Daily Times

One might be utterly appalled, their blood running cold, on realising that forced child marriage is a norm within our vile and dark uneducated community. According to a UNICEF report in 2013, around 21 per cent of the girls in Pakistan were married before the age of consent, which is 18 years, and with the years passing by, this percentage has skyrocketed. What is more farcical is the desultory policy-making when it came to creating a proper law involving child marriages.

This languid approach of the government towards controlling child marriages from ever happening was surfing over the waves of the flawed “Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929.” Until now, this fallacious law is in effect, which legally prohibited child marriage on paper, but to a very minute extent in reality. Under the Act, the minimum age for marriage is 18 years for a male and 16 years for a female.

However, under a new bill passed in the Pakistani Senate, the minimum age of marriage for females was increased to 18 years. Contravention is made punishable with a fine of Rs 1000 and imprisonment of only one a month.

The shallow punishment of a mere one month of imprisonment and the meagre fine of Rs 1000 speaks for the incompetence of our current and previous governments when it comes to policymaking on such aspects. The governments of then and now do know when to go on international tours, how to hurl javelins and arrows of accusations against political rivals and then go on about asking for votes, but fail to build up a policy for such social issues. What is more ludicrous is the fact that this act was set up by the Quaid–Mohammad Ali Jinnah–himself around 70 years ago. It has not been changed a bit ever since. This is the level of professionalism and humanity of our current politicians. How can these incompetent politicians flaunt while carrying the fire passed down by the Quaid? How can they even say they walk in the shadow of the Quaid? The policies that they make pale in comparison to what Jinnah did for us.

According to religious-political groups, increasing the age of marital consent is considered “unlawful in the light of Islam.”

This issue also faces the religious zealots asserting their political dominance in many impoverished areas over Pakistan. Thus, they have a political presence when it comes to opposing such crucial social issues on a whim. According to these religious-political groups, increasing the age of consent is considered “unlawful in the light of Islam,” and, therefore, increasing the age is unjust and wrong. It is the shallow thinking of our religious leaders, which has descended Pakistan back into the medieval times–an era of social ignorance. This is evident from the fact, when in 2019, a bill introduced by Pakistani senator, Sherry Rehman, was passed in the Pakistani Senate to increase the minimum age of marriage for a female to 18. The bill was aimed at ending child marriage in Pakistan. The bill was passed with an overwhelming majority.

However, Pakistani religious-political parties, like Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), opposed the bill. The parties claimed that the bill was against Islam. However, Senator Rehman said that Muslim countries like Oman, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates had already set 18 as the minimum age of marriage. This tells how our religious leaders are looking for nothing but being under the limelight by showing their ignorance and lack of social knowledge. Over the decades, it has been typical of the religious groups and factions to somehow affirm their ascendency no matter what the cost. To go against all odds, to have their say in the government, no matter how absurd their cause, is just par for the course for them. Religious intervention in many political policies has been with us since the dawn of Pakistan. From opposing constitutions to going against a bill that prevents child marriage, is expected from our pseudo-religious leaders.

The trend of child marriages has been a major cause of girls’ illiteracy or lower level of education. It can also damage the girls’ physical, mental and social health; leading to serious health issues in the future. Prenatal, neonatal and maternal health problems are also tied to women married before the age of 18. It is also evident child marriages are widely prevalent among cultivators and labourers. Dependency on elders and the lack of independent occupational aspirations or mobilities further hampers the efforts of limiting child marriages. As a result, child marriages, particularly in the rural areas of Pakistan, continue to take place. There are, however, spatial trends. Big farmers seem to be gradually doing away with child marriages. It remains more concentrated among the landless farmers and labourers. Exposure to urban areas has helped in reduction of child marriage. Finally, the realisation of bad effects of child marriages has had a positive relationship with a reduction in child marriage, thereby, indicating a positive role of general understanding and awareness, which is spreading quite fast.

The possibility of mismatches of marriages is high. Child wives fall ill and even die often, which explains one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country. Infants born to the child mothers are most of the times feeble. The marital lives remain unhappy and child wives lack happiness due to their life-time inability to support their lot. Many a time, young wives become vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases. The occurrence results in increasing the population growth rate of Pakistan at alarming rates. It is, therefore, requested that the government takes actions for the extermination of forced child marriage in Pakistan.

The writer is a journalist and social media influencer based in Islamabad