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By Rashme Sehgal
CSOs protest the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006, which places the onus of declaring a child marriage void on the child herself or her parents, and scarcely goes further than the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929
CSOs from across the country have written to President Abdul Kalam urging him not to sign the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 (PCMA) passed during the winter session of Parliament.
Organisations that have signed the letter, under the banner of the Indian Alliance for Child Rights, include MAMTA, Prayas, Prakriti, Adithi, IACR, STOP, Jan Jagran Sansthan and the Joint Women’s Programme.
The CSOs point out that the PCMA is a toothless bill that will not address issues on the ground. A major shortcoming is that, instead of declaring every child marriage void it places the onus of declaring such a marriage void on the child or her guardians who can then file legal proceedings against the marriage. Given the social pressures surrounding such marriages, it is highly unlikely that this will happen.
The letter sent to the President states: “While all offences under it are cognisable and non-bailable, and empowering the courts to issue an injunction to prohibit a marriage from being solemnised, the 2006 legislation provides for child marriages to be voidable in response to petitions moved at the option of one or other contracting party. This seems to go no further than the earlier ‘Prevention’ Bill of 2004. Is this clear, or ambiguous? Are there new lacunae? How will it work on the ground?”
“In what way is this new bill going a step further than the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929,” asks women’s activist Razia Ismail, chairperson of the Women’s Coalition. The bill also states that the government will declare a marriage void only in cases of ‘compulsion’ and ‘trafficking’, thereby implicitly acknowledging traditional child marriages as valid.
Another shortcoming, says Colin Gonsalves, a lawyer with the Human Rights Law Network, is that, “There is no provision for punishing the officials in whose areas these marriages are solemnised. The Act, on the contrary, calls for the punishment of the parents, forgetting that many child marriages are performed to escape the debilitating demands of the dowry system”.
CSOs question why the government has failed to come down heavily on those officials who turn a blind eye to this practice. In the past two years, state governments have been putting pressure on grassroots workers to help curb child marriage. When Shakuntala Verma, one such worker, urged members of her community in rural Madhya Pradesh not to solemnise a child marriage, her hands were hacked off!
“The government should come down heavily on the local bureaucrats under whose jurisdiction such a crime has taken place, as also on the perpetuators of the crime. Unfortunately, this does not seem to happen,” says Jyotsna Chatterjee, director of the Joint Women’s Programme.
The Act is also silent on the aspect of registration of marriages. CSOs recommend that all adult marriages be registered and issued certificates, while all child marriages be recorded without issuing certificates. This would prevent the certificate from being taken as proof of a legal marriage.
No notice has been taken of state legislations in force. Karnataka has a Marriages (Registration and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1976, making registration of all marriages compulsory. Maharashtra has enacted the Maharashtra Regulation of Marriage Bureaus and Registration of Marriages Act, 1998, making gram sevaks the registrar. Rajasthan has a Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages Bill, 2002, and the legislative assembly of Tripura passed a Tripura Recording of Marriage Bill, 2003. Under the laws of marriage in Goa, a civil registration is mandatory, and only registered marriages are considered valid.
If the Act were indeed to insist that all illegal marriages also be considered invalid, it would be necessary by statute to introduce protection, particularly for the child bride, so that her right to maintenance and her right to a household are not undermined.
Statistics collated by the National Family Health Survey of 1998-99 highlight how over 40% of marriages involve girls below the age of 16. In some districts of Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the number of child marriages is as high as 70%.
A large proportion of child marriages end up with the girls being sold for trafficking. Rajib Haldar, secretary, Prayas, says: “Trafficking of ‘married girls’ is rampant in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and even Kerala.”
Chatterjee and her team conducted 10 workshops on child marriage across 10 worst-affected states, in 2005-06. Part of the initiative involved interacting with religious leaders across all communities. “We wanted to sensitise them on why they should not conduct such marriages,” she says.
Children who were forcibly married off at a very young age participated in some of the workshops. Vibhina from Kerala pointed out that despite Kerala having achieved an almost 100% literacy rate, child marriage was rampant among the state’s tribal and fishing communities.
Child marriage also has an impact on the boy. Fifteen-year-old Naresh from Mewat in Haryana described how his poverty-stricken father insisted on marrying him off at the age of 13, along with his two older brothers. “He wanted one marriage function for all of us. My wife stays with me and is only 10 years old. I study in Class 9 and I continue to lead the life of a bachelor.”
Another young boy from Rajasthan spoke about how he was excommunicated from his community because he refused to comply with his parents’ wishes and subject himself to marrying a child bride.
Child marriage not only affects the physical health of the bride, but also her mental and emotional well-being. Anjali Sakuja, deputy director, MAMTA, described how most young child brides are traumatised by the experience. “They are not allowed to move around and lack all forms of social support. They are not able to use condoms, contraceptives or follow any form of family planning. Premature birth is a common syndrome amongst most young mothers,” says Sakuja. She adds: “Small mothers give birth to small children.”
Toiba Sultana from Assam pointed out that child marriage is prevalent in the Muslim community as well. And it is not being questioned by the shariat or personal law.
Activists and victims of child marriage believe the government needs to provide alternative economic support and livelihood options for children who want to opt out of this abusive environment, more so the girl-child. More and more children believe they must be given the freedom to decide whom they want to marry, and at what age. The majority want to marry when they are earning adults and not be forced into marriage at 10 and 11.
Describing her experiences at a workshop, Geeta, an 18-year-old from Nuh in Haryana, said: “I was married off at the age of 13 to a man who was much older than me. I have three children from my marriage. My husband was an alcoholic and my family and I survived because I learnt to do a little tailoring. Unable to take his abuse, I insisted on getting a divorce. Initially my parents did not support my decision, but when the village sarpanch made them understand they agreed.” Today Geeta has done well for herself and works in a nursing home. She insists that she will not get her children married before they are at least 18 years old.
InfoChange News & Features, February 2007
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