Child marriages an uncontrollable demon

 

 It has been an issue since independence 67 years ago. There were intermittent incidents initially but it has since blown into an uncontrollable demon.

Just like politicians parading with trophy wives in their arms, walking hand-in-hand with a child just old enough to be the granddaughter as the wife is presented as an achievement of sorts.

Although the issue is significant - Malaysia being a signatory to the United Nations Human Rights Council’s resolution to end child marriages – in Malaysia, when everything else fails, there’s always the religious card for salvation.

Efforts to debate the issue civilly and sensibly in Parliament by our lawmakers were always stalled using religious “entitlement”.

Rampant casual sex?

In 2017, when DAP was on the (opposite) right side, Kulai MP Teo Nie Ching called for an amendment to the Sexual Offences against Children Bill 2017 for child marriages to be banned.

The previous year, PAS lawmaker Nik Mazian Nik Mohamad argued in Parliament that banning child marriages may lead to rampant casual sex involving underage girls.

He said it would become a major issue because these “girls have a lust for sex” with no evidence to support his claim.

Not to be outdone, even the backbench resisted attempts for a ban on child marriages.

Noor Ehsanuddin Mohd Harun Narrashid from BN (now DAP’s new-found big brother) defended child marriages, claiming that the “sensitivity” for underage marriage should be respected.

Questioning Malaysia’s signing of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s resolution to end child marriages, he asked if the 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide are so stupid in handling the issue of underage marriages.

“MPs should be sensitive, there must be a reason we do this,” he said hitting out at opponents of child marriages.

Shocking statistics

But last week, Women, Family, and Community Development Minister Nancy Shukri reignited the debate by providing startling and staggering figures for all right-thinking Malaysians to stand up against child marriages.

The majority of underage pregnancies recorded over the past five years, she said, involved teenagers who were already legally married.

Quoting Health Ministry statistics, she said 44,263 teenage pregnancies were reported over the past five years, of which 17,646 involved teenagers who were not married when pregnant.

Nancy Shukri

According to the Syariah Judiciary Department, from 2013 to June 2019, there were 5,823 Muslim child marriages registered in Malaysia, with Sarawak having the highest number at 974, followed by Sabah with 877, and Kelantan with 848.

According to a Unicef report, 1,856 children were married in 2018, 90 percent. The number of Muslim children married vastly outnumbered non-Muslims, with 1,542 Muslim children compared to 234 non-Muslim children.

Negative consequences

In previous articles, I have maintained that culture, religion, and customs should not be used as excuses for not accepting international standards in human rights.

As lawmakers, they are expected to understand the consequences and take cognisance that child marriages lead to negative consequences.

Girls married off at a young age are often alienated and have their education interrupted. And yet, the same lawmakers thump their chests and congratulate themselves that we have the “highest level of literacy”.

Without primary education, young girls become economically dependent on their husbands, and this could trap them in an abusive marriage.

Besides, at that age, they are immature and are open to mental, physical, and sexual abuse as they are not street-wise – lacking knowledge and life experience.

Where’s the interest?

Is DAP no longer interested in pursuing the matter? Were all the previous blows it took to pursue a balanced agenda for the welfare and well-being of Malaysians a farce?

Now that it is part of the government, it owes the people a duty to continue to pursue matters of public interest without fear or favour, as it has always done.

It’s not likely when Madani leaders are trying to show that their shade of green shines brighter than that on the other side.

Our leaders are continuously expressing anger, shock and disgust at what is happening to children in Palestine and Lebanon but choose to ignore what is happening in our backyard.

Firstly, despite claiming everything is hunky-dory in Malaysia, acknowledging that some issues in our system need fixing would not be good.

Secondly and most importantly, who cares internationally when you make noise on domestic issues?

Finally, I have one question for all our lawmakers, which I hope will be answered with a clear conscience: Would you allow your 12-year-old sister, daughter, or granddaughter to marry a 60-year-old man? - Mkini

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R NADESWARAN has, over the years, campaigned for an end to child marriages, but there seems to be neither political will nor determination by our lawmakers. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.