Child marriage in Pakistan

According to a recent report, 24 per cent of girls married under the age of 18 worldwide last year were from rural Pakistan, whereas 18 per cent were from the country’s urban areas. The issue of child marriage raises several health concerns for young girls, some of which include pregnancy complications, health risks for babies born to young mothers and the risk of death. The report said that girls pregnant under the age of 15 have a five times greater chance of dying compared with girls pregnant in their 20s. Early marriage can also thwart personal development and growth as a child constantly undergoes physical, mental and emotional changes before reaching adulthood. In Pakistan, young girls are sometimes married off to older men, which poses the risk that the girls might become conditioned to acting submissive towards their older male counterparts. This can also stunt their personality development.

One obvious thing that girls married young miss out on is education. At a seminar recently held on the issue, it was reported that girls married young have more chances of remaining poor than those who marry later. Moreover, girls should first be equipped with at least basic education so that they have something to rely on should a spouse end the marriage or pass away.

While the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 says that the police cannot intervene directly in underage marriage, implying that Sharia law is to be consulted, the government needs to intervene. Child marriage should be prohibited and the legal age of marriage should be raised from 16 to 18. Pakistan is signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Children which defines child marriage below the age of 18; yet, the country allows marriages at age 16. The civil society also needs to work towards eradicating certain false assumptions in our culture, such as that religion sanctions child marriage. This seminar is a step in the positive direction but we hope that our lawmakers also take notice and amend child marriage laws.

Link:  http://tribune.com.pk/story/488062/child-marriage-in-pakistan/

Why Is It So Hard to Combat Child Marriage?

Across the developing world, ten million girls are married off each year before the age of eighteen, usually against their will. One in seven of those girls is younger than fifteen. In some places this problem is well known; in India, the efforts of both international and domestic rights groups have started conversations and enabled laws that try to curb this longstanding disturbing practice. But elsewhere, the tradition of child marriage holds firm. The challenges faced by a female child bride are profound: the dwindling of opportunities for education, the loss of any hope for economic independence, the threat of infant mortality—the total narrowing of the girl’s life. And while child marriage is technically illegal in much of the world, laws in many jursidictions are rarely enforced. Years go by and more girls are added to the ranks of those who forfeit their futures to live the life of a child bride.

The Ford Foundation released an interactive world map on child marriage this week that collates and threads together the research of dozens of NGOs across the world. Their project aims to make it easier for both people at home to better grasp the global challenge that child marriage presents and for disparate advocacy groups to see themselves as part of a larger movement. Although the final and long-lasting efforts must be made by national governments themselves, the Ford Foundation feels there is also a place for international groups to provide ties and support. “We believe very strongly that if you’re looking at long term change, there is absolutely a role for outside partners who may bring in certain expertise…[and] help connect groups to resources,” says Margaret Hempel, the director of the organization’s Sexuality, and Reproductive Health and Rights program, “but in the end the lasting solutions will come from the people who are most directly effected.”

Read more: http://world.time.com/2012/06/28/why-is-it-so-hard-to-combat-child-marriage/

Vani: Minors married to settle dispute

Two-year-old Tooba and 10-year-old sister Kausar are paying the price of a family dispute.

When Muhammad Ramazan kidnapped a girl named Sakina Bibi in Yarak Village, DI Khan, a few weeks ago, a family feud erupted between the Ramazan and Naimatullah families, said a Yarak police official. Sakina is Naimatullah’s sister.

A five-member meeting (panchayat) was held in the village to resolve the dispute between the two families. It was decided that Ramazan’s daughters Tooba and Kausar will be married to eight-year-old Samiullah and 12-year-old Matiullah, respectively. Both boys are Naimatullah’s sons.

 Yarak police SHO Syed Marjan has lodged an FIR in a vani case against Ramazan and others members of the village, said the police official, adding that Ramazan has been arrested while the search for others continues.

Muallana Latifullah, who performed the nikah of the minors, managed to escape but the police are searching for him.

Link:  http://tribune.com.pk/story/519252/vani-minors-married-to-settle-dispute/

Under ‘vani’: Minor girl married off to 50-year-old

A 10-year-old girl was forcibly married off to a 50-year-old man Malahanwala, Hafizabad under the ‘vani’ custom to compensate for her father’s second marriage in district.

Muhammad Akram, the girl’s father, had abducted a woman named Munawaran Bibi, whom he later married out of love, reported the police. Muawaran was Akram’s second wife.

Following this, the village ‘panchayat’ (court) decided to give Akram’s daughter’s hand in marriage to Munawaran’s middle-aged brother Falak Sher.

The FIR filed by the girl’s uncle reveals that Falak Sher had barged into Akram’s house along with seven other men, including a prayer-leader from a local mosque, and performed a forced nuptial ritual in the presence of Akram’s first wife.

Mukhtar Hussain, an Investigation Officer in the case informed that the young girl had escaped from Falak Sher’s custody and returned to her parents’ home. The process of raids continues to ensure the immediate arrest of the all the accused nominated in the FIR.

The FIR, registered with Police Station Jalalpur Bhattiaan on Saturday, nominates nine persons including Falak Sher, the prayer leader and seven members of the ‘panchayat.’ The area’s people said that the local administration and police had remained tight lipped and reluctant to take any action against the accused. However, police officials claimed that they had registered a case against the accused without any delay when approached by complainants.

Link:  http://tribune.com.pk/story/563888/under-vani-minor-girl-married-off-to-50-year-old/

Father’s Day, a celebration to appreciate fatherhood

Father’s Day is a celebration honouring fathers and appreciating fatherhood, paternal bonds, and their influence in society. The day is observed in Pakistan on 16th of every June to pay tribute to overwhelming role of fathers in their families.

On the day, Rutgers WPF has launched a yearlong campaign titled “Greening Pakistan-Promoting Responsible Fatherhood” has been launched across Pakistan to promote active fatherhood and responsibility for the care and upbringing of children. This campaign will be implemented across Pakistan with the help of local implementing partners.

The campaign is focused on transforming rigid perception of our society where men are generally expected to be only providers and breadwinners while women and girls are generally expected to give care for children and be chiefly responsible for reproductive aspects of family life.

Due to these set patterns, fathers are usually more responsive to children but less expressive in showing emotions towards his children which is affecting the overall development of family and are the main reasons behind increasing trend of various social issues.

This initiative has been carried out for the promotion of responsive and care giving fathers for prevention of child marriages and domestic violence to create an enabling environment where women and children can access their basic human rights.

Responsible and supportive fathers are the focal point of this campaign and will be engaged to advocate for providing a non-violent environment to children at home to transform their behaviour towards strengthening gender equality and empowering women.

Most importantly, this campaign will effectively contribute to strengthen the advocacy efforts for required legislative reforms on domestic violence and child marriages.

For the campaign, local CSOs and community leaders will be sensitised on the concept of responsible fatherhood through varied awareness raising activities.

Media campaigns including radio messages and television talk shows are the most important feature to sensitise different stakeholders on the targeted issues at all levels.

For more effective results, there is also need of civil society organizations working on the same thematic area to join hands for this initiative. The campaign will be concluded on next father’s day in 2014. 

Link:  http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=209985

Celebrating Father’s Day: Honouring Pakistan’s courageous fathers

Despite living in a patriarchal society, there are many fathers in Pakistan who struggle to improve their children’s livelihoods. They take stands against taboos and face stiff resistance from within and outside family circles but their hardships almost always go unnoticed.

Every year on June 16, Father’s Day is observed to honour these men and pay tribute to their courage in addition to promoting responsible fatherhood.

Ghulam Sarwar, 51, a father of three — two daughters and one son — belongs to a small village near Gujrat. He left school after completing seventh grade and married a deaf and dumb woman who passed away in 2009.

“Initially, I was reluctant to send my daughters to school, but decided that they needed education to be able to stand on their own feet. The rewards are there for all to see — both of them graduated and are now working at reputable organisations,” said Sarwar.

He recalled the period when his wife was taken ill and he had to take on more responsibility at home.

“I did laundry, dishwashing, cooking, cleaning, babysitting and took care of my wife who was hospitalised at the time,” he said.

He said that his brothers and close relatives had left him because of his decision to send his daughters to university. “I did not lose my determination despite facing opposition from my family after my wife’s death,” he said.

Similarly, for the family of 49-year-old Akbar Ali, from Mardan, sending girls to school is considered a sin. Ali is a daily wage labourer who lives in Islamabad and has three daughters and one son.

“I was living a comfortable life at my village. None of my family members had ever been to school and the majority of children had become victims of early child marriages,” he said.

Ali said it was very painful to see the village girls’ future being destroyed by marrying them off at an age where they didn’t even know what marriage meant.

This is what prompted him to migrate to Islamabad in the hope of making a fresh start for his family.

All of his children are now in school and Ali remains hopeful that they will one day become model citizens.

“Though I belong to a conservative society, I believe that no country can progress without educating its female population,” he said.

Meanwhile, in an effort to promote responsible fatherhood, Rutgers World Population Foundation (Rutgers WPF) on the eve of Father’s Day officially launched a yearlong campaign titled “Greening Pakistan-Promoting Responsible Fatherhood” across the country.

“Fathers play an essential role in strengthening family ties and nurturing their children,” said Rutgers WPF Country Representative for Pakistan Qadeer Baig.

Link:  http://tribune.com.pk/story/563764/celebrating-fathers-day-honouring-pakistans-courageous-fathers/

Maternal and child health: Achieving MDGs a distant dream for Pakistan

Despite a significant decrease in the maternal and under-five mortality rate in the country from 1990 to 2011, achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2015 seems like a distant dream.

This was revealed in an annual report, Accountability for Maternal, Newborn and Child Survival- The 2013 Update, launched at Women Deliver – the third global conference on women’s rights, concluded recently in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Launched by Countdown to 2015, a global movement of academies, governments and international agencies, the report also highlight countries’ achievements in increasing coverage of key interventions and identifies remaining challenges many countries face in reaching all women and children life-saving services such as undernutrition, equity as core component of all health strategies and levels of fertility and the unmet need for family planning.

The MDG targets calculated by Countdown to 2015 which Pakistan should aim for is to reduce maternal mortality rate to 123 deaths per 100,000 live births and under-five mortality ratio to 41 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2015. According to the report, the demand for family planning is 54%, antenatal care is 28%, postnatal care is 39% and for exclusive breastfeeding practices is 37%. Around 32% children below five years of age are underweight and 44% are stunted.

The under-five mortality rate in 1990 was 122 deaths per 1,000 live births which declined to 72 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2011. The average annual rate of reduction of under-five mortality rate remained 2.5 %, while it was 3.0 % for the maternal mortality rate from 1990 to 2010.

Recommendations

To reduce maternal mortality the report recommends Pakistan continue efforts to increase coverage of high-quality services including family planning, antenatal and postnatal care, skilled delivery and emergency obstetric care.

To reduce under-five mortality rate, there is a need for huge investment in health services for pregnant women and the newborn baby, including the prevention of preterm births and stillbirths and scale-up of effective low-cost interventions, it stated.

Movements to integrate nutrition initiatives into national reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health programmes must continue to be prioritised in all these countries.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Rutgers World Population Fund Country Representative for Pakistan Qadeer Baig said the slow progress in achieving MDGs 4 and 5 was due to the inefficiency of the health system and extremely low investment in maternal and child health.

“Lets see how the new government will tackle this issue and how a new framework would be developed to replace MDGs after 2015,” he said. Pathfinder International Director Programmes Dr Haris Ahmed added that funding allocation was inconsistent with the national requirement of MDGs.

Source:  http://tribune.com.pk/story/561069/maternal-and-child-health-achieving-mdgs-a-distant-dream-for-pakistan/