Exploring: Child Marriage in Bangladesh
Child Marriage is a raging epidemic in Bangladesh and throughout Southeast Asia, but it is the highest in Bangladesh. Bangladesh has the fourth highest number of cases of child marriage in the world. Even though the legal age of marriage for females is 18, more than 50% of women get married under the legal age.
Why does child marriage happen?
Poverty is the biggest cause of child marriage. A large portion of rural Bangladesh’s population lives in poverty. Child marriage is seen as financial relief for the families of child brides. The common narrative of child marriage cases is ‘large families with small incomes [having] to constantly worry about money and survival.’ Marrying off their daughters young is financially conservative because it significantly lowers their dowries. It also puts them in the care of another families, meaning they do not need to worry about the expenses of that child, since they are now under the ‘care’ of their new husbands; however, the sad reality is that they are seen more as property, rather than wives. Some families are able to marry their daughter to a more well off family, which can help with support and finances later along the line.
Poverty can be worsened by the changes in the economy, increases in the cost of living and natural disasters. Families are put under financial restraint when they are displaced out of their homes and have to pay out of pocket in order to find a new means of shelter.
Gender inequality is another leading factor. Raising girls is seen as burdensome for several reasons. Boys can be sent to work and can be used for labor, while girls most often do not fit their perceived roles, often forcing them to take domestic roles of cooking, cleaning, and looking after their siblings; this type of work is not valued, but is still assigned to girls. Young girls require more undergarments and sanitary materials than boys; which can take a toll on families that barely make enough to feed themselves. Virginity is highly valued, so marrying off girls faster is a way families ensure they are not engaging in premarital sex. Several girls do not complete school because their families see it as a short term burden rather than a long term investment in the lives of their children. The traditional destiny of girls is to be married off rather than to build careers.
How do the marriages legally commence?
59% of girls are married off under the age of 18, 22% are younger than 16 when married, clearly below the legal age. However, these marriages still legally pass in Bangladesh.
Some families pay for forged birth certificates that state that the girl is 18. Marriage Registrars are aware of the mass contraventions but allow the practice to take place,being easily swayed by the persistence of the families. The laws surrounding these issues are not enforced heavily enough, so there is little to protect the girls from becoming child brides.
How has the government responded?
In July of 2014, Sheikh Hasina, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, vowed to end child marriage in the country by 2041. The following year there were precents placed to lower the age of marriage for girls to 16. In 2017, the President of Bangladesh signed a bill that would allow ‘special cases’ of child marriage to be legal. However there is no clear definition of ‘special cases’ or situation that warrants the marriage of a minor necessary. This sparked protests from many citizens and groups dedicated to women empowerment and child marriage abolition. Programs lead by the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs are developing an action plan to eradicate child marriage.
There are movements by local governments to enforce the marriage laws. Bangladesh’s national government made it mandatory to show a birth certificate when getting a marriage license, but this effort does not address forged certificates.
How damaging is child marriage?
Many girls who are decided to be wed off have to leave school, their home and their livelihood to live and belong to another family. Marriage in Bangladesh, and other countries that use dowry systems, is a transaction of ownership. The lives of these girls are traded away. Most become under the control of their in-laws, with not jurisdiction over their own persons. To be controlled and sold like a product is a dehumanizing experience.
The girls who are married off into new families are often abused by their new partner and in-laws. There is limited protection over the safety of child brides. Therefore, harassment and abuse is common and accepted experience for child brides. The in-laws legally own the girls so they can treat them how they please.
Many of the girls, as young as nine-years-old are forced to be sexually intimate with their new partners and many are asked to carry children before their own bodies are fully developed. That can lead to serious medical complications that could endanger the lives of girl and the infant. Refusal to engage in child bearing activities could lead to more physical abuse for the girls.
Child marriage is personally damaging to the girls, as well. Marriage is haltering experience in their lives. It shows them their have little control over their lives and their dreams. It ends the chances of them being independent beings.
There are several documentaries on the issue of child marriage in Bangladesh. For more information, watch this video by the Human Rights Watch or this video by Al Jazeera
Sources:
Girls Not Brides. “Bangladesh — Child Marriage Around The World. Girls Not Brides.” Girls Not Brides, www.girlsnotbrides.org/child-marriage/bangladesh/.
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This post was authored by Adejoke Atitebi and edited by the Mai Soli Foundation team
