Forced Marriage - A Tragedy in Muslim Communities

Forced marriage describes a marriage that takes place without the free or valid consent of one or both of the partners and involves either physical or emotional duress. Early, or child, marriage also is related to forced marriage as minors are deemed incapable of giving informed consent. Although the difference may be indistinct, an arranged marriage differs from a forced marriage since both parties consent to the union and assistance from third parties to identify a spouse. Forced marriage mainly affects women and girls, but there are instances where men and boys are forced into marriage, especially if there are concerns about their sexual orientation.

The practice of forced marriage constitutes serious human rights abuse. It violates the principle of freedom and deprives its victims of their basic civil rights. The requirement for the free and informed consent of both parties to a marriage is recognized in numerous legal instruments at international, national and local levels. These instruments, along with all major world religions, condemn forced marriage. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also stipulates that “marriage shall be entered into only with free and full consent of the intending spouses.” But only a few countries have criminalized the practice, and even with the existing laws and opposition, forced marriage remains a tragic reality for many women around the world.

Despite numerous contentions to the contrary, forced marriage is not an Islamic tradition; it is a jahiliyya custom (pre-Islamic era), rooted in indigenous cultures, that has persisted in some Muslim communities. Islam does not sanction or advocate any form of forced marriage. In Islam, marriage is a sacred contract between two people, which must be entered into freely and with mutual consent. The religion also mandates that the woman’s consent is a prerequisite to the validity of the marital contract. As such, the egregious institution of forced marriage is not the result of adherence to Islam, but rather that of a complete departure from the religion. So, those Muslims involved in the practice of forced marriage are distinctly acting against the precepts of Islam. We read in the Qur’an:

“O you who believe, it is not lawful for you to inherit women against their will, nor should you detain them wrongfully…”  [4:19]

This directive also is conveyed in Prophetic tradition as seen in the following hadith (sayings or customs of Prophet Muhammad {peace be upon him}):

Abu Hurairah reported that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “No female whether a widow or divorcee will be forced to marry any one unless her express and categorical consent has been freely taken and in the same way a woman not previously married can never be forced to marry anyone unless her free consent and permission is taken.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari]

To appreciate the Islamic stance one has to understand a fundamental aspect of Islamic ideology and law, which is the right of free will and consent, and the negation of compulsion and coercion within the human life. This principle is of such great importance in Islam that even acceptance of the faith is declared a matter of free will and choice. The Qur’an states:

“There is no compulsion in religion, the right path and wrong path, both have been clearly explained and explicitly differentiated from each other.” [2:256]

Another related ethnic custom, wrongly attributed to Islam, is that of denying a woman the right to choose her life partner. Islam does not allow for parents, or anyone else, to enforce their will or choice on a woman as she is the real party to the marital contract. This is affirmed in commandments by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in several hadiths, which prescribed the foundational principles of formulating a marriage contract. Below are two such examples.

Ibn Abbas reported that a girl came to the Prophet, and she reported that her father had forced her to marry without her consent. The Messenger of Allah gave her the choice between accepting the marriage or invalidating it. [Ahmad] 

Another version of the above report states that the girl said: “Actually, I accept this marriage, but I wanted to let women know that parents have no right to force a husband on them." [Ibn-Majah]

It is reported;  that Khansa Bint e Hizam Al Ansariyah went to the Prophet (peace be upon him) to report to him that she had been forced into a marriage by her father. After listening to her, the Prophet (peace be upon him) rejected the marriage and declared it invalid. [Sahih Al-Bukhari]

The practice of forced marriage is not solely a “Muslim issue,” but rather an endemic problem that crosses all religious, ethnic, social and economic boundaries. It is most common in South and East Asia, Africa and the Middle East, and persists in certain areas of Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union. In some of these regions, forced marriage is known to involve human trafficking, bride kidnapping, and the sale or trading of women into servile marriages, in exchange for a bride price or a dowry. In some cases, the marital contract is completed when the child is at a very young age. Furthermore, victims of forced marriage not only include the able-bodied, but also the disabled or otherwise infirmed.

There are a myriad of reasons for forced marriage. In Muslim communities, misguided religious teachings and perverted interpretations of Islam lead families to believe that they are complying with Islamic ruling. Other factors may include the notion of protecting children; upholding cultural traditions; preserving family honor; gaining economic security and social status; and building stronger families. Forced marriage also is used to prevent “unsuitable” relationships outside the religious or ethnic group; sponsor residency and citizenship (usually for a Western Country); ward off promiscuous behavior; and prevent gay, lesbian or transgender sexual orientation.

Read more at:

 http://www.muslimahcompass.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=427&Itemid=7

Forced marriage is criminal, but criminalising it is not the best solution

For Muslims and non-Muslims alike, there is much confusion between arranged marriages - where two families, with the agreement of the bride- and groom-to-be, agree on a partnership - and forced marriages, where one side is forced into a marriage against their will.

The issue has hit the headlines in the UK, where Home Secretary Theresa May is due to outline how forced marriage will become a criminal offencein England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A similar law was introduced in Scotland in November, giving courts there the power to issue protection orders to those at risk: if breached, offenders could face two years in prison.

Consider the numbers: An estimated 8,000 young people were forced into marriages in the UK in 2009. The proportion of young men who are forced may be small (some say 15 per cent, against 85 per cent women), but they are also victims of this crime. Stories of women forced into marriage are more harrowing (with a five-year-old girl thought to have become a victim of forced marriage) but a Muslim imam, Ajmal Masroor, has recently revealed his own personal story of suffering such a marriage 20 years ago and the effects it had upon him and his family. These women and men often suffer in silence; many are powerless to stand up against the cultural pressure and the emotional blackmail of their parents, families and tribes.

Since 2008, courts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have been able to issue civil orders, under the Forced Marriage Act, to prevent forced marriages in order to protect victims. But the government is planning to criminalise forced marriages. Is this the best solution?

Read more at: http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/06/2012622112715670229.html

Moroccan teenager's suicide after she was forced to marry her rapist

Amina Filali, 16, drank rat poison last week in order to kill herself because she had been made to marry the man who raped her when she was 15 years old.

Activists have set up a Facebook group called "We are all Amina Filali", with almost 1,000 members. A petition was started which already contains more than 1,000 signatures, and hundreds of tweets detail people's horror at the tragedy.

Nabil Belkabir, an activist, implored people on Twitter to "Join the group 'We are all Amina Filali' if you don't want this drama to happen again."

According to the president of Morocco's Democratic League for Women's Rights, Fouzia Assouli, Miss Filali's rapist married her to avoid receiving a sentence for rape.

In Morocco this is punishable by five to ten years in prison, but the sentence rises to between ten and twenty years if the victim is a minor.

Read more at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/morocco/9146082/Moroccan-teenagers-suicide-after-she-was-forced-to-marry-her-rapist.html

Two-year-old at risk of becoming a victim of forced marriage

A two-year-old has been identified as a potential victim of forced marriage, according to the Foreign Office.

The child, believed to be the youngest ever victim at risk of forced marriage in the UK, was among 250 children helped by a governmental specialist unit last year.

The Forced Marriage Unit, a joint initiative of the Foreign Office and Home Office, is able to intervene where there is a belief that a child under 18 could be a victim.

Carla Thomas, head of the unit, said that cases with very young victims involved the promise of future marriage.

The unit gave advice or support in 1,485 cases last year, according to its latest statistics, which showed that 16 to 25-year-olds were most at risk of being forced into marriage. The oldest victim was 71.

The unit can report cases involving children under 18 to social services, which has a responsibility to safeguard the child. Civil courts also have the power to issue forced marriage protection orders to stop weddings taking place.

The 1,485 cases known to the unit last year involved 60 different countries – 47% involved Pakistan, 11% Bangladesh and 8% India. More than 80% of the victims were female.

Outside Britain the unit's work often involves embassy staff trying to rescue victims who may have been held captive and forced into getting married.

The unit also said there were 114 cases involving people with disabilities, and 22 involving those who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.

Jeremy Browne, the Home Office minister, said the figures showed an alarming number of victims whom it was vital to protect: "Forced marriage is a devastating form of abuse that is absolutely unacceptable in our society."

David Cameron has pledged to make forced marriage a criminal offence in England and Wales. Ministers hope legislation will be brought forward in 2013 or 2014.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/05/two-year-old-forced-marriage-risk

13, and a bride: Mariama’s story

In Dosso, Niger 13-year-old Mariama has just discovered that she will be married in a few days’ time. Mariama’s mother was worried that her daughter would have a child out of wedlock and then no one would marry her so she accepted 100,00 CFA (200 USD) as a dowry from a local market trader in his mid-20s.

“I’ve been sad since I found I was getting married”, Mariama tells Plan, “I can’t eat. At night I can’t sleep because that’s all I think about. I don’t even go outside anymore because I feel everyone is looking at me, as a new bride.”

Mariama’s mother explains: ”In our Touareg tradition, we don’t tell girls that they are to be married. They just find out the day it happens (…)  I got married when I was 10 years old. And when they took me to the man, my husband, I thought he was my father (…) I really regret what is happening, but you have to understand me. I am a widow – my husband is dead. Even if I didn’t have anyone to feed, at night Im always thinking ‘What am I going to eat tomorrow?’”

Source: http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/girls-voices/13-and-a-bride-mariamas-story/

The HIV/AIDS Pandemic among Youth in Sub-Saharan Africa

HIV/AIDS seriously affects adolescents throughout the world. One-third of all currently infected individuals are youth, ages 15 to 24, and half of allnew infections occur in youth the same age. More than five young people acquire HIV infection every minute; over 7,000, each day; and more than 2.6 million each year.

About 1.7 million new adolescent HIV infections—over half of the world's total—occur in sub-Saharan Africa. In fact, nearly 70 percent of people living with HIV/AIDS live in sub-Saharan Africa, and over 80 percent of AIDS deaths have occurred there. Although HIV/AIDS rates vary considerably throughout sub-Saharan Africa—generally lower in western Africa and higher in southern Africa—the epidemic has had a devastating effect on most African youth who often lack access to sexual health information and services. In particular, unmarried youth have great difficulty getting needed sexual health services. At the same time, cultural, social, and economic norms and pressures often put young African women at excess risk for HIV infection.

Leaders of some African nations, once unable to acknowledge the presence of HIV/AIDS, now publicly address HIV prevention and appoint task forces to mobilize and coordinate efforts against the epidemic. In addition, business coalitions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) often lead in utilizing peer education, advocacy, youth-friendly service delivery, and social marketing to battle HIV infection in sub-Saharan African nations. Some NGOs encourage youth to get involved in finding and implementing ways to stop the spread of HIV.

African Youth Face Fast Growing Rates of Infection with HIV and Other STDs.

• Experts estimate that half a million African youth, ages 15 to 24, will die from AIDS by the year 2005. In African countries with long, severe epidemics, half of all infected people acquire HIV before their 25th birthday and die by the time they turn 35.
• The epidemic means that African youth face a bleak future. In 1997 in Zimbabwe, half of all 15-year-old males could expect to die before age 50 compared to 15 percent in 1983. Between 1983 and 1997, 15-year-old females' risk of death prior to age 40 quadrupled from 11 to over 40 percent.
• Infection with a sexually transmitted disease (STD), especially one that causes genital ulcers, such as herpes or syphilis, puts one at increased risk for HIV infection, and sexually active youth in sub-Saharan Africa are at high risk for STD infection. For example, 10 to 20 percent of the sexually active population of sub-Saharan Africa is infected with gonorrhea.

Learn more at: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/431?task=view

Trading a 13-year-old daughter for a new wife. Rangina, Afghanistan

Rangina’s mother died when she was 12. In 2003, at the age of 13 she was forcibly married in abadaal (exchange) marriage as her father wanted to acquire a new wife. According to Rangina, the man that she was forced to marry had mental health problems.
“I was my father’s only daughter, so when my mother died and he wanted a new wife he gave me away in exchange. The man he gave me to was mentally ill. I did not want to marry him, but I had no choice. My father did not listen, and my mother was dead. My father thought only about his new marriage, not about me, his daughter.”

Rangina says that her in-laws verbally and physically abused her:
“All the family members were beating me, and calling me names. I was so miserable. My husband couldn’t speak properly, so I didn’t understand what he was saying. My mother-in-law would always say to me, “You are worthless—see how little your father cared about you—he married you to my son, and he is like this, he is mentally ill.”

My father thought only about his new marriage, not about me, his daughter.

RANGINA

After one year, Rangina ran away. Despite coming from a remote and highly conservative area of eastern Afghanistan, she managed to journey to the capital, a perilous trip for a young woman to make alone. She made contact with the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, who arranged for her to stay in a shelter. Her husband’s family found out, and came to Kabul to demand her return. She told us,
“They came and asked for me to come back. I said no, they kept coming. I always say no. I don’t want to go back. I can’t go back. They want to kill me.”

An official who wishes to remain anonymous told Human Rights Watch that the family discovered the location of the shelter and made threats against her and her staff. The family enlisted the support of various powerful regional political figures to pressure the government to return Rangina to them. A delegation of elders from her province, with the backing of various senators and members of parliament, called on the Ministry of Women’s Affairs to return her. The Ministry of Interior also supported their efforts, despite the illegality of her marriage under Afghan law.

The case was even debated in parliament, where a majority of MPs who spoke did so in favor of Rangina being returned to her husband’s family. Some MPs also called for the Ministry of Women’s Affairs to be closed because it was encouraging girls to run away from home. The director of the shelter says that the debate became very personalized:
“In parliament they named me, they said I was hiding her, and that I wasn’t Muslim, I was Western, I was working for foreigners, for foreign ideas. They got 500 signatures against shelters, against me, against the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, and took it to the president.”

The lobbying attempts of the husband’s family culminated in a meeting that included representatives from the Office of the President, the Ministry of Interior, the Supreme Court, parliamentary representatives, and the Ministry of Women’s Affairs.

President Karzai became directly involved. Instead of ensuring protection for Rangina and enforcement of Afghanistan’s marriage law, he urged Rangina to trust her husband’s family when they promised they would not harm her. Rangina refused and said:
“I told Karzai that if he was so confident then he could send his wife or daughter to my village instead of me.”

The cousin of Rangina’s husband, Haji Munowar Khan, led the campaign to have her returned. He told a BBC reporter that Rangina would not be returned to her husband against her will, and she could instead be given to one of his brothers:
“We don’t want our woman to be in Kabul, we can’t allow her to have another husband. We’re not foreigners–we’re not Russians–we’re not unbelievers, we’re Muslims, and we are Pashtuns, and for Pashtuns three things matter–our religion, our women, and our country. To defend these three things we will give up our lives. We’ve promised we won’t do anything to her, and if she comes back to our village we’ll promise again, we won’t harm her at all.”

Rangina has now been living in a shelter for five years. Her attempts to gain a legal separation from her husband, which began in 2007, have so far been unsuccessful. Rangina’s husband has repeatedly failed to appear in court, which under the civil code can be grounds for granting a woman a separation. However, there has still been no resolution.

In August 2007, the Supreme Court accepted a request to have the case heard by the Family Court in Kabul on the grounds that her life could be endangered if she traveled to her home province. However, the Family Court demanded witnesses to prove that she suffered abuse and that her husband was mentally ill. Nobody from her home province agreed to testify on her behalf, because of fear of retribution from the husband’s family in the region. No witness protection program exists. Rangina said:
“I don’t like the courts or the judges. Whenever I go there they say, “Why did you run away? Why did you do this, why you do that?” And now they ask for evidence even though they know I cannot give it to them. It is too dangerous.”

According to a human rights worker connected to the case, the Family Court wants to delay a decision and wait for a presidential intervention:
“The judges are supportive, but they are too afraid to take responsibility because they have no security. There will be danger for the judge if she takes a decision.”

The head of the Family Court is Qazi Rahima Razayee. She denied that she is afraid to act. Instead, she said that the problem was that nobody wants to testify on Rangina’s behalf:
“Nobody wants to come to support her. They are saying that her husband is a good man, and he gave her clothes, food, medicine. They say she’s a bad lady to leave her home, she’s not a good lady.”

When asked why the court could not provide a separation on the grounds that the marriage had been illegal in the first place, since Rangina was underage and forced to marry, the judge said:
“She was 13 when she married this person. This was against our law. But if she didn’t want to marry her husband then she should have come to us at that time and made her objections. Instead she stayed with him for two years and she was happy with that, and only when she’s 15 does she come to us and complain, so then we can’t do anything.”

Faced with pressure from the president, hostility from powerful MPs, and extralegal arguments by the head of the Family Court, women and girls in situations such as Rangina have little reason to trust the state or government to protect them.

http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/girls-voices/trading-a-13-year-old-daughter-for-a-new-wife/