Early Marriages and Consequences

Abstract:

Under 18 age marriages are early marrriages also it is called “child marriages.

There are many reasons for these marriages in order to occur. One of These reasons is about societies’ socio-cultural structure. Another reason is about families’ socio-economic situations. The level of education and gender is important, too. If the people who have not completed their development physically and psychologically marriage with someone else, there will be some negative sides for societies and kids. For instance, the rate of mother-children death increases. In order to prevent this occasion, there are some some suggests .

KEY WORDS: children rights, early marriages, traditional families, socio- economic issues,education, gender based inequality..

Introduction:

To the documentaries which are all over the World, under- 18 age- marriages are early marrriages. The most of marriages that children’s psychological and physical development hasn’t completed don’t include their desire. That is why , these marriages named “early marriages”.

The amount of child marriages is not known exactly. In the countries which are getting developed , every year 10-12 million girls get married in very early ages. To adapt these datas to our country, Turkey, every one woman in every three women make a child marriage.

The important point of early marriages is child marriages. Due to child marrriages, all over the world ,the amount of child bride is more common than child groom. There are many reasons of girls’ marriages in the world.

Early Marriages’ Reasons

Socio-Economic Reasons

Every steps in our lives are about societies and economics. This situation’s devastating effect is about women. The economic problems in the family causes the increase in the number of child brides even their husbands are very old. These marriages also have commercial purposes such as “ba?l?k paras?”. Plan Association’ Resports mentioned that a direct relation between the socio-economic levels of countries and the incidence of child brides is demonstrated. Early marriages’ rate in European countries which includes Turkey is %10 , these rates have reached almost %70 in Africa and Asia. According to some families’ view point, girls are like a family burden. That is why the parents choose early marriages to get rid of their daughter. At the same time , these parents get Money becuse of giving their daughter. But early marriages are not always because of families. Some of the young girls can marry with someoneelse at very early ages with their consents because of the bad conditions.

Socio-Cultural Requirements-Traditions-Religious Beliefs

In some societies, it is a tradition to marry girls at an early age. For instance , East and Southeast Anatolia in Turkey are the region which have the most common rates about child marriages.

With these marriages, mutual bride exchange are made. Another idea is that child marriages prevents to divide the heritages . these marriages are illegal acts. That is why these marriages do not exist in records. Due to the Traditionalist families , girls belongs to their husbands. With this opinion

Early marriages are not a problem for parents. Patriarchal and traditional society structure normalized early marriages.

Social Gender Inequality

Depending on the traditions and customs of the societies where someone lives ,women has a passive role in marriages because they are fond of their houses.

Illiteracy

Early marriages are high in families with low levels of education.

families in this style, Education for girls is not necessary.

The majority of girls who do not attend school are married.

The other girls who go to school have to dropp the school because of the coming their weddings.

Natural Disasters And Wars

After disasters , there is no way to stay alive. That is why some women choose the early marriages to live .

Early Marriages’ Consequences

Reproductive Health / Mother-children Death

Child marriages affect girls most. Most of girls who do child marriages probably have a big health problem. Child marriages lead to early and frequent pregnancies. Girls get pregnant before they complete their biological development when they are a child. With these pregnancies , some complications occur in their bodies or their babies’ bodies. In pregnancies at a young age, the risk of losing their lives during birth is two to five times higher than women in their twenties. In many regions of the world, especially in Saharan Africa, where HIV is the most prevalent region, the proportion of HIV-bearing individuals among girls and women in the 15-24 age group is much higher than in men of the same age group. In some regions, this ratio reaches to twice as much in men and in some regions to 8 times.

Illiteracy

The families which have a low level of education are tend to get married at very early ages. Traditional families do not give a chance to get educated for their daughters.

families do not send their daughters to school, even if they send them for a while, they get them back from schools for their coming marriages.

Isolation In Society

Marriages of these children who cannot comprehend their place in society cause some problems in their social identities which have not yet fully formed .

Detection And Suggests

• The countries which have child marriages should be investigated. There should be a key in order to fix this problem. As well as there precautions should be taken to decrease the amount of child marriages.
• This regulation about early marriages must be removed from some cultures that are normalized by the societies.
• Economic levels of families should be increased to reduce the number of children brides.
• Education should be encouraged
• Against these marriages, there should be built some institution.
• These illegal marriages must be punished with law.
• People should be informed about family planning because of health problems.

Bibliography

United Nations Children's Fund Early marriage: a harmful traditional practice. New York: The Fund; 2005

Mathur S, Greene M, Malhotra A. Too Young to Wed: The Lives, Rights and Health of Young Married Girls. Washington, DC: International Center for Research on Women; 2003. pp. 1–15.

Bruce J, Clark S. Including Married Adolescents in Adolescent Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS Policy. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2003.

Plan UK (2011). Breaking Vows: Early and Forced Marriage and Girls’ Education UNICEF, “ Early Marriage , Child Spouses “, March 2001, p.11"

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