There is a life behind the culture we hold...

One of the parallel events of CSW62 was titled, "Ending Child Marriage in the U.S. and Globally: Progress, Pitfalls and the Place of News Media". The panelists drew the attention of the participants to a worldwide issue that is also a current issue in the U.S.A.: child marriage, marriage under the age of 18. The panelists listed several consequences of the child marriage:

• Child marriage increases the risk of disease onset by 23%. At an adult age, women may face cancer, stroke, diabetes, sexually transmitted infections, etc. 
• Child marriage causes higher rates of death as a result of childbirth, unwanted pregnancy, etc.
• Child marriage may cause psychiatric disorders. 
• It results in girls dropping the school, not getting a college degree and earning low wages.

 Two of the panelists were child marriage survivors. When sharing their stories, it was hard to believe that it happened in a developed country like The U.S. The panelists shared how hard it was to stand up for themselves, go against their families, culture, and tradition. As one of the panelists said: "I was hoping the judge would see how terrified I was and would help me. However, my parents told me to say that I agreed to get married, otherwise, they would be sent to jail. I didn't want my family to be in jail. So, when we got to the court and when I was asked whether it was my decision, my mom, who was sitting next to me, pushed her knee against my leg and the word "yes" just came out from my mouth".

This story shows us that even in the USA children are forced to marry and there is no law that would protect them, that would keep the children safe. One of the panelists, who was the founder of "Unchained At Last" organization, has been fighting against the child marriage issue since 2011. She has met a number of governors from different states and presented the issue with its relevant statistics. She has offered to make the marriage age at least 18 and over. However, none of the governors have stood next to her to protect children's human rights that have been violated for a long period of time.


For more information watch the live video of the parallel event.

Addressing Sexuality to end Child Marriage

There is an important need to talk openly about sexuality and how it relates to child marriage, how sexuality is closely linked to gender roles and how understanding and addressing this link can help achieve sustainable development goal number 5, Gender Equality. Many have claimed that “talking abut sexuality” is a “personal matter” and not one that is discussed in the public eye, particularly in certain cultural context. However, the United Nations has been talking about sexuality for over 20 years, in negotiation rooms and spaces dealing with women’s health and other important issues. The panelist in the session Why Addressing the control of sexuality is critical to ending child marriage? address the topic with a cultural, social and professional lens noting the values and norms and how it relates to complex women’s issues. The idea that in order to address practices such as child or forced marriage, girls and boys need to be properly educated in order for them to take control of their own sexuality. The key is in programs that work closely with the community, men, women and most importantly religious leaders. Understanding the use of ‘language’ and how to talk to the community in a way that doesn’t add to the taboo and challenge of speaking openly about sexuality even in “safe spaces”.

Archana Dwivedi, Director of the NGO Nirantar in New Delhi, India stated that sexuality is not an issue it is a perspective, as is gender and we need to find a wholesome way to view those norms in order to understand its construct. Dwivedi goes on to say that, sexuality has no beginning or end point, and is informed by gender and sexuality norms and gender norms are informed by sexuality norms. Research in India mapping early and child marriage found that poverty is linked to gender and sexuality norms, however, many young people are marrying out of their own choices, and young people are concerned about many issues other than sexuality. Gender and sexuality norms are linked, and at the same time are constantly challenged by changing cultural views of gender and sexuality which impact girls much deeper, without losing sight that boys are also affected. Panelist Anthony Keedi noted that, if we continue to look at women as the ones we need to provide for, ones that can not provide for themselves, that creates a perpetual need for paths such as child and forced marriage on a social, cultural and economic basis. The concept of taking control of one’s own sexuality and allowing for that control to be given to women is a step towards eradicating child and forced marriage.

Sexuality: It's a Personal Matter...

“Take a moment to remember a time in our own lives when we did not have control of our own sexuality.”

That was the powerful opening statement to the CSW session “Why Addressing the Control of Sexuality is Critical to Ending Child Marriage”. Talk of sexuality is considered taboo in many contexts though it parallels gender, which receives much attention. People will shake off the topic as being a personal matter, a cultural tendency, that an outsider should not question. Yet, it is sexuality that fuels the gender inequality in the world even in 2016.

When a family is in poverty, why is the girl the first to be married off and not the boy? What is the underlying value in a woman’s virginity that would justify marrying off a 12 year old girl? Why is a child bride no longer considered a child after marriage, despite her obvious young age?

The panelists represented NGOs that work to end child marriage in various parts of the world. Anthony Keedi, a representative from Abaad, a NGO based in Lebanon, spoke on challenging the concept of child marriage in the Middle East. Abaad is currently working with government officials to revoke a penal code in Lebanon that states if a man rapes a woman but the proposes to marry her for a minimum of five years, he can escape a prison sentence. Laws such as these stem from a strong cultural background of male dominance and sense of entitlement. Keedi says that in order to end child marriage, one must first tackle the cultural gender roles and gender norms. He points out that in the context of the Middle East where religion is a strong identity, introducing a concept such as gender equality may face opposition as people do not want to go against what they believe to be a religious culture. For this reason, Abaad purposefully works with religious leaders in an effort to help people realize that gender equality can be accomplished while still exercising one’s faith. Though it is a work in progress, it is a step towards dispelling myths on the "unimportant" topic of sexuality.

Lack of control of sexuality is something everyone experiences at some point in life; it is the extent of the lack of control that creates the need for intervention.

The Truths of the Human Trafficking Industry

The reality of human trafficking? 

• USA is the #1 destination for Americans who seek to have sex with children
• There are over 636,000 registered sex offenders in the USA
• Child marriage is legal in 20 countries, and 15 million girls will be sold as brides before they are 18
• Trafficking is a $99 billion industry
• The sexual exploitation of children is driven by the Internet
• In the Bolivian context, human trafficking has increased 900% in the past nine years

This is a small list of the harsh truths of human trafficking shared at one of the first panel sessions of the 60th NGO Commission on the Status of Women (NGO CSW) Forum on March 15, 2016. The panel was titled “What Will It Take to END Human Trafficking? The Role Media Plays & A Rarely Heard Voice from the Trafficker’s Perspective,” sponsored by Pathways to Peace, The Fyera Foundation, and Operation Big Sister, as well as panelists from The Nest Foundation, Media Impact, and GWEN.

“Where drugs are being sold, children are being sold,” one of the panelists remarked. This reality is incomprehensible, yet it exists. Another panelist reflected on her position in the world, growing up in the United States, middle class, well and highly educated. In her experience, she was under the impression that we, here in the USA, have achieved almost full gender equality. Her first experience at the NGO CSW Forum three years ago changed her understanding. As it very well did many conference participants attending the panel. It brought her here, three years later, leading NGOs and advocating for the end of human trafficking. 

Recognizing the role media has to play in perpetuating the human trafficking industry across the world, the panelists urged us, as members of civil society, to be the “hands and feet of policy makers,” and transform the media we create. The only way to change the status of women, it was stated, is to change the perceptions of boys and men. 

Upon finishing this blog, Google image search “women in advertising.” Reflect on what populates on your browser. 

Prevention of Child, Early and Forced Marriage 停止童婚，早婚和强迫婚姻

By  赵霞 (Xia Zhao)， 美国里海大学(Lehigh University)

美国东部时间2015年3月13日下午2点30分，来自土耳其，尼日尼亚和肯尼亚的非政府组织代表于纽约亚美尼亚会展中心就童婚，早婚和强迫婚姻问题做了精彩的报告。各国代表分别阐述了本国法律对童婚，早婚和强迫婚姻的定义。

土耳其代表表示，现今，每四位土耳其女性中就有一位是童婚。其原因主要在于经济条件的限制。 作为一个童婚的幸存者，尼日尼亚代表讲道，童婚摧毁了女性的生活。遗憾的是，尼日尼亚童婚很严重，但目前尚无关于早婚的有效数据调查。

最有意义的是，年轻的肯尼亚代表讲述了自己9岁时反抗父亲早婚安排的故事。父亲以两头牛的价格强迫她嫁给他的老朋友。她逃离父亲的安排，跑到十公里以外的学校向老师寻求帮助。后来她努力学习，成为班上最优秀的学生，最后进入大学学习国际政治。此次报告是她在联合国做的第五次演讲，她成为全村人民的骄傲。如今，她回到自己的村庄，讲述教育带给自己和家人的改变。村庄人民以她为典范，改变了将女孩儿贩卖给他人做童养媳的传统，促进了肯尼亚女童教育的发展和女性地位的提升。