The story of Rekha Kalinda, the young girl in India who refused marriage in order to continue her education, is one of inspiration.

Although the legal age for marriage in India is 18, Rekha was just 12 years-old when her parents informed her she would be pulled out of school and married. In India, the prevalence of child marriage leads to a cycle of poverty and low education levels, especially for girls.

Rekha’s controversial act of defiance against her parents gained international attention, but with the support of her teachers, classmates and government officials, she was able to convince her parents to call off the wedding.

Today, Rekha is a child marriage activist and gives lectures in neighboring communities with her classmates. Due to her efforts, there were no child marriages in her village this year.

Girls Refusal to Be Child Bring Inspires Nation- ABC News

New legislation granting women greater rights in Afghanistan will come to a vote by Parliament soon.

The Elimination of Violence Against Women Act was first proposed in 2004, but only signed this summer by President Karzai. It outlaws the trading of women to settle debt, spousal abuse, child marriages, and other forms of violence against women.

Although Parliament is expected to approve the legislation, many fear provisions will be “watered down” to allow for minimal punishment of those convicted for these crimes.

Organizations such as the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission feel encouraged by this legislation but noted that it will take time for these rights to filter into traditional practices. However, if enacted, these laws will greatly aid women who take their cases to court.

Afghan legislation nudges women’s rights forward- AP

President Mutharika of Malawi is coming under pressure from civil society groups following the passing of a new law that raises the legal marrying age from 15 to 16, which human rights groups feel is still too young and constitutes forced marriage. IPS News reports that Mutharika has been “non-committal” and offered for citizens to debate the issue and reach a consensus, after which “the matter will go back to parliament,” he has said.

Women’s and children’s rights NGOs and activists are mobilizing supporters in a move to amend the law. MacBain Mkandawire, executive director of Youth Net and Counseling (YONECO), lamented the recent development, commenting that “marriage [at the age of 16] will deprive children of education and severely limit their right to mental and physical well-being.” YONECO has argued that the Malawian government “is contravening the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child,” which defines a child as being below the age of 18.

Early marriage contributes to the high maternal mortality rate of the nation, as the bodies of girls aged 16 and under are often “not mature enough to carry out pregnancy without serious risk,” including complications such as obstetric fistula and obstructed labor. One mother of three girls told IPS that she could not understand how policy makers could make such a decision, insisting:

“We are jeopardizing the future of the nation. How do you expect us to develop as a country if our children drop out of school at a very young age to get married?”

RIGHTS: Sweet 16 Marriages Cause Controversy in Malawi -IPS News

Rekha Kalindi defied convention at 13, refusing marriage and demanding an education instead. Her story and conviction has been brought to the national stage in India, with newspapers “hailing her for accomplishing change that the Indian government was incapable of making,” as ABC News reports. A child laborer until two years ago, when a government non-profit initiative introduced Kalindi to schooling, she has benefited from the leadership skills and instruction she has received through her education. ABC News explains that “it was from these leadership classes that Rekha gained the strength to defy her family, her village, and change her future.”

An inadequately enforced Child Marriage Prohibition Act sets the legal age of marriage at 21 for boys and 18 for girls, yet families often practice child marriage as a means of easing the financial burden of daughters. This was the case when Kalindi’s parents removed her from school in preparation for her marriage; when their daughter refused, they were shocked and insisted that the marriage would be carried out. Kalindi then enlisted the help of “teachers, classmates and a government official,” all of whom were moved by her resistance and marched to her family home to ask that her parents reconsider, which they did.

The Project Director of a regional National Child Labor Project comments on the significance of Kalindi’s bravery:

“Being within that community and being from such a poor family, a tiny girl, is thinking of setting her own future and own destiny by her own will. That is unthinkable previously.”

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In the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) State of the World’s Children 2009 report, findings show that early marriage is pervasive in Bangladesh, with 64 percent of girls married before age 18, as IRIN News reports. Early pregnancy often results from early marriage –one-third of girls aged 15 to 19 in Bangladesh are currently either mothers or pregnant. These teenage mothers are reportedly twice as likely to die from pregnancy or child-birth complications. Further, research shows that “the risk of maternal mortality could be five times higher for mothers aged 10 to 14 than for those aged 20 to 24, as IRIN explains.

Though the legal marriage age in Bangladesh is 21 for boys, 18 for girls, findings from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey indicate that the median age for marriage of girls is 16.4 years. Concerns that dowry prices will increase as age increases often provoke parents to encourage early marriage, for it is seen as a way to reduce the financial burden that daughters are perceived to pose.

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A small victory of against child marriage, two families in Saudi Arabia have agreed to annul the marriage of an 11 year-old girl and a 40 year-old man.

The child’s parents supported the marriage, receiving a dowry including a car and a large sum of money. It was the older siblings, including a sister who was married at age 11, who appealed to Saudi Arabia’s National Human Rights Society to intervene.

The Human Rights Society has campaigned for a minimum age for marriage of 18. Currently, Saudi Arabia has no such standards.

In addition to the annulment, the group convinced the father not to marry his daughter again until she reaches the age of 18.

Although the annulment is small victory for advocates such as the Human Rights Society, it is important to reflect on the current reality of child marriage.

In light of one child’s success we remember that just this April a Saudi judge refused to annul the marriage of an 8 year-old girl and a 47 year-old man.

Still deeply debated in the country, Vital Voices supports the work of human rights groups in Saudi Arabia and all around the world in their fight to end child marriage.

Saudi Arabia: Child Marriage Annulled
Saudis Annul Marriage Of 11-Year-Old Girl

In Saudi Arabia, societal pressures and government regulations often largely determine a woman’s personal life.

According to Jalal Ghazi of New America Media, women who do not get married by a certain age are labeled ‘a’wanes’. The term, which holds a negative connotation, lessens a woman’s chances for marriage. The age at which women are deemed a’wanes varies by society, with more liberal Arab societies tending to attach the label to older women than their conservative counterparts, but the effect is the same.

In Saudi Arabia, 30 percent of women were considered a’wanes in 2006, according to Ghazi. But Saudi women face much more than just social pressure. Saudi Arabia has no age requirement for marriage, and, while most versions of Sharia require the consent of a female for marriage, the Hanbali interpretation of Sharia practiced in Saudi Arabia allows a father to issue a marriage contract despite the will of his daughter. This leaves young women vulnerable to their fathers’ desires and permits prepubescent girls to be married off. The issue gained prominence in 2008 when an eight-year-old Saudi girl was forced to marry a man in his 50s so her father could pay off his debt.

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Twenty-four communities in Gambia have pledged to end the practices of female genital mutilation and early or forced marriage of young girls. The reform is due in large part to the work of Tostan, an organization facilitating community-led development in East and West Africa. Joined by UNICEF and supported by the Gambian government, the 24 communities commemorated their pledge with a ceremony.

With powerful symbolism, Kobaye Nyabally, a native of Dasilameh who said she had been cutting herself for years as part of a cultural practice she had inherited from her parents, “pledged to abandon the practice by dropping her knife in front of the crowd.” Regional health officer Saikouna Sagina commended the communities for their show of support for the health rights of women and girls, adding that “the declaration by the 24 communities is a clear manifestation [of] the knowledge gained…[that] is impacting positively on their lives.”

It is the hope of organizations such as Tostan and UNICEF that the momentous commitment of the communities will serve as a regional and international example. Gambia’s practice rate of FGM is among the highest in Africa, 78 percent among women aged 15-49 years, as AllAfrica informs.

Gambia: 24 Communities Pledge to Abandon the Practice of FGC, Early/Forced Marriage-AllAfrica News

The International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2009 has been approved by the House of Representatives as part of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act.  Introduced this past May by Senator Durbin for the consideration of lawmakers, the Act recognizes child marriage as “a human rights violation that undermines America’s investments in foreign assistance to improve women’s and girl’s education, health, and economic status.”

Related:

In support of the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act

Congresswoman Betty McCollum today introduced theInternational Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2009 (H.R. 2103)

MS Magazine

Earlier this month, Senator Durbin of Illinois introduced ‘The International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act’ to both the United States Senate and House of Representatives for consideration by lawmakers. The proposed measure would authorize foreign assistance funding by the United States for a five-year initiative to prevent child marriage and provide educational and economic opportunities to girls in developing countries. Widely prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa as well as in regions of the Middle East and Asia, child marriage is an overlooked and tragically unaddressed violation of human rights, often fueling and perpetuating cycles of gender-based violence and discrimination against women and girls.

Senator Durbin critically expressed the significance of the bill as it relates to the larger movement for gender equality: “The manner in which a country treats women and children says a lot about its cultural and societal values,” he added that “Young teenage girls who are forced to marry face serious health risks and are often far less educated than their unmarried peers.” The Senator joined in the sentiment of the leading organizations praising the introduction of this bill in expressing his hope that “This bill will bring this harmful practice to an end and give millions of girls around the globe hope for a better future.”

In addition to an authorization of funds, the act, if approved, will involve the scaling-up of effective community-based efforts intended to offer viable alternatives to early marriage, as well as the promotion of a societal understanding of the harmful effects of forced marriage. The bill additionally requires the President to submit a comprehensive strategy to reduce child marriage abroad within 180 days of its passing, and further requires that the State Department collect data on child marriage and include this information in its annual Human Rights Report.

Vital Voices stands in firm support of this measure and urges that the United States Congress swiftly agree to take action on such a critical issue that is sorely absent from international purview and global agendas for the promotion of development.