A plan to marry off 100 Nigerian girls and young women in a state-sponsored mass wedding has sparked a debate over child marriage and female education in Nigeria, with efforts underway to ban the ceremonies.
The country's Women's Minister, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, is leading the campaign to shelve Friday's wedding (17).
Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye told Reuters he had filed a court injunction to stop the marriages.
According to the minister, the unions violate Nigeria's Child Rights Act and the Prohibition of Violence Against Persons Act which criminalizes forced marriages for women and girls.
“This marriage affects the rights of girls and women, who are my constituency, and I have taken action to put an end to it,” Kennedy-Ohanenye said in an interview.
Many of the girls to be married off are believed to be minors, prompting strong criticism from human rights advocates.
The marriage came to light when Abdulmalik Sarkindaj, speaker at Assembly of Niger, a Muslim-majority Nigerian stateannounced plans to sponsor the ceremony and pay for the girl's dowry.
The president said the bride's parents were killed in attacks by kidnapping gangs that terrorized villages and towns in his northern state.
Although several Muslim clerics have defended the marriage as an act of charity for orphans, critics have asserted that it violates Nigeria's commitment to protecting children and women's rights.
Sarkindaj later withdrew his bid to host the ceremony.
It was not immediately clear whether the ceremony would go ahead with another sponsor, as local Muslim clerics have vowed to defy the minister.
The Minister for Women said that, although she had received assurances from government officials that the marriage would be cancelled, she would seek an injunction to be safe.
“What I’m fighting is illegality. I'm not fighting tradition or religion. AND to ensure that this doesn’t happen,” he explained.
When she met with leaders, the group discussed enrolling some girls in school and opening bank accounts for others.
“Marriage does not give power and does not change anyone’s life. On the contrary, it gets worse if you don't have money to take care of your family”, concluded the minister.
Debate beyond the laws
Nigeria's Child Rights Act sets the minimum age for marriage at 18, but younger girls routinely marry in the country's northern states. More than half of women aged between 20 and 24 were married before they turned 18.
Nerida Nthamburi of GirlsNotBride, a non-profit organization against child marriage, said the laws were not enough as cultural norms still push women into early marriage.
Parents in some northern states marry off their daughters when they menstruate or reach puberty, he added, urging the government to enlist the help of traditional and community leaders.
High poverty rates also lead more families to marry off girls to pay off debts or generate income.
The activist called on the government to invest in programs that keep women in school and make them less vulnerable. For Nthamburi, education is the best antidote to forced marriage.
“If families are economically empowered, then we will find that they will be less likely to sell their girls and more likely to be able to at least keep their children in school,” he said.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
