Child marriages are a common occurrence in Tanzania, a nation located in East Africa. According to Human Rights Watch, young girls between the ages of 7 and 16 are frequently coerced into marrying older men. In return for their daughters’ marriages, families receive dowries consisting of multiple cows. These early marriages pose significant risks to the lives of these girls, exposing them to verbal and physical abuse, marital rape, and female genital mutilation. Prior to their marriages, many girls are compelled to undergo genital mutilation as well. Those who refuse to marry often face verbal abuse from their parents and harsh punishments.
These young girls are denied their right to education, which ultimately leads them into a life of poverty. If a girl who is married attends school and becomes pregnant, she is constantly subjected to pregnancy tests and prohibited from attending classes. This is seen as inappropriate and sets a negative example for others. Once a girl tests positive for pregnancy, she is expelled from school and expected to stay at home. This situation becomes even more problematic as these girls face significant risks to their reproductive health due to their extremely young ages. Many of them have shared that they have been abandoned by their husbands, leaving them without any financial support to care for their children. As young girls, they are deprived of opportunities and burdened with the responsibility of raising a child on their own.
The girls aspired to gain knowledge, yet their impoverished families did not prioritize education due to their dire circumstances. Instead, their families sought to arrange marriages for their daughters, hoping to benefit from the dowry and improve their own lives. These young girls lacked familial support and legal protection, as Tanzania’s draft constitution did not establish a minimum age for girls to marry. Although the Marriage Act of 1971 set the minimum age for girls at 15 and boys at 18, with parental consent, girls as young as 14 were granted court permission to marry. Unfortunately, authorities failed to enforce this law, resulting in the forced marriage of even younger girls.
An example of this is Anita, who became a victim of child marriage when her family forced her to marry at the age of 16, while she was still in high school. According to Anita, her father couldn’t afford to support her education, and she later discovered that he had already received 20 cows as dowry for her. What makes this situation even more distressing is that many girls view marriage as a means to escape exploitation in their workplaces. For instance, Judith, who worked as a domestic worker, got married at the age of 14 to escape mistreatment from her employer. In order to address this issue, the Tanzanian government plans to enforce the Marriage Act by setting the minimum age for marriage at 18 for both genders and implementing strict measures to prevent child marriage. According to UNICEF, Tanzania has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world.
Child marriages deprive young children of their innocence and childhood, thrusting them into a challenging adulthood. Instead of enjoying their time playing with friends and toys, they are burdened with concerns far beyond their years, such as avoiding marriage, preventing abuse from their spouses, and avoiding expulsion from school due to unplanned pregnancies, which are not their fault. When these girls are married off to older men, they are exposed to grave health risks, including marital rape, torture, and HIV/AIDS, as their prospective spouses may already be infected due to prior sexual relationships. Consequently, these young girls feel rejected and cut off from the world of education and opportunities. This is a clear injustice to children, as every child deserves a carefree childhood and access to education for their growth and development.
Reference List:
2.http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Are-child-marriages-hard-to-end-/1840374-2070482-1og99r/index.html
Copyright © 2018 Lucky Begum All Rights Reserved.
Hello. impressive job. I did not anticipate this.
A compelling site that you have, we thank you for sharing it with some of us.
Thank you for reading. Please feel free to share this link.