times more likely to

experience marital rape. The girls who

neither capable of handling themselves

nor the burden of marital

marry after 18 years are more likely to

talk to their husbands about

responsibilities. Young girls are forced

for merely serve their husbands and in-

contraception, discuss when to have

children and how many. Young brides

laws and do not have a right to make

any decisions or to have a normal social

face a higher risk of contracting HIV and

other sexually transmitted diseases

life.

owing to her marriage with an older man

with more sexual encounters.

Early marriages have serious negative

consequences on several levels:

Young girls who are less than 15 years

are five times more likely to die during

Education and economy:

child birth than those in the 20s. The

infant mortality rate is very high

Because they are married early, little or

no focus is given to their education,
going grossly against the adage,
educate a woman and you educate a
family, educate a family and you
educate a nation. Pulling out of the
future generations from schools
perpetuates the cycle of poverty and
thereby, curtails the overall economic
growth of the nation. Women with higher
levels of schooling are less likely to
marry early.
Sexuality and violence:
Young girls with low levels of education
are more likely to experience violence
by an intimate partner. A young girl who
is still struggling to understand her own
anatomy is forced to make conjugal

because the young body of a woman is

biologically not capable of maternity.
Owing to their tender age, some of them
are sexually exploited by other men in
the family and they are too scared to go
out and complain. Some of the girls who
marry young also join the bandwagon of
perpetuating cruelty against women. In
the absence of proper education, little
do they know that the gender of a child
depends on the father and not the
mother. Sex determination and female
foeticide continue, for a girl child would
possibly further add to their woes.
Girls who marry at a tender age are
more likely to believe that it is justified
for a man to batter his wife than her
peers who marry after attaining

relations and often show signs of posttraumatic stress and depression owing

adulthood.

to sexual abuse by her older partner.

Neither their bodies are prepared nor

Prohibition of Child Marriage Act,

2006
The act includes punitive measures

against those who perform, permit and

promote child marriage. It also provides

About the Author:

for annulment of a child marriage and

gives a separated female the right to
maintenance and residence from her
husband if he is above 18 or in-laws if
he is a minor until she is remarried. This
Act came into effect in January 2007.
Unless and until the rural people are
enlightened about the horrible impacts
of early marriage, no laws will be able to
change the present appalling situation
that the nation is facing. Also, stress
needs to be put on education, gender
equality and changing the patriarchal
mindset.
Resources:
http://www.icrw.org/child-marriage-factsand-figures
http://wcd.nic.in/childact/draftmarrige.p

Surbhi Tangri is a journalist turned

freelance writer. Her short stint at
journalism helped her realise her
passion for writing. She feels strongly
against social issues and prejudices and
believes that they hold the nation back
from progressing in the real sense. She
also believes that the only way these
issues can be rooted out is through

df

extensive awareness, for the laws have

been in place for far too long. Shes here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_marria

to raise a clarion call against these

issues and urges the youth of the nation

ge

to wake up from their slumber and join

this crusade towards building a healthy

http://www.unicef.in/documents/childmar
riage.pdf

society. You can read more of her work

on her

http://greaterkashmir.com/news/2011/M

blogs http://surbhismusings.wordpress.c
om/ andhttp://eternalsunshine17.blogsp

ar/29/the-practice-of-child-marriage6.asp

ot.in/

http://www.breakthrough.tv/earlymarriage/2013/08/impact-early-marriage-domesticviolence-sexuality/

WHY DOES CHILD MARRIAGE

HAPPEN?
At its heart, child marriage is rooted in gender
inequality and the belief that girls and women
are somehow inferior to boys and men.
Child marriage is a complex issue. Poverty,
lack of education, cultural practices, and
insecurity fuel and sustain the practice.
But drivers will vary from one community to
the next and the practice may look different
across regions and countries, even within the
same country.
GENDER INEQUALITY
In many communities where child marriage is
practised, girls are not valued as much as
boys they are seen as a burden on their
family. Marrying your daughter at a young age
can be viewed as a way to ease economic
hardship by transferring this burden to her
husbands family. [1]
Child marriage is also driven by patriarchal
values and the desire to control female
sexuality, for instance, how a girl should
behave, how she should dress, who she
should be allowed to see, to marry, etc.

shamed for bringing dishonour on their

family. [2]
CULTURE AND TRADITION
Child marriage is a traditional practice that in
many places happens simply because it has
happened for generations. In some
communities, when girls start to menstruate,
they become women in the eyes of the
community. Marriage is therefore the next step
towards giving a girl her status as a wife and
mother.
Harmful traditional practices can be linked to
each other. In southern Ethiopia for instance,
child marriage usually follows the practice of
female genital mutilation/cutting, which is
considered a rite of passage to
womanhood. [3]
Traditional practices often go unquestioned
because they have been part of a
communitys life and identity for a very long
time. But as Graa Machel, widow of Nelson
Mandela, says, traditions are made by people
and people can unmake them.
POVERTY
More than half of girls from the poorest
families in the developing world are married as

Families closely guard their daughters

children. [4] Where poverty is acute, families

sexuality and virginity in order to protect the

and sometimes girls themselves believe that

family honour. Girls who have relationships or

marriage will be a solution to secure their

become pregnant outside of marriage are

future.

Giving a daughter in marriage allows parents

violence. Eight out of the ten countries with

to reduce family expenses by ensuring they

the highest child marriage rates are

have one less person to feed, clothe and

considered fragile states. [5]

educate. Families may also see investing in

their sons education as more worthwhile
investment. In some cases marriage of a
daughter is a way to repay debts, manage
disputes, or settle social, economic and
political alliances.
In communities where a dowry or bride price
is paid, it is often welcome income for poor
families; in those where the brides family pays
the groom a dowry, they often have to pay
less money if the bride is young and
uneducated.
INSECURITY

SOURCES
[1] Save the Children UK, Rights of Passage,
2003
[2] American Jewish World Service (AJWS)
and al., Child, Early and Force Marriage and
the Control of Sexuality and Reproduction,
2015
[3] Young Lives, Child Marriage and Female
Circumcisions (FGM/C): Evidence from
Ethiopia, Policy brief 21, July 2014.
[4] ICRW and Girls Not Brides, Taking action

Many parents marry their daughters young

to address child marriage: the role of different

because they feel it is in her best interest,

sectors: Economic Growth and Workforce

often to ensure her safety in areas where girls

Development brief, 2015.

are at high risk of harassment and physical or

sexual assault.

[5] Niger, Central African Republic, Chad,

Bangladesh, Mali, South Sudan, Guinea, and

Child marriage can increase in humanitarian

Malawi are listed as fragile states as defined

crises, such as in conflict or after a natural

by OECD. See definition in States of Fragility

disaster. When families face even greater

2015: meeting post-2015 ambitions. Revised

hardship, they may see child marriage as a

edition, 2015.

coping mechanism in the face of poverty and

http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/why-does-it-happen/

CARE BLOG
I Could Tell My Story
7/11/14

When Aaliyah first got married, she got in

trouble because her new family had to buy
her a stepstool. Without it, she was too
short to reach the stove or sink to take
care of her duties in the kitchen. She was
14, and her husband was 26. But
Aaliyahs[1] family was very poor and her
parents were illiterate. She doesnt know
how to read or write, and did not have any
marketable skills. There didnt seem to be
any other options for her. This is true for
many women in Egypt, where only 24% of
women have paying jobs.[2] The
expectation in rural areas is that women
will marry, have children, and take care of
the household. There are not many other
paths open to women with no education.
In a recent CARE meeting to raise
awareness about child marriage in the
Menya Governorate of Egypt, Aaliyah
decided to tell her story. My mother in
law was very rough with me, she kept
insulting me all the time. My husband
started beating me for every mistake. The
family kept me doing all household chores

and serving the whole family, so I

miscarried my first and second
pregnancies. I never had the chance to get
and ante-natal health care.

Aaliyah is not just worried about what has

happened to her, but also about the
impacts on her children. She is afraid that
her lack of alternatives will pass to the
next generation. Aaliyah says, Now I am
only 26 years old with three children, but I
feel guilty as I could not raise them the
way I should. I did not know about
breastfeeding or child nutrition, so my kids
are very weak like me. I did not know to
get my first child a birth certificate, so he
could not join school and lost his chance
to get vaccinations. I insisted on getting
birth certificates for the other 2 kids. But
my oldest child will have a poor family
because he is not educated.
Aliyah found the strength to change her
life, and go find other options. She got a
job, and is working to join literacy classes
so she can learn to read and write. I
decided to change my lifestyle, so I joined
the factory to work and earn some money
to raise my kids in a better way. For the
first time, I feel like a human being and
could face my own problems and tell my
story to others; mainly to mothers to
advise them not to marry their girls early. I
want women to allow their daughters to
continue their studies in order to be able
to face the difficulties of marriage, man
demand and children needs. I do not want
other girls to suffer from all the problems I
had faced.
Having new choices makes all the
difference to Aaliyah. With her new job

and skills, she not only has the resources

to make changes for her own children, but
also the confidence to speak up. She
wants to tell her story so that the next
generation of girls can have options
besides a stressful marriage where both

girls and their children suffer. We need to

work with girls, families, and communities
to make sure that there are alternatives.

CARE BLOG

support. He sold the property where I

used to grow food. I tried to stop him,
but I couldnt. I was obliged to work for
others to feed my children. I just lived in
lowliness. I could not even attend the
Mass

A Husband is the Most Important

Diploma
7/14/14

I'm Consolata, and I am 37 years old. I

only completed the 6th grade when my
parents withdrew me from school. They
said, 6 years of education for a girl is
enough. The most important diploma for
a girl is a husband. At 16, I got married
to a 37 year-old man who has another
wife. My parents forced me, since they
had already taken money for my dowry. I
did not want to get married. When I tried
to resist this forced marriage, my father
told me that I had to go, or he would
throw me out of his house, so I had to
obey.
I didnt enjoy my marriage. As a second
wife, I could not be legally married. My
husbands first wife hated me, and we
were always fighting. My husband would
not give me money to support myself,
even though he earns a lot of money. He
beat me, and I had nowhere to go for

because I was a second wife and not

legally married. I was obliged to stay at
home with no friends.
Consolata is not alone. Nearly 23% of
girls in Burundi marry before age
18[1] because their families do not think
they are worth much. In Burundi, even
the language tells girls that they are not
important. Girls are called umukobwa,
which literally means intended for bride
price.
For many families in Burundi, there is no
point in investing in a girl, since she will
be someone elses property eventually.
The bride price is a tradition common in
Africa where a girls parent receive
money in order to marry her to a man.
After that, she belongs to him and his
family. For the few years they do live
with their parents, girls are expected to
take responsibility over household
chores that prepare them for their future
roles as wives: cooking meals, fetching
firewood, carrying water, and caring for
infants.
Girls in Burundi cant inherit property,
and have few options to earn and
income and support themselves. They

have to rely on husbands or fathers to

support them and provide social
respectability. Having little value to
society as individuals doesnt just put
girls at risk of becoming child brides, it
also makes them vulnerable to abuse
once they are married, just like
Consolatas case.

one believed had any value.She is

pushing back on all of the messages
that tell women they dont matter, and
that girls are only worth the price
another family is willing to pay.

Heres what Consolata has to say about

her experience.
Fortunately, Consolatas story gets a
happy ending. In 2009, Consolata joined
the CARE project Umwizero, a Village
Savings and Loan program. In addition
to the economic training and support,
and support for women to improve their
social and political status, Umwizero
provides a social support group for
women. The women in Consolatas
group gave her a social network and a
chance to talk about her problems.
Through Umwizero, Consolata took a
loan of $5 US and in three years turned
it into $1000 in land and assets that she
purchased and registered in her own
namequite a feat for a woman that no

Now I lead all of the training on savings

and loans for women and men who live
in my region. In 2013, I was elected to
the National Women's Forum steering
committee. This position gives me an
opportunity to help other women,
especially
young girls who are going through the
same situation. This year I have helped
6 young girls both in 6th grade whose
parents have already accepted
brideprice and are planning to get them
married. With support, the parents pay
back the money and the girls remain at
school.

Negative Consequences
Child marriage is not only a human rights violation but has numerous and serious
educational, health and developmental consequences for girls. It robs them of their
childhood and sentences them to a life of poverty and economic dependence, with
little or no education. Child marriage negatively impacts married adolescents as
they are highly vulnerable to poor maternal health outcomes, a higher risk of HIV
infection and are more likely to suffer from domestic and sexual abuse. These
negative consequences are discussed below within the context of South Asia:
Child Marriage Impedes Girls Education.
The low value of girls is closely linked to minimal investments made in their future.
Girls are withdrawn from school once their marriage is fixed and they are less likely
than boys to be educated. Research in Pakistan shows a direct correlation between
education and age at marriage. Many studies have also highlighted that adolescent
married girls access to formal and informal education is severely limited because of
domestic and child rearing responsibilities, and unequal gender norms that do not
value education for girls (ICRW, 2005, IFFP: 2006). Also, poverty stricken families
often prefer investing their limited resources on boys rather than girls due to the
belief that investment in a girls education will not generate monetary benefits for
the families.
Early Pregnancy can Result in Poor Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes.
Girls face enormous pressure to prove their fertility soon after marrying, and have
little access to information on reproductive health and ability to influence family
planning decision making. Once pregnant, adolescent girls are physically, mentally
and emotionally unprepared for childbirth. According to UNICEF (2009) adolescent
mothers between the ages of 15 and 19 are twice as likely to die of pregnancy and
childbirth complications as women between the ages of 20 and 24. The situation is
even graver for girls under age 15, who are five times more likely to die from
maternal causes. And young pregnant girls are likely to deliver a low birth weight
and premature infant who is more likely to die. If they live, these children are at
increased risk of malnutrition. (Raj et al, 2012)
In Afghanistan, early marriage and pregnancy contribute to the country having the
second highest maternal mortality rate in the world, with 24,000 deaths each year,
many of them under the age of 18 (2010 report Afghanistan, ICRW, 2013). Data
from Indias National Family Health Surveys 200506 reveal that that those married
as minors (in comparison to adult mothers) are less likely to use contraceptives
before a first child birth, and more likely to have high fertility, repeat childbirth in

less than 24 months, have multiple unwanted pregnancies and undergo pregnancy
termination - all factors associated with maternal and child health risks (Raj et al,
2009).
Child Brides are at Increased Risk of Sexually-Transmitted Infections, including HIV.
Across South Asia, child brides often marry much older men who have a higher
chance of being HIV positive than younger men, due to a greater likelihood of
having had unprotected sex with multiple or high risk partners (ICRW, 2012). In
addition, girls have less control in negotiating condom use or refusing sex with their
partners than their adult female counterparts, and also have little access to health
information, protection, and services. All of these factors make them more
vulnerable to contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.
Child brides are Vulnerable to Abuse and Poor Mental Health.
Violence is a major consequence of child marriage in South Asia where married
adolescents are highly vulnerable to abuse including physical, sexual, psychological
and economic violence (Levine et.al, 2009; UNICEF, 2005, ICRW, 2007; IPPF, 2006,
World Vision, 2013). A study in India found that young women who married before
age 18 were twice as likely to report being beaten, slapped or threatened by their
husbands than girls who married later. Also they were three times as likely to report
being forced to have sex without their consent in the previous six months (ICRW,
2007). Recent research in Bangladesh reveal that girls regularly face domestic
violence if they fail to meet household and sexual demands and expectations from
husband and family members This includes conflicts over dowry, which are a
frequent cause of heinous instances of violence directed at girls including mental
torture and physical abuse. The pressure of early marriage is even felt by young
men in Bangladesh, as they attributed their aggressive behavior towards their wives
to their unpreparedness for marriage and family life (World Vision, 2013).
Girls married as minors are at increased risk for poor mental health outcomes,
including depression and suicide. Many child brides in Bangladesh reported forced
social isolation and limited access to support networks such as family, friends and
community. In the absence of safety networks girls are often left alone to cope with
the physical and emotional challenges of marriage. (World Vision, 2013)Research in
Afghanistan reveals that 2,400 women commit self-immolation each year, and child
and forced marriages, along with sexual and domestic violence, are key causes
(2010 Government report).