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Plan International Policy position on child marriage and girls’ education May 2013 Purpose of this document: This internal document sets out Plan‟s public policy position on child marriage and girls‟ education. Its purpose is to inform and support Plan‟s BIAAG advocacy and campaigning, and to be a basis for policy recommendations aimed at decision-makers and other advocacy targets. It is also intended to be a basis for broader communications and messaging for the campaign. 1. Defining child marriage: Plan‟s work is based on, and guided by, international human rights principles and standards as contained in international human rights treaties. Consistent with Plan‟s history and vision, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and its General Comments are a key reference for Plan‟s work. Consistent with Plan‟s commitment to the promotion of gender equality in all its work, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is also a key reference for Plan‟s programmes, advocacy and campaigning. Plan‟s definition of child marriage: Plan defines children as anyone under the age of 18. Therefore Plan defines child marriage as any marriage – whether under civil, religious or customary law, and with or without formal registration – where either one or both spouses are children under the age of 18. While the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) does not specify the minimum age of marriage for children, the Committee on the CRC has stressed that the minimum age of marriage should be 18 for both boys and girls, with and without parental consent. Similarly, General Recommendation 21 of the expert body that monitors the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) states that marriage before the age of 18 should not be permitted since children do not have the 'full maturity and capacity to act'. The 1990 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child requires States parties to prohibit child marriage and to adopt legislation that sets the minimum age of marriage at 18. (See Annex for references to human rights standards). Plan uses the term „child marriage‟ in recognition of the fact that it is the most commonly used term to refer to the practice of children being married before the age of 18. However, Plan acknowledges that other terms, such as „early marriage‟, „child and forced marriage‟ and „early and forced marriage‟ are also often used by international agencies, governments, academics and activists. These are often used to emphasise the fact that children who are 1
FOR INTERNAL USE married – girls in particular - are usually not in a position to give their free, full and informed consent to marriage, and are often subject to marriage under pressure, coercion and even violence. 2. Causes of child marriage While boys are also subject to marriage or unions before the age of 18, the majority of those affected by child marriage are girls1. Child marriage results from complex social, cultural, political and economic drivers, which vary from context to context. Patriarchal gender roles, harmful practices, low levels of education, poverty, a lack of alternatives for girls (including socioeconomic opportunities available to women and girls outside of the home) and the impact of climate shocks and humanitarian emergencies are some of the key underlying causes of child marriage. Sometimes, parents and families see early marriage as a way of safeguarding their daughter‟s future, and of keeping girls safe and protecting them from premarital sexual activity. Conflict, disasters and emergencies increase economic and social pressures on households and, in some contexts, can lead families to resort to child marriage as a survival strategy2. In some contexts, high rates of adolescent pregnancies lead to girls marrying while they are still adolescents. 3. Consequences of child marriage Plan believes that child marriage is a violation of children‟s rights as it often has profound consequences on children‟s survival, health, education, development and well-being and is often carried out against their will and best interests. It can have particularly devastating impacts on the lives of girls. These impacts can be physical, intellectual, psychological and emotional. Girls who are married early are more likely to experience violence, abuse and forced sexual relations, are more vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections (including HIV), have reduced levels of sexual and reproductive health and lower levels of education with corresponding high rates of illiteracy3. Child marriage is often accompanied by early pregnancy, with much higher risks of maternal mortality and morbidity for girls who become pregnant at a young age4. The psychological impacts of child marriage can be significant for both boys and girls. Child marriage can mean that children are disconnected from their parents and close relatives, leaving them isolated and vulnerable, without necessary support in dealing with marriage, parenthood, domestic duties and supporting a family5. 4. Plan’s position on child marriage and girls’ education In accordance with the recommendations of the CRC and CEDAW Committees, Plan believes that 18 should be the minimum age of marriage for both boys and girls, with or without parental consent. While acknowledging children‟s evolving capacity and their right to participate in decisions which affect their lives, Plan believes that it is in the best interests of the child to establish 18 as the minimum legal age for marriage with or without parental
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Progress for Children. A Report Card on Child Protection, Number 8, September 2009, UNICEF Breaking Vows, Early and Forced Marriage and Girls’ Education, Plan UK, 2011 3 Ending child marriage. A guide for global policy action. IPPF, UNFPA, The Global Coalition on Women and AIDS, 2006 4 State of the World’s Children, Realizing the Rights of Adolescents, UNICEF, 2011 5 Stealing Innocence: Child Marriage and gender inequality in Pakistan, Åbo Akademi University, Institute for Human Rights, and Plan Finland 2
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FOR INTERNAL USE consent, in order to ensure that they are able to give their free and full consent to marry, and have the necessary maturity (physical, emotional, psychological) to enter into marriage. All children have an equal right to a quality education. Plan believes that child marriage particularly affects many girls‟ opportunity to realise their right to education. Conversely, education is a powerful tool for preventing child marriage. Enabling girls to complete a quality education is critical to delaying marriage and pregnancy. Women with more education generally marry later and have fewer children during their teenage years, particularly if they reach secondary school.6 Education, which is relevant to the needs, rights and aspirations of girls, is a critical factor in empowering girls and women to make free choices and decisions about whether, when and whom to marry. Plan believes that education is also a critical factor in enabling girls to acquire the skills, knowledge and confidence necessary to protect their sexual and reproductive health and rights, to protect themselves against unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (including HIV), to delay childbearing and to decide on whether, how many and when they have children7. Plan‟s Because I Am a Girl (BIAAG) campaign aims to ensure that all girls complete at least 9 years8 of quality9 education as a necessary foundation for them to be able to successfully complete secondary education. While the majority of those affected by child marriage are girls, Plan recognises that child marriage also affects boys, can have profound psychological consequences on them also and is no less a violation of their rights. It can have wide-ranging implications for boys as they have to deal with the pressure of being the main provider for the family and with the responsibilities of parenthood, when they are still children themselves10. Plan believes that preventing and eliminating child marriage is necessary to protect the rights of both boys and girls. Equally, Plan recognises that boys and men have a powerful role to play in ending child marriage and works with boys who have recognised the negative impact that the practice has on their friends, their families and communities, and have taken action against it.
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International Centre for Research on Women, 2011, Solutions to End Child Marriage What the Evidence Shows, http://www.icrw.org/publications/solutions-end-child-marriage 7 A girl’s right to say no to marriage. Working to end child marriage and keep girls in school, Davis A., Postles C, Rosa G., Woking, Plan International, 2013 8 The BIAAG focus on at least 9 years of quality education is based on UNESCO‟s view that the minimum duration of basic education should be nine years, and that entry into lower secondary education is an important transition in a child‟s education as its curriculum goes beyond the provision of basic literacy and numeracy skills and imparts skills and knowledge which are the foundation for further schooling. Plan considers this to the minimum necessary in order to ensure that children have the potential to complete a full course of quality secondary education . 9 Plan‟s current working definition of „quality‟ is found in Plan‟s Education Strategy 2010-2013 Children and Young People’s Right to Education, http://planinternational.org/files/global/publications/education/EducationStrategy2013.pdf 10 Stealing Innocence: Child Marriage and gender inequality in Pakistan, Åbo Akademi University, Institute for Human Rights, and Plan Finland 3
FOR INTERNAL USE In cases where parents or guardians are promoting child marriage, even if it is prohibited by the law, Plan believes that any decision to prosecute parents/guardians or to intervene in the family in other ways should be taken with great care. Prosecuting parents/guardians is often unlikely to be in the child‟s best interests. In line with the view of the Committee on the Rights of the Child – expressed in its General Comment N. 811 in relation to the implementation of the prohibition of corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment – Plan considers that any prosecution or other interventions (such as the removal of a child from its parents/guardians) should only be carried out when this is regarded as necessary to protect the child from significant harm and as being in the best interests of the child.
Measures needed to tackle child marriage Plan believes that the following measures are necessary in order to prevent and address child marriage and ensure that all children are able to realise their right to education: Legislation, policies and procedures
Where necessary, governments must amend or introduce legislation to guarantee 18 as the minimum age of marriage for both boys and girls. Legislation on the minimum age of marriage not only provides a framework for legal protection, it also provides leadership, guidance and legitimacy for policy makers and activists to tackle the financial, social and cultural drivers behind the practice of child marriage. However, Plan recognises that while legislation is a critically important starting point, by itself it is not sufficient to prevent and eliminate the prevalence of child marriage. Any legislative reform, in order to be effective, must be accompanied by a series of other measures (as outlined below), including effective monitoring and enforcement mechanisms.
Where laws or policies prevent adolescent girls from continuing to attend school due to marriage and/or pregnancy, such laws and policies must be reformed or abolished to ensure that marriage, pregnancy and motherhood do not exclude girls from continuing their education. Instead, laws and policies must ensure that girls who are married and/or become pregnant or have had children receive the necessary support to be able to return to school and complete their education.
Reporting, monitoring and enforcement measures
There must be effective local and national monitoring and enforcement mechanisms to prohibit and prevent child marriage, including by strengthening the protective environment for children through a national child protection system and accompanying community-based child protection mechanisms, which should be linked to the formal state system. This should include increased capacity of school authorities, health providers, relevant government departments, the justice system, child protection services, law enforcement agencies, civil society, families and
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Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment N. 8, The right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment (arts. 19; 28, para. 2; and 37, inter alia), CRC/C/GC/8, 2006 4
FOR INTERNAL USE communities to prevent and challenge the practice. In addition, in order to enforce the prohibition of child marriage, there must be strengthened enforcement of formal registration of all births and marriages. These are important tools to enable the relevant authorities to determine a child‟s age and identify and respond to cases of child marriage. Education, healthcare, child protection and strengthening livelihoods
Given the ongoing gender disparity in primary and secondary education in many countries, and that girls face particular difficulties in transitioning to, and completing, secondary education12, particular efforts are needed to ensure that all girls are able to attend school and receive a quality education which is relevant to their needs, rights and aspirations, including in emergency situations such as conflicts or disasters caused by natural hazards. In particular, girls must be able to complete at least 9 years of quality education, as a necessary foundation to enable them to complete their secondary education. To this end, multiple measures are needed. These include: addressing the financial barriers that keep girls out of school; making schools safe, tackling gender-based violence in schools and ensuring that teaching methods and curricula promote gender equality, respond to girls needs and develop their skills, abilities and full potential.
Efforts to eliminate child marriage and ensure that girls are able to complete their education should also include measures that address poverty and the financial incentives that drive the practice. Support interventions that increase household economic security, such as social protection programmes, can provide effective measures to help keep girls in school and reduce the prevalence of child marriage.
Effective national child protection systems and community-based child protection mechanisms are vital in helping to prevent and respond to child marriage. Effective child protection mechanisms require multiple stakeholders - the judiciary, law enforcement agencies, health professionals, welfare and education services, teachers and school staff, as well as parents and communities - to work together in a coordinated and integrated approach.
All adolescents must have access to comprehensive, age-appropriate and gendersensitive sexual and reproductive health and rights information and services. Such services – including psychosocial support as part of integrated health services for adolescents – should be accessible to adolescents and youth, and provided in youth-friendly ways which are non-judgemental, respectful and which ensure confidentiality. They should include information on, and access to, comprehensive family planning and contraceptive services, and provide boys and girls with the knowledge and ability to use contraception effectively and to negotiate in relationships, including in relation to condom use and family planning. There must be a recognition that many girls – including those who are married at a young age – do not have adequate knowledge or information about sexual and reproductive health and rights issues, and face a number of barriers to accessing the necessary services and
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Global Education Digest, Comparing Education Statistics Across the World, 2011, UNESCO Institute of Statistics. 5
FOR INTERNAL USE healthcare. Specific measures are therefore needed to ensure that both married and unmarried adolescents are supported and enabled to access vital sexual and reproductive health services and that all adolescent girls are able to protect themselves against unsafe sex and unintended pregnancy. In order to help adolescents make informed and autonomous decisions about their body and their health and to exercise a healthy and safe sexuality free from violence, coercion and discrimination, the school curricula should also include quality, comprehensive, age-appropriate education on sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Given that girls who become pregnant at a young age face much greater risk of maternal mortality and morbidity13 and that complications due to pregnancy and childbirth are among the leading causes of death for adolescent girls between the ages of 15 and 19 globally14, quality reproductive and maternal health services must be available and accessible to all adolescent girls, including emergency obstetric care and quality ante-natal and post-natal care.
There should be support services, systems and mechanisms available to boys and girls who are married as children – by providing them with options for schooling, sexual and reproductive health information and services and with livelihood skills. There must also be support for women and children who have been married against their will, are at risk of forced marriage and who experience violence and abuse in their marriage. Such systems and mechanisms must include access to legal information and services, access to the justice system, and access to healthcare and psychosocial support (eg safe houses) and child protection services.
In rapid and slow onset emergencies, adequate funding and prioritisation should be given to child protection programming which aims to prevent and respond to child marriage, where relevant, as well as other key child protection concerns. Child protection is currently the second worst funded sector in an emergency, following education15. Yet, emergency situations have a profound effect on children‟s protection. Disasters can exacerbate child protection issues, such as child marriage, and can also undermine pre-existing child protection mechanisms. Without the implementation of timely, appropriate and adequately funded child protection programmes to identify, prevent and respond to these factors, families affected by an emergency may resort to child marriage as a coping strategy.
The participation of children, staff and communities
Plan believes in the participation of children in the promotion of their rights, and that the role of children in ensuring their own protection is critical. Communitybased and national monitoring and enforcement mechanisms should also include the role and participation of children in their own and their peers‟ protection. For example, in some countries where Plan works, adolescent girls act as surveillance groups to check on their peers who face potential risks of being married by their
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State of the World’s Children, Realizing the Rights of Adolescents, UNICEF, 2011 Ibid 15 Too little, Too Late. Child Protection Funding in Emergencies, Child Protection Working Group, 2011, http://www.crin.org/docs/Too_Little_Too_Late_briefing.pdf 14
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FOR INTERNAL USE parents, as the girls discuss such issues that are affecting them with their friends and peers. In some cases they also act as pressure groups in delaying the age of marriage through negotiation with elders.
Many girls are denied the choice of whether, when and who to marry as these decisions are often made by parents, guardians, families and communities. Therefore, engaging, educating and mobilising parents, families and communities is crucial to changing attitudes, behaviours and social/cultural practices and creating environments where girls are able to complete their education, delay marriage and childbearing and make free choices on if, when and whom to marry. It is necessary to raise awareness and carry out public education programmes among children, families and communities – including by working with communities and traditional and religious leaders - on the risks and dangers of child marriage, of the domestic and international laws prohibiting child marriage and on the benefits of keeping girls in schools. Such programmes should be provided in ways which promote human rights, build capacity and enable and empower individuals and communities to act to address the social, cultural and religious norms and attitudes which result in child marriage. The strongest interventions will foster information, skills and networks for girls and boys to enable them to take part in collective action to advocate for their rights in combination with community mobilisation. The role of men and boys in challenging child marriage and raising awareness among their families, peers and communities of the negative effects of child marriage is a vital part of efforts to eliminate the practice.
National and international accountability
There is an important role for states to ensure international cooperation in child marriage periodic prevention and response measures, at the national, regional and international levels.
States parties must report on the measures taken to prevent and address child marriage in their reports to international human rights treaty bodies, in particular the CRC and CEDAW Committees.
Independent bodies such as national human rights institutions, children’s ombudspersons or commissioners on children’s rights can also play an important role in tackling child marriage. They can do this in a number of ways, including by investigating and researching violations of children‟s rights, promoting legal, policy and practice reform, promoting awareness of children‟s rights and the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
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FOR INTERNAL USE ANNEX Child marriage and international human rights standards: the legal framework The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states: „Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution‟ and „Marriage shall be entered only with the free consent of the intending spouses‟. The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) The CRC defines a child as „every human being below the age of eighteen years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier‟ (Art 1). The Committee on the Rights of the Child - which monitors its implementation by States Parties - has stressed the need for States Parties to review the age of majority if these are below the age of 18 and that in setting minimum ages States must adhere to the entire Convention and to its general principles. These include the principle of non-discrimination (article 2), the principle of the best interest of the child as the primary consideration (article 3) the right to life and maximum survival and development (article 6), and respect for children‟s evolving capacities (article 5). The Committee has recommended that: „States Parties review and, where necessary, reform their legislation and practice to increase the minimum age for marriage with and without parental consent to 18 years, for both and girls‟16. In their concluding observations on States Parties‟ reports, the CEDAW and CRC Committees have consistently recommended that states adopt higher minimum ages of marriage and to ensure these are the same for boys and girls17. The Committee on the Rights of the Child has also expressed its concern that early marriage and pregnancy are significant factors in sexual and reproductive health problems and that the minimum and the actual age of marriage – especially for girls - remains very low in several countries. It has also highlighted the fact that children who marry early – girls in particular – are often forced to leave education. It has stated that: “… early marriage and pregnancy are significant factors in health problems related to sexual and reproductive health. Both the legal minimum age and the actual age of marriage, particularly for girls, are still very low in several States Parties. There are also non-healthrelated concerns: children who marry, especially girls, are often obliged to leave the education system and are marginalized from social activities. Further, in some States Parties married children are legally considered adults, even if they are under 18, depriving them of all the special protection measures they are entitled under the Convention” (Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 4, 2003, CRC/GC/2003/4, para. 20)
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Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 4, 2003, CRC/GC/2003/4, para. 20 Early marriage. Child spouses, Innocenti Digest N. 7, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, Florence, Italy, March 2001 17
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FOR INTERNAL USE The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) specifies the need for free and full consent to marriage, for equality of men and women within marriage, and the need to specify a minimum age for marriage and make its registration compulsory. CEDAW, Article 16 states that: 1. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in all matters relating to marriage and family relations and in particular shall ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women: (a) The same right to enter into marriage; (b) The same right freely to choose a spouse and to enter into marriage only with their free and full consent; (c) The same rights and responsibilities during marriage and at its dissolution; (d) The same rights and responsibilities as parents, irrespective of their marital status, in matters relating to their children; in all cases the interests of the children shall be paramount; (e) The same rights to decide freely and responsibly on the number and spacing of their children and to have access to the information, education and means to enable them to exercise these rights; [...] 2. The betrothal and the marriage of a child shall have no legal effect, and all necessary action, including legislation, shall be taken to specify a minimum age for marriage and to make the registration of marriages in an official registry compulsory. The Committee set up to monitor the implementation of CEDAW is clear and specific in its General Recommendation 21: Article 16 (2) 36. In the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights, held at Vienna from 14 to 25 June 1993, States are urged to repeal existing laws and regulations and to remove customs and practices which discriminate against and cause harm to the girl child. Article 16 (2) and the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child preclude States parties from permitting or giving validity to a marriage between persons who have not attained their majority. In the context of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, "a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier". Notwithstanding this definition, and bearing in mind the provisions of the Vienna Declaration, the Committee considers that the minimum age for marriage should be 18 years for both man and woman. When men and women marry, they assume important responsibilities. Consequently, marriage should not be permitted before they have attained full maturity and capacity to act. According to the World Health Organization, when minors, particularly girls, marry and have children, their health can be adversely affected and their education is impeded. As a result their economic autonomy is restricted. 38. Some countries provide for different ages for marriage for men and women. As such provisions assume incorrectly that women have a different rate of intellectual development from men, or that their stage of physical and intellectual development at marriage is immaterial, these provisions should be abolished. In other countries, the betrothal of girls or undertakings by family members on their behalf is permitted. Such measures contravene not only the Convention, but also a woman's right freely to choose her partner.
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FOR INTERNAL USE 39. States parties should also require the registration of all marriages whether contracted civilly or according to custom or religious law. The State can thereby ensure compliance with the Convention and establish equality between partners, a minimum age for marriage, prohibition of bigamy and polygamy and the protection of the rights of children. 18 The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child The 1990 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child requires States parties to prohibit child marriage and to adopt legislation that sets the minimum age of marriage at 18. Article 21: Protection against Harmful Social and Cultural Practices 1. States Parties to the present Charter shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate harmful social and cultural practices affecting the welfare, dignity, normal growth and development of the child and in particular: (a) those customs and practices prejudicial to the health or life of the child; and (b) those customs and practices discriminatory to the child on the grounds of sex or other status. 2. Child marriage and the betrothal of girls and boys shall be prohibited and effective action, including legislation, shall be taken to specify the minimum age of marriage to be 18 years and make registration of all marriages in an official registry compulsory.
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See http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/recommendations/recomm.htm 10