HRW: Lowering Marriage Age Would Make Girls 'Even More Vulnerable'

Reports indicate the Bangladeshi Cabinet may review the law to make 16 the minimum age of marriage for girls; a move would put millions of girls at risk as Human Rights Watch senior researcher Tejshree Thapa tells DW.



Despite a three-decade-old law which bans marriage for girls under the age of 18, Bangladesh still has the second-highest rate of child marriage in the world, second only to Niger, according to the United Nations children's agency UNICEF. About 74 percent of Bangladeshi women currently aged between 20 and 49 were married or in a union before the age of 18.



International law prohibiting gender discrimination requires that the age of marriage be the same for both women and men, and evolving international standards set 18 as the minimum age.



Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina pledged to ensure a decline in child marriage. However, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the PM's Cabinet was now considering an amendment to the Child Marriage Restraint Act (CMRA), which would make it legal for girls to marry at 16 and for men at 18.



Meher Afroze Chumki, Bangladesh's junior minister for women and child affairs, said no firm decision had been made yet. "We will discuss the proposal in detail and whatever is suitable for society, we will do that based on a consensus," Chumki told Reuters.



In a DW interview Tejshree Thapa, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch says she believes PM Sheikh Hasina is mulling to keep her promise of ensuring a decline in child marriage by simply lowering the age of legal marriage, a move that raises questions about the government's sincerity, she adds.



DW: What is the Bangladeshi government's argument for seeking to lower the marriage age?



Tejshree Thapa: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina pledged to ensure a decline in child marriage, particularly given that Bangladesh has the second highest rate of child marriages worldwide. However, her solution appears to consist in lowering the age of legal marriage to 16, instead of the internationally recognized practice of 18 years of age as the minimum age for marriage.



What would this mean for millions of girls in Bangladesh?



This would mean that while the under-16s would continue to have recourse under the law, those aged between 16 and 18 would be considered legally married and therefore not "child" marriages as such. Although most child brides don't have recourse to the law due to the harsh realities of their lives, removing even that strip of protection leaves them even more vulnerable.



Further, it would allow the government to only count under-16s as children, which would essentially allow an under-accounting of the real number of child marriages taking place.



Would this violate international law?



Lowering the marital age does not mean that children are not getting married, it's simply a smoke and mirrors game where you redefine what "child marriage" means. Under international standards, anyone under the age of 18 remains a minor, a child, and therefore deserving of extra protection under the law.



How come Bangladesh still has one of the highest child marriage rates in the world despite laws clearly forbidding this?



Bangladesh's extremely high rate of child marriage is a result of factors including extreme poverty, discriminatory cultural beliefs and practices, and high rates of sexual assault and sexual harassment. But it is also the result of the government failing to enforce its own laws.



Why has the government in Dhaka so far failed to effectively tackle the issue and enforce the current legislation?



While Bangladesh banned child marriage in 1929, this law has never been actively enforced. Government officials have often not only looked the other way in cases of child marriage, but actually facilitated child marriage. For example, authorities have knowingly accepted forged birth certificates or neglected to verify ages through the birth registration database.



Is there any support mechanism in place for the victims of child marriage?



There are various national and international groups who work on this issue, but more needs to be done to highlight that most of those affected by child marriages remain beyond reach.



What do you urge the government in Dhaka to do?



Reforming the CMRA would be a good way forward if it is done in a way that reflects best practices and international law. But it is even more important that the government shows the political will to enforce the law. The proposal to lower the age of marriage raises serious questions about the government's sincerity in pledging to crack down on child marriage.



Tejshree Thapa is senior researcher at Human Rights Watch.