![]() ![]() Current SituationĮvery year, millions of children are married against their will or without really understanding the consequences of what they are consenting to. Indeed, the experience of giving birth may prove fatal not simply for the infant but for the mother as well. Many of them give birth prematurely to infants whose chances of survival will be lower than normal. Often they are raped on their wedding night and become victims of sexual violence at the hands of their husband.įurthermore, they are completely unprepared, both physically and mentally, to undergo pregnancy and childbirth. Such marriages have a harmful effect on the health of these young girls, both physically and psychologically. Deprived of their childhood, they become wives and mothers, yet have neither the maturity nor the discernment necessary to accept and understand what marriage involves and entails. ![]() In developing countries, such marriages play a role in the preservation of culture and strengthen the ties between important families.Ĭhild marriages constitute a violation of children’s rights-in particular the rights of girls. ![]() A dowry, for example, will help support the family and shelter their child from financial problems. In economically disadvantaged regions, poor families see child marriage as a way to improve their lot in life. While they are still very young, sometimes at birth, their family chooses the husband to whom they will be married as soon as they reach puberty and can bear children. Young girls are most often the ones affected by this practice. This is what is known as a forced marriage.įorced marriages constitute a human rights violation because such a practice violates the basic principle of what marriage is (a joining together in wedlock of two freely consenting individuals) and impedes a person’s physical liberty and as well as his or her ability to decide for him- or herself what his future will be.įorced marriages involving an individual under the age of 18 are most commonly called child marriages. Consequently, it often happens that a young man or a young woman will be married without his or her consent. In certain countries, it is customary for families to choose who the husband or wife of their offspring will be. Suffice it to say that such marriages are harmful to the health of the children involved. Child marriage The Practice of Arranged and/or Forced Marriage Involving ChildrenĮven today many children throughout the world are the victims of forced and arranged marriages. ![]()
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