PAKISTAN: Amendments in child marriage act demanded

Submitted by crinadmin on Thu, 19/01/2012 - 12:53

Summary: In Pakistan, you have to be 18 to get an ID card, a driving licence, and be able vote; while the age for marriage for a girl is 18. New amendments to this law include an increase of the minimum age for marriage and harsher penalties for violators.

[19 January 2012] - The stakeholders at a media workshop urged to bring in amendments in the existing Child Marriage Restraint Act,1929 (CMRA) by increasing the minimum age of marriage for girls from 16 years to 18 years besides increasing fine money from Rs1,000 to Rs100,000 and imprisonment from one month to one year.

During a workshop organised by Rahnuma-FPAP in collaboration with AusAID, the participants that included public representatives, legislators, civil society members and media, reached to a consensus that the existing form of CMRA is ineffective to deal with the issued related to child marriage.

The participants believed that the determination of 16 as the minimum age limit for a girl is an open violation of Human Rights and laws. UN Convention of Child Rights (UNCRC) defines child anyone under the age of 18. Therefore a girl in her sixteen is still a child and could not be married according to international laws and commitments.

MNA Kashmala Tariq conceded that the role of parliament was not such effective in curbing the social problems including child marriage. “It was an uphill task to extend the minimum age of marriage for girls from 12 years to 16 years as according to Muslim Family law a girl is eligible for marriage as soon as she hits puberty,” she said.

Tariq, however, invited civil society to come up with proposed amendments in the existing form of CMRA and said that she would lobby in the parliament for the passage of amendments in the law.

She said it was the dilemma that there are parallel judicial systems existing in the country, which are confusing general public. “We have Shariah Courts that claims to pass judgments according to Islamic laws, but there is not a single incident when they have taken suo moto action against adultery or any other crime of this nature,” he said.

She further stated that Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) hardly comes in contact with the parliament. “People are confused as to where to look upon. We need to abolish parallel systems that are a burden to public exchequer,” she said.

MNA Palwasha Zai Khan, on the occasion, said that the issues like child marriages have more to do with the culture and traditions of this region. “We should not expect that such practices would end overnight. It will take time,” she said.

Khan said that it was not only the responsibility of parliamentarians to bring about change but the responsibility equally lies on general public. “There are many public representatives who have spoken out publicly in favour of these practices but people still regard them and would vote them in the next elections. Isn’t it public fault to elect them?” she inquired.

The heated debate on the amendment in CMRA started with the heart wrenching narratives by the child marriage survivors. “I could not conceive due to the injuries that I succumb due to sexual exposure at an early age,” said a child marriage survivor who was married at the age of 12.

She said that her first husband was a drug addict and used to abuse her sexually. It was due to his abuse that she could not conceive during her second marriage. As a result she was divorced once again.

Another lady “A” also shared her horrific experience when she was given in ‘swara’. She was just a student of 5th class when her brother married a girl of his choice after eloping. She had to pay for the crime committed by her brother and was given in ‘swara.’ “My husband was already married. The first wife of my husband never allowed him to come to me. I only had any kind of encounter with my husband in the absence of the first wife of my husband,” she narrated.

A presentation on Child Marriage as violation of human rights was also given by Rahnuma-FPAP Director Adolescent/Women Empowerment Amna Akhsheed. She said that when a child is eligible for [an] ID card, driving licence and voting at the age of 18 then why the minimum age for marriage for a girl child is established 16 years.

She said that 30 per cent of all marriages fall into the category of child marriages in Pakistan. “Each day, more than 25,000 young girls become child brides, joining almost 60 million girls who have married before their eighteenth birthday,” she revealed.

She said that child brides often show sings of symptomatic of child sexual abuse and post-traumatic stress. Such symptoms include feelings of hopelessness, helplessness and severe depression. “Girls younger than 15 are five times more likely to die in child birth than those 20’s,” she said.

Earlier Rahnuma-FPAP Director Advocacy Resource and Donor Liaison Nabila Malick while highlighting the role of media in creating awareness regarding child marriages. “48 mothers die in 24 hours in Pakistan during child birth. This is the highest Maternal Mortality rate in South Asia but media does not highlight it in the way it should,” she said.

She shared the statistics of 2010 media reports in which only eight news items regarding child marriages appeared in the top English newspapers of the country.

She said that urgent steps are required to ensure the ‘nikkah’ and birth registration and removal of age discrimination when it comes to age of marriage.

A docu-drama ‘Noori Kahan Gae’ was also telecast on the occasion to sensitise media. The drama, though short in length, very effectively portrayed the socio cultural factors that lead to the early girls marriages. Besides that the after affects of the early child marriages were also wonderfully depicted in the drama.

Besides that a documentary ‘journey of Sana’ was also telecast on the occasion. Sana, the resident of KP was married before she hit puberty. Her husband took her to Kabul where he used to beat her up like animals. She, one day, escaped from her husband’s house and reached KP with the help of a truck driver. She learnt about Rahnuma-FPAP and told them about her story. Rahnuma-FPAP helped her in getting divorce from her husband. She is now living a free life.

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