child marriage
Child marriage was an epidemic within the pandemic in Bangladesh
The period covered by the pandemic has witnessed another epidemic, child marriage, returning to some areas of Bangladesh as educational institutes were closed to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Poor families in the country's hinterland, who once were convinced to send their children to school by the school meals program eased the burden on them to feed.
However, the covid-19 is contained or not during this period, the education of the girl students has been stopped due to child marriage.
Especially in Kurigram, the rate of child marriage is increasing rapidly, cannot be contained in any way. The girl students of this area are now living in their husband's houses at an early age.
Read: Child marriage rates soar in Cox's Bazar in the shadow of pandemic
More than 500 schoolgirls belonging to 43 educational institutions of Fulbari Upazila were married off during this pandemic, confirmed Upazila Secondary Education Officer Md Abdul Hai.
The highest number of child marriages were reported of students in the Borovita Girls' High School and Borovita High School in Borovita union of the upazila.
Around 87 girls in Borovita Girls' High School and 55 girls including three SSC examinees in Borovita High School have been the victim of child marriage, said the headmasters of the schools.
Read Initiative launched to end child marriage in Bangladesh
Md Matiur Rahman Khandaker, the headmaster of Borovita Girls' High School said, "Based on preliminary information, we have received data of marriages of 87 students of 6th to 10th grade and SSC candidates."
Of course, it was not possible to go to every house and get information about the marriage. In many cases, the news has been confirmed by classmates and neighbours.
"However, the actual number may increase further," said the headmaster.
Read Patuakhali child marriage: case filed against UP chairman and five others
He also said the Upazila Secondary Education Officer has been informed through a detailed letter containing names and other information.
Child marriage rates soar in Cox's Bazar in the shadow of pandemic
A recent study on the impact of COVID-19 on child marriage in Cox’s Bazar district has uncovered rates of child marriage soared throughout the district since March 2021, with the highest increase of 82% in Eidgaon Upazila and the second highest increase of 75% in Ukhiya Upazila.
The study was carried out by the COAST foundation in 32 Union Parishads and 3 municipalities throughout nine Upazilas in the district. COAST foundation conducted the study from 4 August to 26 September 2021 covering all Upazila of Cox's Bazar.
The study findings were presented from a virtual press conference on Saturday. Moderated by Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, Executive Director of COAST Foundation, the findings were presented by Jahangir Alam, Assistant Director of COAST.
In his keynote, Jahangir Alam noted that the trend not only increased in each upazila under the district , but also the high rates of increase. Apart from Eidgaon and Ukhiya, we had Ramu at 72%, Teknaf 66%, Moheskhali 61%, Kutubdia 54%, and Cox’s Bazar Sadar 51%. Only in Chokoria (32%) and Pekua (26%) do they fall below 50%.
Read: Child marriage rate still over 80% in Bhola
In another presentation on the multidimensional impact of child marriage, Md. Mujibul Haque Munir, Joint Director of the same organization, said due to such high rates of child marriage, the birth rate in Bangladesh is highest in South Asia. Child marriage eats up 9% of women's income and 1% of national income. Eliminating child marriage by 2030 could save 11% of our educational budget, he said.
School Closure: 50,000 students may have dropped out in Kurigram
As students across the country are back to classrooms after one of the world's longest Covid closure, many of them missed their peers with officials concerned in Kurigram fearing that at least 50,000 kids may have dropped out due to early marriage and poverty in the district.
Teachers and concerned officials gave this observation to UNB as school reopened on Sunday after nearly 18 months amid a festive atmosphere and calls for maintaining Covid health guidelines.
District Secondary Education Officer Shamsul Alam said, “We inspected 5 schools in Kurigram Sadar on Sunday. Around 13 % of students have dropped out from these institutions during school closure. As many as 63 girls were victims of child marriage.”
Read: Reopening: Flooding robs of Kurigram students’ enthusiasm
According to “our assumptions, the total number of school dropouts in the district would be around 50,000,” he said adding “We have directed the concerned individuals to present an exact figure as soon as possible.”
After a reality check at the schools in different upazilas of the district including Ulipur and Kurigram, the UNB correspondent reported that the number of absentees was 20-25 % on average in all the institutions.
The correspondent added that most of the students dropped out due to economic reasons and a significant amount due to early marriage.
Read No tiffin, masks at a premium, & may close again: Students return to school tomorrow
HC seeks explanation over punishing children under child marriage restraint act
The High Court on Thursday asked mobile court judge Assistant Commissioner (land) Rajia Sultana to submit an explanation why two children were punished under Child Marriage Restraint Act in Atpara upajila of Netrakona district.
The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order to submit the explanation by August 26 to the Attorney General’s office and a copy of it to the High Court through the district magistrate.
Meanwhile, the court expressed displeasure over mobile courts passing orders from court chambers stressing the examples of punishing a farmer for killing sparrows in the Barguna and Netrakona incident.
The court said, for the last few months news media are publishing report of magistrates passing mobile court orders long after the incident sitting in court rooms or police stations.
The court said this is not how mobile courts should conduct rather the court has to pass the order being present at the spot according to regulations.
Read: HC seeks govt decision on Covid jabs to pregnant women
During the hearing, the court suggested the attorney general to talk with the secretary of cabinet division for training up the magistrates.
Attorney General AM Amin Uddin agreeing with the court said soon the cabinet division secretary will be contacted about the matter.
On August 1, the marriage of two 15-year olds, who were involved in a romantic relationship, was held by their families in the Duoj union of the Atpara upazila in Netrakona.
Informed of it, executive Magistrate AC land Rajia Sultana brought the two children to her office and sent them to Gazipur Child Development Centre for one month as punishment.
On August 4, Supreme Court lawyer Md Shihir Monir brought the matter to justice M Enayetur Rahim’s attention by sending a letter through e-mail and asked to release the two children.
Read: HC seeks list of money launderers
Soon after getting the letter the High Court ordered the release of the children.
Meanwhile the district magistrate released the two children after settling the case and asked for an explanation from the executive magistrate Rajia Sultana.
Following which the High Court held a hearing on Thursday where advocate Md Shishir Monir stood for the petitioner and advocate SM Rezaul Karim presented the Bangladesh Legal Aids Services Trust (BLAST).
Meanwhile Attorney General AM Amin Uddin, Deputy Attorney General Samarendra Nath Biswas and Bipul Bagmar presented the state side.
Initiative launched to end child marriage in Bangladesh
A new campaign has been launched to encourage people to condemn child marriage in Bangladesh that has thrived in the shadow of the pandemic.
The initiative -- 'Actions to Prevent Child Marriage in Bangladesh' -- is also designed to support every girl’s dream to achieve their aspirations and will help advance the objectives of Bangladesh’s 10-year National Plan of Action to End Child Marriage (2018-2030).
Read: Patuakhali child marriage: case filed against UP chairman and five others
The campaign, supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), will seek to collect one million pledges from adolescents, parents, community leaders, policy makers, business leaders and civil society representatives to prevent child marriage.
This will remind people that everyone has a responsibility to protect girls from early marriage, create a safe and healthy environment for girls and boys in their communities to help them reach their full potential in life, which in turn, would benefit the society, said the US Embassy in Dhaka.
“Child marriage is a human rights violation. We all must take charge to end a complex issue like child marriage that requires efforts along many fronts," said Xerses Sidhwa, Director of the Office of Population, Health, Nutrition, and Education of USAID.
USAID will continue to work to protect young Bangladeshis from this harmful practice, and work alongside the government of Bangladesh and other partners to eliminate child marriage, which undermines efforts to promote sustainable development, said Sidhwa.
Speaking at the launching event, Women and Children Affairs Secretary Md Sayedul Islam said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is committed to eliminate child marriage from Bangladesh by 2041.
"The government, development partners, non-government organisations, the private sector and relevant stakeholders must all work together to make it a reality.”
Read: Child marriage rate still over 80% in Bhola
He thanked USAID for initiating this timely campaign to help reduce child marriage that has thrived in the shadow of the pandemic.
Amir Hossain, Director of Information, Education, Motivation unit of the Directorate General of Family Planning, officials from the US Embassy in Bangladesh, and representatives of other national and international organisations also attended the event.
Bangladesh has made notable progress in curbing child marriage, with several studies showing a decline in the same.
Proportion of girls who married before the age of 16 declined from 46 percent to 32 percent between 2007-2017, while those who married before age 18 (the legal age) fell from 66 percent to 59 percent, according to the studies.
However, Bangladesh is witnessing a sharp rise in child marriages during the Covid-19 pandemic, driven by multiple factors including reduced income, especially in lower-income families, and school closures, said the US Embassy.
Read:13,886 child marriages in 7 months during Covid-19 outbreak: MJF
USAID’s Ujjiban Social Behaviour Change Communication project, implemented by Johns Hopkins University, is leading the public awareness campaign highlighting the health risks of early pregnancy and the high returns of investing in girls’ education.
The campaign will also help generate awareness about the current law in Bangladesh that prohibits child marriage, instruct people how to use existing mechanisms to report incidents in their community, and help victims.
Patuakhali child marriage: case filed against UP chairman and five others
A case was filed against Kanakdia union UP chairman Shahin Hawlader and five others at Patuakhali Senior Judicial Magistrate Court on Monday for forcefully marrying an underaged girl during arbitration.
The case was filed by the elder brother of the girl’s boyfriend, Al Imran Shakil.
Read: Child marriage rate still over 80% in Bhola
The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) was directed to investigate and submit a report within the next 30 days by the Patuakhali court.
After the case was filed, the concerned ministry suspended the UP chairman for abusing his power, said Lawyer Md. Al Amin.
Read:Child marriage bid foiled in Sirajganj
On Friday UP chairman Shahin forcefully married the girl while her family called for an arbitration over the girl eloping with her boyfriend.
After the incident her boyfriend tried to commit suicide and was admitted to a local hospital.
The High Court on Sunday asked the district registrar, DC and police superintendent of Patuakhali to investigate the allegation of forcefully marrying a 9th grade girl during arbitration.
Father's bid to marry off minor foiled in Thakurgaon
Officials of the local administration have foiled a bid to marry off a minor girl in Thakurgaon's Ranishankail upazila.
The family had fixed the marriage of the Class IX student in Bhangbari on Friday, officials said.
After being alerted by local people, a team from the local administration, led by Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sohel Sultan Julker Nain Kabir, reached the house of the girl and stopped the marriage ceremony.
Later, a mobile court fined the girl's father Tk 5,000 for violating the government’s Covid directive by arranging the marriage.
Child marriage in Bangladesh
Between April and October last year, at least 13,886 children were married off in 21 districts when Bangladesh was grappling with coronavirus in its initial stage, according to a survey.
An average of 1.7 child marriages took place a day during this period.
Also read: 13,886 child marriages in 7 months during Covid-19 outbreak: MJF
Of the child brides, 5,089 said they had experienced unexpected pregnancy, according to the survey conducted by Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF).
They findings were unveiled at a webinar titled 'Rapid Analysis of Child Marriage situation: Coronavirus period 2020' in association with UNFPA, UNICEF and Plan International.
Of the child brides, 50.6 percent were aged between 16 and 17 years at the time of their marriage. Another 47.7 percent were between 13 and15 years old.
A UNICEF report released in October last year noted that despite significant progress in recent years, Bangladesh has the highest prevalence of child marriage in South Asia and ranks among 10 countries in the world with the highest levels.
It called for accelerated action to end child marriages in Bangladesh by 2030.
The report, 'Ending Child Marriage: A Profile of Progress in Bangladesh', said the country will need to put in more efforts to bring change to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target to end child marriage by 2030, and the national target to end the practice by 2041.
Also read: 10 million additional girls at risk of child marriage: Unicef
Progress must be at least eight times faster than the rate of the past decade to meet the national target, and 17 times faster to meet the SDG target, it said.
While the prevalence of child marriage in Bangladesh has dropped from over 90 percent in 1970, it remains very high: 51 percent women who are currently aged 20-24 were married off while they were still children.
As a result, the country is home to 38 million child brides who got married before their 18th birthday, including 13 million who were forced to tie the knot before the age of 15.
Child marriage rate still over 80% in Bhola
Although the overall rate of child marriage has dropped in the country, the number in the Bhola district is still alarming.
The national child marriage rate for children under the age of 15 is 15.5% but it is 19% in Bhola.
Also, the national rate of marriage of children under 18 is 51.4%, but it is 80.3% in the district.
COAST Foundation Joint Director Iqbal Uddin Saturday came up with the findings at the webinar "Causes, Impact and Ways to Prevent Child Marriage."
Also read: 13,886 child marriages in 7 months during Covid-19 outbreak: MJF
The COAST study notes that "insecurity" among parents is one of the major causes of child marriage as 41.7% of those surveyed identified insecurity as the main cause of child marriage.
Other factors included protection of family honour (41%), lack of awareness (44.9%), and poverty (50.9%). The study found that 67.3% of girls get married after passing eighth grade.
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Women and Children Affairs Ministry Chairman Meher Afroz Chumki said despite many initiatives of the government, there is still a problem of attitude towards girls in society.
Also read: 10 million additional girls at risk of child marriage: Unicef
Shireen Huq, member of Naripookho, said: "Not only punishment but also cultural change and social movement are needed to prevent child marriage. Integrated sex education can play an important role in preventing child marriage."
Manusher Jono Foundation (MJF) Executive Director Shaheen Anam said, "To prevent child marriage and its negative impact, it is crucial to bring the girls back, who have dropped out, to school."
Also read: Bangladesh has the highest prevalence of child marriage in S Asia: UNICEF
SM Latif said a study found that 33% of parents find child marriage acceptable. "This situation must change. The primary reasons for child marriage vary widely in different areas. So solving the problem will require division-based programs."
Child marriage: Man jailed for 15 days in Chapainawabganj
A man has been jailed for 15 days in Chapainawabganj for marrying off his underage daughter.
13,886 child marriages in 7 months during Covid-19 outbreak: MJF
Between April and October last year, at least 13,886 children were married off in 21 districts when Bangladesh was grappling with Coronavirus in its initial stage, according to a survey.