Weddings in South Asia started all the way in the 4th century. Back then, a man and woman would get married at adolescence age. Although getting married this early is extremely shocking to us now, it was very normal back then. Everyone got married at a young age. Even many of our parents got married in their early twenties, and today, we see that as very young. However, the world doesn’t stay conservative forever. Years ago, the idea of gender roles didn’t even exist; no one thought that women's responsibilities were unfair. Everyone thought of it as life and the majority of people carried on. Of course, there were women who were scared of their spouse, but they didn’t know how to leave the marriage.
Today, society has progressed, and it will continue to progress. We now know that women should be treated as equals, and that they need to have the same opportunities as men. Women now are able to openly value their education, and are placing their careers over marriage. Additionally, we have learned about consent and what is right and wrong. So, as society progressed and women were given more rights, it’s obvious that the age of marriage will naturally increase. However, some families, more particularly rural families, instill the idea that women need to get married early. Lower-class families know that their daughters will long for an education, but they can’t afford it. In the end, the easiest way to avoid this burden is to simply marry off their daughter as early as possible.
According to UNICEF, more than 700 million women alive today were married before their 18th birthday. Child marriage among girls is most common in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, and the 10 countries with the highest rates are found in these two regions. Niger has the highest overall prevalence of child marriage in the world. However, Bangladesh has the highest rate of marriage involving girls under age 15. South Asia is home to almost half (42%) of all child brides worldwide; India alone accounts for one third of the global total.
There is also a substantial gap in the prevalence of child marriage between the poorest and richest. Females in the poorest quintile are 2.5 times more likely to marry in childhood than those living in the wealthiest quintile. This disparity is particularly pronounced in certain countries. In the Dominican Republic and India, the wealthiest women marry about four years later than the poorest women. In India, the median age at first marriage is 19.7 years for women in the richest quintile compared to 15.4 for the poorest women. Across all regions, girls who live in rural areas are more likely to become child brides than their urban counterparts.
According to UNICEF, about 45% of South Asian girls were married before the age of 18. And, 17% of women were married before the age of 15. In most South Asian Countries, the legal age of marriage is 18, however, it is age 16 for women in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Additionally, GirlsnotBrides, an organization created to fight Child Marriage, has statistics on child marriage in almost every country in the world.
In India, 27% of girls are married before the age of 18; India’s child marriages account for almost ⅓ of all child marriages world wide. Sri Lanka and Pakistan have a child marriage rate of about 12-18%, and Nepal and Bangladesh have an high rate of 40-56%.
The Indian Ministry of Women and Child Development states that if a man older than 21 marries a minor, he gets only a 3 month imprisonment, and a possible fine.
3 months is not enough.
Additionally, the parents who allow the child marriage also get fined and imprisoned up to only 3 months.
As mentioned earlier, Pakistan’s legal age of marriage is 16, so putting a stop to child marriage will definitely be difficult. The first step the country needs to take is to increase the minimum age to 18, however, changing the legal age won’t do much, as seen in other countries with minimum age restrictions of 18.
The Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929, also known as the Sharda Act, is followed by most South Asian countries, where the legal marriage age for women is 18, and for men 21. However, The Child Marriage Restraint Act 2016 makes women more vulnerable to child marriage. This new act states that women under the age of 18 are allowed to get married in special circumstances, like accidental pregnancies, in order to protect a girl’s “honor.” This revision can be twisted, and the girl’s family may possibly force her to get pregnant to the man she is about to marry in order for the marriage to be valid. Bangladesh is a South Asian country that follows the 1929 and the 2016 act, however, the law is very loosely followed and the fine given to those caught is only about $13.
I (Shreya), got a $100 fine for turning right on a red stop light when it wasn’t allowed at an intersection. How is it ethical that a person who is selling their child to a family for the sole reason of household duties and reproduction -which in no way is consensual- gets a fine of $13, but people who make silly traffic mistakes get charged 8 times more?
Child Marriage creates an environment where gender roles are more strictly followed. According to UNICEF, a girl who is married as a child is more likely to be out of school and not earn money and contribute to the community. She is more likely to experience domestic violence and become infected with HIV/AIDS. She is more likely to have children when she is still a child. There are more chances of her dying due to complications during pregnancy and childbirth.
Child marriage, a deeply rooted social norm, provides glaring evidence of widespread gender inequality and discrimination. It is the result of the interplay of economic and social forces. In communities where the practice is prevalent, marrying a girl as a child is part of a cluster of social norms and attitudes that reflect the low value accorded to the human rights of girls.
Girls and boys married as children more likely lack the skills, knowledge, and job prospects needed to lift their families out of poverty and contribute to their country’s social and economic growth. Early marriage leads girls to have children earlier and more children over their lifetime, increasing economic burden on the household.
In most countries where child marriage is common, girls are viewed as a burden when compared to boys. Their marriage is viewed as another task on the checklist that needs to be checked off. Check out more about our take on gender roles in South Asia here!
The biggest way to stop child marriage is to empower young girls with information. It is important to educate them on the struggles that come later in life with child marriage. Another way to stop child marriage is to put emphasis on finishing high school and pursuing a higher education. This way girls can sustain themselves and find jobs in the future if they choose to do so, as well as support their family if they do have a child marriage. An increase in education to the parents in these communities is also important so that they don’t force their children into these marriages.
Thanks for reading and come back next week for our next post on Sexual Violence in South Asia!