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The
risks are often not appreciated |
“She is
supposed to deliver in a few days, but this is her first visit to a health
centre,” said Nazia Hemat, an obstetrician at
Rabia
is fortunate in being able to visit the hospital: “Men often don’t allow their
pregnant women to go to hospitals and doctors,” Ranna Tarin, director of
“We
know young women die during pregnancy and at childbirth but we don’t know how
many,” said Shamsuddin Tanwer, an official of the Afghan Independent Human
Rights Commission (AIHRC) in
Afghan
law sets 16 as the minimum age of marriage for a girl and 18 for a boy, but
many are married at a younger age and without the genuine consent of those
concerned.
According
to AIHRC, 60-80 percent of all marriages are forced and/or under-age marriages.
Rabia’s
mother, Amina, said they married their daughter at an early age because
“everybody and all parents do the same,” and that “it is not good to keep a
daughter at home for long; it’s better she goes to her husband’s home as soon
as possible.”
Poverty,
illiteracy and lack of awareness about the dangers of early marriage are other
major reasons why parents marry off their girls at a young age, according to
AIHRC.
“A lot
of people do not know that early marriages pose serious health and
psychological risks to young girls,” said Razeqa Nezami, a human rights
activist. “There is also a strong misunderstanding that marrying off a daughter
as early as possible is in line with Islam,” she said.
In the
countryside there is little awareness of, or respect for, civil law and the
minimum legal age for marriage. Some suggest the government should train imams
and other religious leaders to ensure marriage laws are upheld when they
formalize marriages.
Health risks
“When a
girl goes into marriage she actually undertakes the burden and responsibilities
of an adult,” Malalai Nazery, a maternal health officer with the UN Children’s
Fund (UNICEF) in
“Mortality
and morbidity figures among mothers aged 15-19 are much higher than for women
older than 19,” said UNICEF’s Nazery, adding that young mothers often lack
awareness of the risks of pregnancy and child delivery. “Child mothers and
their children are usually weak and vulnerable to diseases.”
Only 14
percent of births in
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