A 13-year-old girl from Char Kharua village in Lalmonirhat, a northern Bangladesh district, came to attend the Bangladesh Girl Summit 2014 in the capital yesterday, where she recounted her bitter experience of being forced to marry.
Sharing her story during a session of life story telling at the event, she said she was forced to sign a paper by Abdur Rahim, a 35-year-old man.
“He threatened to harm my family if I refused,” she said.
Later, she learnt that it was a marriage contract, and after a month she was freed from the marriage with the help a local journalist and police.
“I want to continue my education and become a lawyer, so that I can help people and also prevent child marriage,” she said while addressing the event.
“Child marriage is still a big challenge for our country, as different statistics indicate. Most importantly, child marriage is one of the barriers against women empowerment,” said Meher Afroz Chumki, state minister for women and children affairs, while addressing the summit as chief guest.
According to data on child marriage collected by Brac, Bangladesh has the highest rate of child marriage in South Asia at 65% and ranks fourth in the world for the prevalence of the practice.
“Here, we all know about the ill effects of child marriage, but the message has yet to reach everyone in the country,” she said.
The state minister also said the draft of Child Marriage Restraint Act 2014 was soon to be finalised.
“As per the new law, adult persons, both male or female, who will marry a minor boy or girl, the persons who will register child marriage, the parents or guardians who will force their children or fail to prevent child marriage, and the officials who will issue false certificates will be brought to justice,” she said.
Any kinds of affidavits to prove the age would not be acceptable for marriage registration, she added.
“The act will not only ensure punishment, but will help us take all necessary steps to prevent child marriage,” she said.
Lynne Featherstone, MP, UK parliamentary under secretary of state for international development and special guest at the event, said: “Many people affected by child, early and forced marriage, by domestic violence, sexual violence and other forms of violence, stay silent about what is happening to them out of fear or shame.”
To the victims of such violence, she said: “You do not deserve this, you are not to blame, and you have nothing to be ashamed of.”
She further said: “Actions must speak louder than words. Our commitments to eliminate child marriage and all forms of violence must become a reality, in Bangladesh, in the UK and in all other countries.
“The future is not fixed. Together, if we raise our voices loud enough, we can build a better world for girls and a better world for everyone.” she said.
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder and chairperson of Brac, said: “Many female children drop out of secondary and higher secondary education due to child marriage. In many countries, people still believe that women are burden on their families. We need to come out of such mindsets.”
The day-long event, organised by the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Brac and the UKAID, was also adressed by Hasina Newaaz, senior vice-president of Bangladesh Women Chambers of Commerce and Industries, Milee Biswas, deputy inspector general of Bangladesh Police, Golam Sarwar, editor of the Daily Samakal, and Ayesha Khanam, president of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad, all of whom declared their pledge against child marriage in the country.