Enhancing the scope of the right to education may empower girls to escape the clutches of this social menace, feels ActionAid
post news network, Bhubaneswar, May 21: Often girls are married off before they reach 18 years due to such perceptions, as “they are considered young to become a bride within two/three years of their attaining puberty; they can give birth to many children if married early; they can do more household work when they are young; they can be better controlled by their in-laws when they are married off at a young age; they can face difficulty in pregnancy if married late; they should be married early with little education to ensure they are less educated than their husbands, otherwise they will not respect their husbands,” pointed out a study on child marriages across Orissa by the NGO ActionAid.
The study, which depended on the Census 2011 data and the Annual Health Survey reports to carry forward their research that included analysis of the available data and a collection of case studies, said, “For girls the social age of marriage is as soon as they reach their puberty, while for boys the social age of marriage is when they start earning.”
The report was released Thursday at the Hotel Empires at Saheed Nagar in the presence of Yumi Bae, chief of field office, UNICEF (Orissa), Sehjo Singh, director programme, ActionAid, Ghasiram Panda, program manager, ActionAid (Bhubaneswar) and other dignitaries.
The focus is on rural Orissa
Organisers of the event said the main focus of the study was on rural Orissa as Census and Annual Health Survey data suggest that child marriages are more rampant in the rural areas compared to the urban areas. Moreover, they said that their work and available data suggested that more the literacy level in an area lesser were the cases of child marriages there.
Appreciating the study, Yumi Bae of UNICEF said, “This document is of high quality. This study has put forth detailed information pertaining to child marriages and its possible causes. Now an in-depth discussion on the document is required in order to bring out solutions to the prevailing menace.”
Sehjo Singh said, “I am delighted to see the detailed report which, dissects the reasons behind child marriage in Orissa. I was curious to see how poverty, education, child labour and social stereotypes were associated with the social menace. This will pave a wave for the policymakers to analyse the problem.”
The other reasons
Apart from the ones mentioned above, the report also cited other prominent reasons that encouraged child marriage in Orissa. It blamed dropouts in schools, surge in cases of sexual abuse in girls’ hostels, migration of parents to other states in search of livelihood, poverty and ethnic beliefs as reasons behind the existing practice of child marriage.
Talking about poverty, the report said, “In a family that depends on agricultural work or wage work a girl is considered ready for marriage and childbirth when she can work in the field, work efficiently in the brick kiln, can transplant paddy, which is a labour-intensive work with ease.”
The report also blamed human trafficking, easy methods of procuring fake age certificates and the fear that a girl in her mid or late teen may fall in love with a boy, especially of another cast, and elope, as other reasons that prompted the parents to marry off their daughters early in this state.
Talking to the media, Debabrat Patra, regional manager, ActionAid said, “During the last six months our organisation undertook the arduous task of collecting data and case studies, from different parts of Orissa, to substantiate our study. UNICEF played a prominent role in supporting the study. We focused on child marriage as it is not only a legal offence, but also a human rights violation.”
The remedies
While dealing at length on the social, economic and institutional reasons behind child marriage, the report also suggested some measures that could be taken at the ‘government level’ to curb the menace. The report pointed out the necessity of “capacity building of school teachers and school management committee (SMC) members on child rights and POCSO; making the schools safe for girls; fixing of accountability with teachers and SMCs on child marriage, student dropout and sexual harassment of students; inclusion of skill building subjects in the curriculum and linking up students after Class VII with skill building training and courses; ensuring effective implementation of schemes for adolescent girls and encouraging them to pursue higher education/skill –based education; enhancing the scope of right to education (RTE) up to the age of 18” and other such measures to curb the menace of child marriage in Orissa.
The event also witnessed debates on several issues related to child marriage in the state. The event, which began Thursday, will continue till Friday. Several experts from NGOs, civil society, media and other fields will take part in the discussions.
