In Kenya, there are communities which have child marriages as part of their customs, and some of those communities still practice this today. This is a clear violation of children's rights, however it seems as though they are unaware.
Children are vulnerable members of our society because they do not really have a say in what happens to their own life. Children are abused, misused and neglected; some are forced to marry adults which is a further violation of their rights.
I can't even imagine getting married right now at the age of 21, what more if I was still a child! This shows how different morals and values are in other countries. If a parent in America tried to tell their kid to get married at a young age, they would not get away with it due to the criticisms of the public. However, in Africa people accept this because it is part of tradition.
I agree with your point. However, it sounds to be a cultural legacy and these communities continue to practice what they learned from their ancestors. This practice is probably normal among their happy communities and would not even think of the points you make of the article.
ReplyDeleteI think it's so sad that this actually happens. The thought that comes to mind is that what we, in America, consider unjust for these children, may be a means for survival. It's hard to swallow the thought of an 11 year old being legitimately married to someone who's 45, but the tradition for the cultures are just not understand by most modern societies. Still, it's quite disturbing in my eyes.
ReplyDeleteAs I recall, many of these countries in Africa actually do have laws against child marriage, but they are often ignored by the tribes. These tribes have deep traditions in arranged marriages and marrying their daughters off young. I definatly think its wrong but it seems like its pretty hard to enforce in these remote villages.
ReplyDeleteyes many of the countries do have laws against marriage and children. i did a past article about something similar to this, an 11 year old was forced to get married to a priest only becasue she was still a virgin. its crazy how people do not have a say in something like this.
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