First able, I would like to spend few words in order
to introduce myself.
I am Martina, I am 22 years old and I am currently
doing an Internship at HEEALS, an NGO which is facing with several issues that nowadays annoy the Indian
society.
In this article I would like
to guide you inside the obscure world of child marriage.
In India, the legal age for the marriage is 21 years
old for the men and 18 years old for the girls, but one thing is having a law, other
is enforcing it. As a matter of fact, every years, a remarkable and unthinkable
number of children is enforce to get married from his family. According to
UNICEF, globally, 36% of women aged 20-24 were married or in a union, forced or
consensual, before they have reached 18. In addition, an estimated 14 million girls between the
ages of 15 and 19 give birth each year.
Child marriage is an evident violation of child
rights, and has a negative impact on physical growth; health, mental and
emotional development, and also on education opportunities.
Both girls and boys are affected by child marriage,
even if girls are involved with a greater intensity. Moreover that phenomenon
can be seen, across the Country (India obviously), with a superior incidence in
rural areas than in urban. Particularly girls from poorer families, scheduled
castes and tribes, with lower education levels are more likely to get married
at a younger age.
“The Hindu”, a local journal, explains that despite
the last changes through the modernity, such as the spread of technology, the
improvements of work conditions and instruction, the older uses and costumes
are becoming more and more widespread . For this reason, it is possible to
conclude that the technological developments has not been followed by a social
growth. Broadly speaking, parents tend to believe that their children, with
their phone and their Internet connection, tend to lost easily their sense of
duty and theirs innocence, so getting marriage since childhood is a safe way
for “controlling and saving” them.
Likewise, another important cause of the child
marriage is the endemic poverty. Families not only cannot afford a good level
instruction for their children but also they strongly believe that it is better
for them working instead of studying. Often poor families sell their children
into marriage either to settle debts or to make some money, also because
marriages seem to be a solution to secure to the younger a successful future.
Furthermore, giving a daughter in marriage allows parents to reduce family
expenses by ensuring they have one less person to feed, clothes and education.
In communities where a dowry or ‘bride price’ is paid, it is welcome income for
poor families; in those where the bride’s family pays the groom a dowry, they
often have to pay less money if the bride is young and uneducated.
Having said that, now it is necessaire considering the
consequences of child marriage. Among them, there are, in order of importance,
an high level of children death; a spread of illness, like for instance HIV or
AIDS; and last but not least a growth of the marginalization of young girls,
that brings to a lack of education and consciousness.
It is vital understand that all these outcomes
are not enclose only inside a families or a single persons, but they affect the
global Indian society, reinforcing the cycle of
endemic poverty and perpetuating gender discrimination, illiteracy and
malnutrition.
Youngs are an uncountable resources for the economic,
cultural and social society and they are a necessary millstone for built up
future generations with new and more fair values.
To sum up, child marriage is
still widespread in India, which is home to a third of the world’s child brides
because about half of Indian women were married before they turn 18.
Figuring out the primary facts of
child marriage is a duty for us, who live in a different part of the
World, because only in these way we can try solve the problem permanently.
Martina Scavino
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