By Raphael Mweninguwe
The recent passing of the constitutional amendment bill that allows Malawian girls to be married at the age of 16 has attracted much criticism from rights campaigners. This law allows children under the age of 18 who cannot even obtain a driving license to legally marry.
Of those opposing the bill are the Minister of Health, Professor Moses Chirambo and his deputy Theresa Mwale, who are both MPs and who were present in the National Assembly when the bill was passed. They said they did not agree that the marriage age should be 16.
Chirambo warned that setting the marriage age at 16 is in opposition to the fight against maternal mortality, which according to health experts is common among teenage mothers.
Undule Mwakasungura, the Executive Director of the Center for Human Rights and Rehabilitation, said that the bill is not in the interest of the female child. He urged the Malawian MPs to issue laws that are more in line with international protocols.
Many parents regard their children at 16 years of age as "too young to be married."
"At 16 we consider that person as a minor. He/she is not old enough to manage a marriage," said Judith Chabwera, a mother of three who runs a small scale business in the capital city Lilongwe.
She told IslamOnline.net (IOL) that she believes the MPs should consider pushing the marriage age to 19 or 20 at the least.
"I have seen many young women dying during labor in rural areas," said Lilongwe. This high maternal mortality rate in teenage mothers is due to conditions such as bleeding during child birth and other problems such as the development of fistulae.
A Leading Cause of Death
According to a statement issued by MacBain Mkandawire, the Executive Director of YouthNet and Counselling (Yoneco), "Premature pregnancy carries significant health risks and pregnancy related deaths are the leading cause of death for girls aged 15-19."
In many parts of Malawi, hospitals are too far away for the residents and many deliveries are managed by birth attendants who are not equipped to handle complications.In many Malawian families, children are being encouraged by their parents to drop out of school and get married as school in the view of these parents is "a waste of time."
"I dropped out of school when I was 13 and two years later I got married to a man who was 20. My parents never bothered about the legality of the whole thing," said Lilian Banda, a 25-year old mother of two.
Banda told IOL that many women in Malawi are poor and live in rural areas where culture and traditions are greatly valued.
"In towns and cities this age limit of 16 is bound to work but not in the villages where many children have nothing to do apart from thinking about sex," she said.
A former Lecturer at the University of Malawi, who is now a government MP but who declined to have his name used, described the marriage age of 16 as "unfortunate." He argued that the MPs should have raised the age to 21 as below this age girls "are still immature."
Patricia Kaliati, the Minister of Gender, Child and Community Development said she agrees with the new Bill. According to Kaliati, many children in Malawi lose their virginity before reaching that age and she argued there was nothing to worry about. Early marriage is very common in Africa especially in rural areas due to poverty.
Early Marriage Not a Priority
And it exists outside Africa too. A story was published in April of this year revealed how Najood Ali, an 8-year old girl, was married off by her family to 30-year old Faez Ali Thamer. After running away from her husband's home to seek a judge who would help her divorce, Ali finally received a divorce by court order.
According to the Yemen Times, Yemen's Parliament "does not consider early marriage as a priority and is not moving forward with legislation to prevent it."
Despite the fact that the man was placed into custody, there is no law in Yemen that bars men from marrying young girls.
According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), countries with high rates of child marriages are those with high poverty and high birth and death rates. In Ethiopia and other parts of West Africa, some girls get married as young as 7. The UN estimates that 42% of children in Africa marry before turning 18.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) says that early marriage affects the education of these children since many of them drop out of school. According to UNICEF, "They are unfamiliar with basic reproductive health issues such as the risk of HIV/AIDS." They also warn that girls aged 15-19 are twice as likely to die of conditions associated with pregnancy or childbirth than women aged 20 and older.
Do you believe it should be the parents' right to decide when to allow their children to get married or do you think there is a need for laws against marriage below a certain age? If so what age should that be?
Sources:
"Malawi: Child marriage law condemned" Child Right's Information Network. 12 Aug. 2009. Accessed 8 Sept. 2009.
Raphael Mweninguwe is a Malawian science journalist. He can be reached by sending an e-mail to HealthAndScienceATiolteamDOTcom.
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