{"id":721199,"date":"2021-01-07T11:00:10","date_gmt":"2021-01-07T05:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.youthkiawaaz.com\/2020\/12\/raising-the-age-of-marriage-a-counterproductive-proposal\/"},"modified":"2024-04-05T15:31:19","modified_gmt":"2024-04-05T10:01:19","slug":"raising-the-age-of-marriage-a-counterproductive-proposal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthkiawaaz.com\/2021\/01\/raising-the-age-of-marriage-a-counterproductive-proposal\/","title":{"rendered":"How Increasing Marriageable Age Might Actually Hurt Girls In India"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Priti Patkar<\/strong><\/p>

Over the past 4 years, I have been working closely with many adolescents (all between the ages of 16 and 18 years). <\/i>Many of them had run away from their homes, primarily due to irreconcilable differences between them, and their parents.<\/p>

Many of them left from situations of despair to hope. When the police would trace them, their first response to the police would be that they did not want to go back to their families. They would then be produced before the Child Welfare Committees (CWC, the competent authority under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015), and later by their Order, admitted into a Children’s Home.<\/p>

\"A
In another case, the family came to know that the girl was talking with a male friend on WhatsApp, and decided to get her married ‘before some ‘immoral’ incident took place’. Representational image.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

During their interaction with the caseworkers, most of these girls would narrate the following – that their family was planning to get them married<\/a> to someone the girls did not approve of, that they had chosen their partners, and their families were against the choice.<\/p>

In one case, the girl was very keen to study further<\/a> but her parents wanted to marry her off as the elder sister was getting married. The family’s intent was also to save money which would be incurred by arranging two different wedding ceremonies. In another case, the family came to know that the girl was talking with a male friend on WhatsApp, and decided to get her married ‘before some ‘immoral’ incident took place’<\/i>. They were more concerned about the ‘honor’ of the family than understanding what their child wanted.<\/p>

Impact Of COVID-19<\/b><\/h3>

The situation brought about by the pandemic has also caused many parents to consider child marriages. In a recent case during the COVID-19 induced lockdown, 15-year-old Varsha (name changed)<\/i> called us, saying that her family<\/a> was planning to get her married to a man who was 10 years older than her.<\/p>

This person was supposed to be a prospective groom for Varsha’s older sister. However, when he visited the family, he saw Varsha and liked her instead. Fearing ostracization by their community, the parents agreed.<\/p>

\"\"
Since the lockdown, Meera has been struggling to make ends meet. Like Varsha’s father, she wants to get her 17-year-old daughter, Neena (name changed), married before something happens to her. Neena wanted to study further and reached out for help. She was referred to us. Representational image.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

In another case, 17-year-old Jeena’s (name changed) <\/i>father wants to get her married because of the uncertainty brought about by the pandemic. “I want to fulfill my responsibility of marrying my daughter, while I am alive. Who would marry her off if COVID-19 kills me?”<\/i> he asks.<\/p>

Meera (name changed)<\/i> is a single parent. She is living with HIV and her health has been deteriorating by the day. Since the lockdown, Meera has been struggling to make ends meet. Like Varsha’s father, she wants to get her 17-year-old daughter, Neena (name changed),<\/i> married before something happens to her. Neena wanted to study further and reached out for help. She was referred to us. Since then we have been working with both the mother and the child to ensure that Neena can pursue her education.<\/p>

Also read: Why Climate Change Is Causing Girls To Drop Out Of School<\/a><\/div>

It is important to acknowledge the link between low-income households and child or early marriages<\/a>. The increase in child marriages amid the pandemic is also due to many families feeling that there would be ‘one less mouth to feed’ during the current economic crisis.<\/p>

They also believe that the demand for dowry would be less if the girl is young. Other reasons that are driving parents towards child marriages have been – the stigma attached to women being unmarried, young girls being involved in ‘affairs’, eloping and bringing ‘shame’ to the family, and fears of premarital pregnancies. Parents don’t want to take risks and prefer to get their daughters married “before it is too late”<\/i>. Before increasing the age of marriage, these and many more such ground realities should be taken into consideration by policymakers.<\/p>

Why We Need To Think Beyond The Law When Addressing Marriageable Age<\/h3>

Concerns over Agency: <\/b>With the increase in the age of marriage, parents might use the law to punish their adult children for exercising their agency and choosing their partner. Young men will be criminalized for sexual assault as well as kidnapping for marrying an “underage” girl\/woman.<\/p>

Women will become even more vulnerable to parental control and backlash if they choose to marry against the wishes of their parents or elope. Adolescents and young women may not be able to raise their concerns, or get information and help with reproductive care.<\/p>

They may also not be able to access health care facilities with the fear of their partner and family being criminalized, making them more vulnerable to exploitation and ill health. We must consider the high possibility of unwanted pregnancies, illegal and hence dangerous abortions, including those which lead to mortality and consequent infertility.<\/p>

Today, we are already seeing this with the way the POCSO<\/a> Act of 2012, is misused by parents to teach their daughters a lesson for exercising their choices. Our police system is also quite enthusiastic in cases of elopement and consensual sex, as compared to taking action when cases of forced child marriages are reported.<\/p>

Another factor that policymakers should consider is the vulnerability to emotional and physical abuse in families. Our on-ground experiences have also shown that when young girls and women make choices on marriage, the older women in the house, particularly, the mother, also faces a backlash, very often, in the form of physical violence.<\/p>

The mother’s parenting skills are questioned and she is attacked for not being able to keep her daughter ‘in control’.With no opportunities for education, no income, the proposed increase in the age of marriage would mean that the girls and women will have to stay for more years in the family, creating a possibility of more physical and emotional abuse from the family, due to being seen as a ‘burden’.<\/p>

We fear that this would drive the lower strata of society to a higher resort to female foeticide. In a country where girls are considered a burden, if families have to take care of them for an extended period now, and especially guard their ‘chastity’, it would give them another reason to not have them at all.<\/p>

\"\"
Preventing early marriage goes much beyond creating a piece of legislation that penalizes early marriage. Representational image<\/figcaption><\/figure>

With the required legislation existing in the country like the Prevention of Child Marriage Act, 2006, Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children Act, 2015) we have not been quite successful in preventing early marriages. It is important that policymakers consider and reflect whether another legal provision of extending the minimum age for marriage would be doing any good to the existing framework and structures? Or do we need to think beyond the law and punishment framework to address a social issue that deeply affects the progress and development of young individuals in our country?<\/p>

Below are some suggestions to consider before increasing the age of marriage <\/b> (the list is not exhaustive)<\/i><\/b><\/p>