Child Brides the Focus of UN Dialogue

Child Brides the Focus of UN Dialogue

UNITED NATIONS – For some little girls, the wedding day is a long anticipated happy ending, preceded by years of daydreaming. By the time the day arrives, she has already imagined her dress, her flowers, her bridesmaid’s gowns, the music and the meal, not to mention the man of her dreams at the end of the aisle waiting to love and cherish her eternally.

And then there are little girls like Salima, from the Gambia, who risked it all to escape her fate as the third wife of a man decades her senior. There is more to her tale, but the memories overwhelm her as she recounts her story for the large crowd gathered in the ECOSOC chamber of the United Nations for a dialogue on early marriage. Her voice falters as she tells of arriving in the United States, alone and knowing no one, trading an undesirable future for a courageous leap into the unknown.

Salima is one of millions of young girls in the developing world, some as young as seven, being pushed into arranged marriages by forces both social and economic. At this gathering here on February 18^th, an expert panel of women all too familiar with the scenario offered their insights.

Fulya Vekiloglu, Co-chair of the NGO Committee on UNICEF, The Working Group on Girls and Representative to the United Nations for the Bahá'í­ International Community, welcomed Moderator Ann Scholz of the NGO Committee on UNICEF, Working Group on Girls; and panelists Sunita Rathore, Tutor and Mentor, Veerni Project; Maria Hinojosa, Senior Correspondent, NOW on PBS; Connie Taracena Secaira, Minister Counselor, Permanent Mission of Guatemala; and Caroline Bacquet-Walsh, UNICEF, Gender Equality and Social Change, Child Protection.

“Early marriage is a violation of the human rights of girls,” said Caroline Bacquet-Walsh of UNICEF, denying them their childhood and their right to determine their own lives. “We need to work to open up new possibilities for them.”

According to UNICEF, more than 60 million women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18. More than 31 million live in South Asia. In Bangladesh and some western African countries, more than 60% of women were wed in childhood. UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls reports research that indicates one in seven girls in the developing world will marry before they reach their 15^th birthday. It is estimated that 100 million more girls will be forced to marry within the next decade.

Maria Hinojosa, senior correspondent of NOW on PBS, presented a clip of the award-winning NOW documentary, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives”, featuring three personal stories from India, Niger, and Guatemala, which examined the reasons for this practice, its consequences, and the efforts to put an end to it.

The panel agreed that high rates of poverty, low levels of education, and cultural traditions such as the offering of a dowry, contribute to the custom. Lack of educational and occupational opportunity limits the alternatives for girls, the group affirmed, and lack of role models blinds them to dreams of an independent future.

According to current research, the consequences of early marriage can be fatal. Not only are young girls married off to much older men who are not of their choosing, and not only does it limit their freedom of movement and ability to acquire marketable skills, but it also subjects them to an increased vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other diseases and puts them at greater risk for maternal and infant mortality. Child brides are most likely to drop out of school, get pregnant before they are physically prepared for it, and to experience domestic abuse.

What can be done? “The answer’s not rocket science,” said Ann Scholz. “It’s about education, advocacy, legislation… It’s a complex problem but we know what we need to do.”

Efforts such as PRODESCA in Guatemala and the Veerni Project in Jodhpur, India, both of which were represented at the event, encourage the empowerment of women and the raising of awareness about the issue. They promote education and try to enable girls better ways to visualize their lives.

“In terms of the global financial crisis, girls receive little attention although this could be a matter of life and death,” said Connie Taracena Secaira of the Permanent Mission of Guatemala, another panelist.

Many felt that public attention to the matter could make a real impact. “The opportunity for each individual present today to advance girls’ rights exists each time we review a policy, program, document, and when we study data on violence and discrimination,” said Fulya Vekiloglu, co-chair of the NGO Committee on UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls. The issue of child brides, she said, is one more aspect of the larger problem of what one participant called “the commodification of girls” and the invisibility of their challenges.

The rights of the girl child is of particular concern to the Bahá'í­ International Community. Bahá'í­s have long been active in efforts to address the needs of girls so that they will be able to develop their capacities and be empowered to participate fully in the affairs of the world—including education and economic endeavors—and contribute fully to the advancement of civilization.

The event was co-sponsored by UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls and the Permanent Mission of Guatemala to the United Nations. The entire film, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives,” can be viewed at: http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/341/index.htmlz .

“Early marriage is a violation of the human rights of girls,” said Caroline Bacquet-Walsh of UNICEF, denying them their childhood and their right to determine their own lives. “We need to work to open up new possibilities for them.”

According to UNICEF, more than 60 million women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18. More than 31 million live in South Asia. In Bangladesh and some western African countries, more than 60% of women were wed in childhood. UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls reports research that indicates one in seven girls in the developing world will marry before they reach their 15^th birthday. It is estimated that 100 million more girls will be forced to marry within the next decade.

Maria Hinojosa, senior correspondent of NOW on PBS, presented a clip of the award-winning NOW documentary, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives”, featuring three personal stories from India, Niger, and Guatemala, which examined the reasons for this practice, its consequences, and the efforts to put an end to it.

The panel agreed that high rates of poverty, low levels of education, and cultural traditions such as the offering of a dowry, contribute to the custom. Lack of educational and occupational opportunity limits the alternatives for girls, the group affirmed, and lack of role models blinds them to dreams of an independent future.

According to current research, the consequences of early marriage can be fatal. Not only are young girls married off to much older men who are not of their choosing, and not only does it limit their freedom of movement and ability to acquire marketable skills, but it also subjects them to an increased vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other diseases and puts them at greater risk for maternal and infant mortality. Child brides are most likely to drop out of school, get pregnant before they are physically prepared for it, and to experience domestic abuse.

What can be done? “The answer’s not rocket science,” said Ann Scholz. “It’s about education, advocacy, legislation… It’s a complex problem but we know what we need to do.”

Efforts such as PRODESCA in Guatemala and the Veerni Project in Jodhpur, India, both of which were represented at the event, encourage the empowerment of women and the raising of awareness about the issue. They promote education and try to enable girls better ways to visualize their lives.

“In terms of the global financial crisis, girls receive little attention although this could be a matter of life and death,” said Connie Taracena Secaira of the Permanent Mission of Guatemala, another panelist.

Many felt that public attention to the matter could make a real impact. “The opportunity for each individual present today to advance girls’ rights exists each time we review a policy, program, document, and when we study data on violence and discrimination,” said Fulya Vekiloglu, co-chair of the NGO Committee on UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls. The issue of child brides, she said, is one more aspect of the larger problem of what one participant called “the commodification of girls” and the invisibility of their challenges.

The rights of the girl child is of particular concern to the Bahá'í­ International Community. Bahá'í­s have long been active in efforts to address the needs of girls so that they will be able to develop their capacities and be empowered to participate fully in the affairs of the world—including education and economic endeavors—and contribute fully to the advancement of civilization.

The event was co-sponsored by UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls and the Permanent Mission of Guatemala to the United Nations. The entire film, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives,” can be viewed at: http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/341/index.htmlz .

“Early marriage is a violation of the human rights of girls,” said Caroline Bacquet-Walsh of UNICEF, denying them their childhood and their right to determine their own lives. “We need to work to open up new possibilities for them.”

According to UNICEF, more than 60 million women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18. More than 31 million live in South Asia. In Bangladesh and some western African countries, more than 60% of women were wed in childhood. UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls reports research that indicates one in seven girls in the developing world will marry before they reach their 15^th birthday. It is estimated that 100 million more girls will be forced to marry within the next decade.

Maria Hinojosa, senior correspondent of NOW on PBS, presented a clip of the award-winning NOW documentary, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives”, featuring three personal stories from India, Niger, and Guatemala, which examined the reasons for this practice, its consequences, and the efforts to put an end to it.

The panel agreed that high rates of poverty, low levels of education, and cultural traditions such as the offering of a dowry, contribute to the custom. Lack of educational and occupational opportunity limits the alternatives for girls, the group affirmed, and lack of role models blinds them to dreams of an independent future.

According to current research, the consequences of early marriage can be fatal. Not only are young girls married off to much older men who are not of their choosing, and not only does it limit their freedom of movement and ability to acquire marketable skills, but it also subjects them to an increased vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other diseases and puts them at greater risk for maternal and infant mortality. Child brides are most likely to drop out of school, get pregnant before they are physically prepared for it, and to experience domestic abuse.

What can be done? “The answer’s not rocket science,” said Ann Scholz. “It’s about education, advocacy, legislation… It’s a complex problem but we know what we need to do.”

Efforts such as PRODESCA in Guatemala and the Veerni Project in Jodhpur, India, both of which were represented at the event, encourage the empowerment of women and the raising of awareness about the issue. They promote education and try to enable girls better ways to visualize their lives.

“In terms of the global financial crisis, girls receive little attention although this could be a matter of life and death,” said Connie Taracena Secaira of the Permanent Mission of Guatemala, another panelist.

Many felt that public attention to the matter could make a real impact. “The opportunity for each individual present today to advance girls’ rights exists each time we review a policy, program, document, and when we study data on violence and discrimination,” said Fulya Vekiloglu, co-chair of the NGO Committee on UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls. The issue of child brides, she said, is one more aspect of the larger problem of what one participant called “the commodification of girls” and the invisibility of their challenges.

The rights of the girl child is of particular concern to the Bahá'í­ International Community. Bahá'í­s have long been active in efforts to address the needs of girls so that they will be able to develop their capacities and be empowered to participate fully in the affairs of the world—including education and economic endeavors—and contribute fully to the advancement of civilization.

The event was co-sponsored by UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls and the Permanent Mission of Guatemala to the United Nations. The entire film, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives,” can be viewed at: http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/341/index.htmlz .

“Early marriage is a violation of the human rights of girls,” said Caroline Bacquet-Walsh of UNICEF, denying them their childhood and their right to determine their own lives. “We need to work to open up new possibilities for them.”

According to UNICEF, more than 60 million women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18. More than 31 million live in South Asia. In Bangladesh and some western African countries, more than 60% of women were wed in childhood. UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls reports research that indicates one in seven girls in the developing world will marry before they reach their 15^th birthday. It is estimated that 100 million more girls will be forced to marry within the next decade.

Maria Hinojosa, senior correspondent of NOW on PBS, presented a clip of the award-winning NOW documentary, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives”, featuring three personal stories from India, Niger, and Guatemala, which examined the reasons for this practice, its consequences, and the efforts to put an end to it.

The panel agreed that high rates of poverty, low levels of education, and cultural traditions such as the offering of a dowry, contribute to the custom. Lack of educational and occupational opportunity limits the alternatives for girls, the group affirmed, and lack of role models blinds them to dreams of an independent future.

According to current research, the consequences of early marriage can be fatal. Not only are young girls married off to much older men who are not of their choosing, and not only does it limit their freedom of movement and ability to acquire marketable skills, but it also subjects them to an increased vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other diseases and puts them at greater risk for maternal and infant mortality. Child brides are most likely to drop out of school, get pregnant before they are physically prepared for it, and to experience domestic abuse.

What can be done? “The answer’s not rocket science,” said Ann Scholz. “It’s about education, advocacy, legislation… It’s a complex problem but we know what we need to do.”

Efforts such as PRODESCA in Guatemala and the Veerni Project in Jodhpur, India, both of which were represented at the event, encourage the empowerment of women and the raising of awareness about the issue. They promote education and try to enable girls better ways to visualize their lives.

“In terms of the global financial crisis, girls receive little attention although this could be a matter of life and death,” said Connie Taracena Secaira of the Permanent Mission of Guatemala, another panelist.

Many felt that public attention to the matter could make a real impact. “The opportunity for each individual present today to advance girls’ rights exists each time we review a policy, program, document, and when we study data on violence and discrimination,” said Fulya Vekiloglu, co-chair of the NGO Committee on UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls. The issue of child brides, she said, is one more aspect of the larger problem of what one participant called “the commodification of girls” and the invisibility of their challenges.

The rights of the girl child is of particular concern to the Bahá'í­ International Community. Bahá'í­s have long been active in efforts to address the needs of girls so that they will be able to develop their capacities and be empowered to participate fully in the affairs of the world—including education and economic endeavors—and contribute fully to the advancement of civilization.

The event was co-sponsored by UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls and the Permanent Mission of Guatemala to the United Nations. The entire film, “Child Brides: Stolen Lives,” can be viewed at: http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/341/index.htmlz .