By Emily Benson
Stereotypically, in the United States, when women picture their wedding day, images include a white dress, diamond ring, and pure love. But war and terror in the Middle East shed a harsher light on the realities of wedlock, sexuality, and female identity. Today in Syria, an overwhelming number of young girls are being forced into marriage with absolute strangers, most of whom are at least 10 years older than they.
Countries with the highest rates of child marriage are highlighted in blue. Map from Girls Not Brides organization.
Disregard for a young girls’ autonomy in marriage is a narrative that unfortunately replays throughout the world. According to UNICEF, around two out of every three marriages in Bangladesh involves a child. Other countries reported similar, if not higher, levels of child marriages in a 2009 UNICEF report: Chad (72%), Mali (71%), Guinea (63%), Central African Republic (61%), Mozambique (56%), Nepal (51%), and India (47%).
The issue of child marriage is not just one of basic human rights. It is also about health and gender equality. Child marriage not only oppresses the voice of each girl involved, but it perpetuates the cycle of the marginalization of women as an entire gender. According to the organization Girls Not Brides, there are five key reasons to take action against child marriage: 1) violence against women can not be abolished as long as young girls are forced into matrimony; 2) physical abuse if more common against child brides; 3) emotional and psychological abuse are also major consequences of forced childhood marriage; 4) rape and forced intimacy are more likely the first type of sexual encounter child brides experience; 5) elimination of child marriage will finally end the myth that tradition or culture can justify abuse of women.
The organization Save The Children, have shared shocking testimonials of young wives and their families. We hear from parents who never planned to marry off their daughters. But the war in Syria became too much. They lived in constant fear that their daughters would be sexually assaulted or even killed. An arranged marriage seemed like the only way to keep them safe. If only they knew of the repercussions of a girl marrying an older man. She is more likely to experience domestic abuse, in her supposed “safe haven”. These girls, these victims, have no access to resources to help them out of this dangerous situation. A husband hits his wife, and she has nowhere to run, because outside the door is even more dangerous.
Sexual activity between a man and a woman is intended to be a sacred action. But for girls whose bodies are still developing, it’s shattering. Shattering to their hearts and their bodies. In Save the Children’s brief entitled “Too Young to Wed”, they note that, “Child marriage has devastating consequences for girls’ health, resulting in sexual activity at a young age, while their bodies are still developing and when they may have limited understanding of reproduction and sexual health.” Moreover, the consequences of birthing children too young are vast. According to “Marrying Too Young,” a UNFPA report, “complications from pregnancy and childbirth together are the main cause of death among adolescent girls 15-19 in developing countries.”
The blatant disregard for personal autonomy and health consequences linked forced unions demonstrate a total assault on women around the world. As a woman, I am wholeheartedly aware of the rights given to me. But it is shameful that these rights are endowed to me because of the coincidence of my birthplace. Every girl and woman in the world deserves these rights. No woman have her personal freedom stripped away from her and be “given” as a bargaining tool in times of poverty or conflict. No woman should be forced to be a mother when she herself is still a child. Women’s lives should not be discredited just because they are not male. Melinda Gates once said, “A woman with a voice is by definition, a strong woman.” So many women have their choice stunted from a very young age. Forcing and dehumanizing young women perpetuates the longstanding status quo of female subservience and male dominance. These girls who are forced into early matrimony are strong. But their voices have been silenced by control, manipulation, horror and fear. While there is not obvious solution to this prevalent and complex issue of child marriage, I encourage women and men to band together and build awareness around the marginalization of women around the world.
Emily Benson is an assistant online editor for the Sigma Iota Rho Journal of International Relations. She is studying International Relations.
