Media has a role to play in curbing child marriage

Child marriage remains one of the silent killers of dreams among young people, especially girls.

Marriage of children below the age of 18 years is still widely practised in many parts of the world and predominantly affects girls. It is a human rights violation that prevents girls from getting educated, staying healthy, bonding with their parents, siblings and peers, pursuing a career and choosing their life partners when they feel ready.

An ICRW review shows that rates of child marriage are highest in parts of Africa, and in south Asia, where one-half to three-fourths of girls are married before age 18. According to the review, Niger, Mali and Chad have the highest rates of forced child marriage in the world, ranging from 71 per cent to 77 per cent.”

“Young married girls are unique, though the often invisible, group. Required to perform heavy amounts of domestic work, under pressure to demonstrate fertility, and responsible for raising children while still children themselves, married girls and child mothers face constrained decision-making and reduced life choices. Boys are also affected by child marriage but the issue impacts girls in far larger numbers and with more intensity,” says a 2005 UNICEF report.

What this means for girls

According to Girls Not Brides, an international advocacy platform, one of the disastrous effects of child marriage is the development of vesicovaginal fistula, which is an abnormal duct between the vaginal wall and bladder or urethra. Fistula is reportedly one of the worst epidemics predominantly caused by child marriage. Medically, when an underage girl has sex, gets pregnant and goes through childbirth because her body is not developed enough for childbearing, she is highly exposed to fistula.

Studies have also revealed that children who marry early are at risk of contracting sexually-transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. Some of the other health challenges child brides are exposed to include anaemia, high blood pressure (HBP), premature birth, malnutrition, sexually transmitted diseases and Post-Partum Depression (PPD).

Human rights watch investigations in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Malawi, Nepal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Yemen, and Zimbabwe have found that early marriage has dire life-long consequences; often completely halting or crippling a girl’s ability to realize a wide range of human rights. Leaving school early both contributes to and results from marrying young. Other impacts include marital rape, heightened risk of domestic violence, poor access to decent work, exploitation doing unpaid labour, risk of HIV transmission, and a range of health problems due to early childbearing.

Media to the rescue

In the face of all these, the media as the purveyors of information have significant roles to play in sensitizing, informing and educating the public in matters relating to child marriage.

The mass media using its agenda-setting power should constantly remind the public of the numerous effects of this menace on the girl child and how it ultimately affects society.

Girls Not Brides USA, GreeneWorks, International Women’s Health Coalition, American Jewish World Service and the Communications Consortium came together to explore the impact the media can have on child marriage, as well as the opportunities that exist to enhance the influence of the media and ensure responsible storytelling.

Here are some of the key points from the discussion:

The media can and should play an important role in shaping public discourse on child marriage: The media informs people about important issues and helps shape how child marriage is spoken about and understood by the general public. Film and documentaries for example can challenge the perception that child marriage is something which only occurs in Asia or Africa and has the potential to hold local and global decision-makers accountable.

The media adds a human face to the issue. Hearing and understanding things from a young girl’s perspective encourage empathy in a way that research and facts are unable to. By using stories with emotional and personal content we can show the public and decision-makers that girls aren’t numbers, they are people.

The media needs to be mobilized as an important contributor to development: The media often acts to hold decision-makers to account for fulfilling their responsibilities to protect and uphold the public’s welfare. This can be achieved through praise and critique. For example, a media outlet can praise a government’s actions when it does good things for girls, such as increasing the minimum age of marriage or adopting a national strategy on child marriage, but it can also call them out for a lack of action.

The media must walk a fine line between advocacy and reinforcing negative perceptions: By choosing to cover a particular story the media may be advocating a particular viewpoint, and through the language used there can be the risk of reinforcing perceptions that child marriage is something which occurs only in certain countries, religions or communities.

The media has a role to play in portraying girls ethically and responsibly: We shouldn’t be telling stories which take away a girl’s agency or make her seem like a passive victim. More nuanced narratives are needed to describe the multitude of causes which lead girls to marry, as well as to accurately capture their experiences within marriage. Information about the context of their lives and possible solutions to the constraints they face should be included so readers know how to engage when there is a clear call to action. The media also needs to bear in mind emerging research and trends which challenge assumptions.

The media should be accountable to the communities and individuals they cover: Girls and women must be informed about where and how their own stories will be told, and crucially must give their consent beforehand. If a journalist cannot completely protect the privacy and consent of the individual, they shouldn’t be telling the story. Ideally, a journalist should also return to visit the woman or girl and follow up on the story.

In addition to all these, media practitioners must demonstrate social responsibility in covering, writing and reporting child marriage stories while sensitizing and moulding the opinions of policymakers, potential victims, parents and CSOs on the need to get rid of this social evil.

This article is part of African Women in Media (AWiM) Graduate Trainee Programme in collaboration with FOJO Media Institute