WUNRN
UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTS HISTORIC RESOLUTION ON CHILD,
EARLY & FORCED MARRIAGE
21 November
2014 - Child marriage holds back 15 million girls a year, or about 41,000 a
day, denying them fundamental rights and undermining their future. If there is
no reduction in child marriage, 1.2 billion girls will marry as children by
2050 – equivalent to the entire population of India.
The
resolution marks the first time that UN member states have agreed upon
substantive recommendations for the steps that States, international
organizations and others must take to address the problem. The resolution
situates the issue firmly within the post-2015 development agenda, recognizing
the need to give due consideration to the inclusion of a target to end child,
early and forced marriage in the final framework.
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UN General Assembly Resolution Text via Girls Not Brides
United Nations
General Assembly
Sixty-ninth session
Agenda item 65(a)
Resolution
adopted by the General Assembly
69/XX. Child, Early and Forced Marriage
Child, early and forced marriage
The General Assembly,
PP1
Reaffirming its resolution 68/148 of 18 December 2013 on child, early and
forced marriage,
PP2 Recalling
its resolutions 66/140 of 19 December 2011
and 68/146 of 18 December 2013 on the girl child, and 67/144 of 20 December 2012 on the intensification of
efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women, as well as Human
Rights Council resolution 24/23 of 27 September 2013, entitled
“Strengthening efforts to prevent and eliminate child, early and forced
marriage: challenges, achievements, best practices and implementation gaps”,[1] and all other previous resolutions
relating to child, early and forced marriage,
PP3 Guided
by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,[2]
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights[3] and the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights,3 as well as other relevant human rights
instruments, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child[4] and the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,[5]
together with the relevant Optional Protocols thereto,
PP4 Reaffirming
the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action,[6]
as well as the Programme of Action of the International Conference on
Population and Development,[7] the
Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action[8]
and the outcome documents of their review conferences,
PP5 Recalling the Agreed
Conclusions of the 57th and 58th sessions of the Commission on
the Status of Women,
PP6 Taking
note with appreciation of the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report
26/22 of 2 April 2014 on preventing and eliminating child, early and forced
marriage, OHCHR report 27/34 of 18 July 2014 on the panel discussion on
preventing and eliminating child, early and forced marriage, and the summary
report of the UNGA panel discussion of 5 September 2014,
PP7
Recognizing that child, early and forced marriage is a harmful practice
that violates abuses, or impairs human rights and is linked to and
perpetuates other harmful practices and human rights violations, that these
violations have a disproportionately negative impact on women and girls, and
underscoring States’ human rights obligations and commitments to promote and
protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls and to
prevent and eliminate the practice of child, early and forced marriage,
PP8
Deeply concerned about the continued prevalence of child, early and forced
marriage worldwide, including that approximately 15 million girls are
married every year before they reach 18 years, and that more than 700 million
women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday,
PP9 Noting
with concern that the continued prevalence of child, early and forced
marriage has had a negative impact on the achievement of Millennium
Development Goals 1-6, and their overarching aims, including in the
areas of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, poverty
reduction, education, maternal and child mortality, health, including
sexual and reproductive health, and recognizing that child, early and forced
marriage continues to impair sustainable development, inclusive economic
growth and social cohesion,
PP10
Noting with concern that poverty and insecurity are among the root causes
of child, early and forced marriage, that child, early and forced marriage
remains common in rural areas and among the poorest communities, and
recognizing that the immediate alleviation and eventual eradication of
extreme poverty must remain a high priority for the international community,
PP10bis Recognizing also that child, early and forced marriage is itself a barrier
to development and helps to perpetuate the cycle of poverty and that the risk
of child, early and forced marriage is also exacerbated in conflict and
humanitarian crisis situations,
PP11
Recognizing that child, early and forced
marriage is inherently linked to deep-rooted gender inequalities, norms and
stereotypes, and harmful practices, perceptions and customs that are obstacles
to the full enjoyment of human rights and that the persistence of child, early
and forced marriage places children, in particular the girl child, at risk of
being exposed to and encountering various forms of discrimination and violence
throughout her life,
PP12 Recognizing that
child, early and forced marriage undermines women’s and girls’ autonomy and
decision-making in all aspects of their lives and continues to be an impediment
to improvements in the education, economic and social status of women and
girls in all parts of the world, and that the empowerment of and investment
in women and girls is critical for economic growth,
including the eradication of poverty, as well as the meaningful
participation of women and girls in all decisions that affect them,
PP13 Noting with concern that child, early and forced marriage
disproportionally affects girls who have received little or no formal
education, and is itself a significant obstacle to educational opportunities
for girls and young women, in particular girls who are forced to drop out of
school owing to marriage and/or childbirth, and recognizing that educational
opportunities are directly related to women’s and girls’ empowerment,
employment, and economic opportunities, and their active participation in
economic, social and cultural development, governance and decision-making,
PP14 Recognizing that child, early and forced
marriage constitutes a serious threat to multiple aspects of the physical and
psychological health of women and girls, including but not limited to their sexual
and reproductive health, significantly increasing the risk of early,
frequent and unintended pregnancy, maternal and newborn mortality and
morbidity, obstetric fistula, and sexually transmitted infections, including
HIV/AIDS as well as increasing vulnerability to all forms of violence,
and that every girl and woman at risk of or affected by these practices must
have equal access to quality services like education, counselling,
shelter and other social services, psychological, sexual and
reproductive health care services and medical care,
OP1 Urges all States to enact, enforce and uphold laws
and policies aimed at preventing and ending child, early and forced
marriage and protecting those at risk, and ensure that marriage is entered into
only with the informed, free and full consent of the intending spouses,
OP2 Calls on
States, with the participation of relevant stakeholders, including girls,
religious and community leaders, civil society, women’s and human rights
groups, men and boys, and youth organizations, to develop and implement
holistic, comprehensive and coordinated responses and strategies to eliminate child,
early and forced marriage and to support already married girls,
adolescents, and women including through strengthening of child
protection systems, protection mechanisms such as safe shelters, access to
justice and the sharing of best practices across borders,
OP2bis Calls
upon States and the international community to create an environment in
which the wellbeing of women and girls is ensured, inter alia, by cooperating,
supporting and participating in efforts for the eradication of extreme poverty,
and reaffirming that investment in women and girls and the protection of their
rights are among the most effective ways to end the practice of child, early
and forced marriage,
OP2ter Calls upon States to promote and protect women
and girls’ right to education through an enhanced emphasis on quality
education, including catch-up and literacy education for those who did not
receive formal education, while recognizing that education is one of the most
effective ways to prevent and end child, early and forced marriage and to allow
for married women and girls to make more informed choices about their lives,
OP3 Urges governments
to promote and protect the human rights of all women and girls, including their
right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related
to their sexuality, including sexual and reproductive health, free of coercion,
discrimination and violence, and adopt and accelerate the implementation of
laws, policies and programmes which protect and enable the enjoyment of all
human rights and fundamental freedoms, including their reproductive
rights in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International
Conference on Population and Development, the Beijing Platform for Action and
their review outcomes,
OP3bis Encourages relevant UN entities and agencies to
continue to collaborate with and support member states in developing and
implementing strategies and policies at the national, regional and
international levels to prevent and eliminate child, early and forced marriage,
as well as to support already married girls, adolescents, and women,
OP4 Recalls the
inclusion of a target on eliminating all harmful practices, such as child,
early and forced marriage in the outcome document of the Open Working Group on
Sustainable Development Goals, recognizes child, early and forced marriage
as a barrier to development and the full realization of women’s and girls’
human rights, and recognises the need to give due consideration to its
inclusion in the post-2015 development agenda in order to help ensure
progress towards the elimination of child, early and forced marriage,
OP5 Requests the
Secretary-General to submit a comprehensive report before the end of its 70th
session on progress towards ending child, early and forced marriage worldwide
since A/HRC/26/22, with particular emphasis on high prevalence countries, best
practices for programs aimed at ending the practice and supporting already
married women and girls, gaps in research and implementation, and legal reforms
and policies related to this matter, using information provided by Member States,
United Nations bodies, agencies, funds and programmes, civil society and other
relevant stakeholders,
OP6 Also decides
to consider the issue of child, early and forced marriage at its 71st
session under the item entitled “Promotion and protection of the rights of
children” taking into account the multifaceted and worldwide nature of the
issue of child, early and forced marriage.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/21/us-children-un-rights-idUSKCN0J52F620141121
UNITED NATIONS GENERAL
ASSEMBLY MEMBER STATES RESOLVE TO END CHILD
MARRIAGE
(Reuters) – 21 November
2014 - The United Nations agreed on Friday that all members should pass and
enforce laws banning child marriages, resolving to end a practice that affects
about 15 million girls every year.
The committee of the
193-nation General Assembly that deals with human rights adopted by consensus a
resolution urging all states to take steps to end "child, early and forced
marriage."
There are now more than
700 million women who were married before their 18th birthday, many in
conditions of poverty and insecurity, according to U.N. statistics.
Child marriage among
girls is most common in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. In Niger in West
Africa, which has the highest overall rate, 77 percent of women between 20 and
49 were married before the age of 18.
Bangladesh has the most
girls who married under 15 and India is home to one third of all child brides
worldwide.
Christine Kalamwina, the
deputy permanent representative of Zambia, which initiated the resolution
with Canada, said child marriage impeded poverty reduction, education, gender
equality and women's empowerment, child mortality, maternal health, and
combating HIV/AIDS and other diseases.
According to the
resolution, early marriage is also a serious threat to the physical and
psychological health of girls who are not physically mature enough as it
"increases the risk of unintended pregnancy, maternal and newborn
mortality and sexually transmitted infections."
The 118 countries that
sponsored the resolution included Mali, Ethiopia and the Central African
Republic, which are among the 10 countries with the highest rates of child
marriage.
The resolution called on
states to ensure that marriage is entered into only with the full consent of
the intending spouses, was adopted without a vote. The resolution will go to
the full General Assembly for formal approval in December.
While supporting the
document, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Sudan both expressed concern over a
paragraph urging governments to protect the right of girls to have control over
their sexuality and implement laws that protect reproductive rights.
General Assembly
resolutions are not legally binding, but can increase political pressure on
countries.
"This is a firm
statement from the international community that child marriage will not be
tolerated," Girls Before Brides, a global partnership of over 400 civil
society organizations, said in a statement.
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[1] See Official Records of the
General Assembly, Sixty-eighth Session, Supplement No. 53A (A/68/53/Add.1),
chap. III.