Child Marriage: A curse for Women in India and Indonesia

Abstract

Child Marriage is inhuman and barbaric practice wherein either of the spouse or both the spouses fall under the legally prescribed age for forming the Union of marriage. The article addresses the evils of child marriage that are prevalent and practised in India and Indonesia.  The article shed light on the causes and impacts of Child Marriage on young girls and boys like education dropout, domestic violence, complications due to early pregnancy and like factors.  The paper discusses in detail the practice, impact and laws related to Child Marriage in India and Indonesia respectively. The paper also pointedly looks at the increase in number of Child Marriage cases due to Covid-19. Child Marriage is violative of human rights and not only compromises the dignity and integrity of young boys and girls but also compromises their physical, psychological, educational, social and sexual growth.  Although the government and international community has set several goals and policies to end child marriage and comply with human right standards, but still the practise of child marriage exist in corners of every country.  References Lisa, S. Diana, W.Susan, "Consequences of Child Marriage in Indonesia”. Available at: https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/3491923/MAMPU-Child-Marriage-in-Indonesia.pdf “Child Marriage in Indonesia”, Available at: https://www.girlsnotbrides.org/documents/1080/UNICEF-Indonesia-Child-Marriage-Factsheet-1-1.pdf “Child Marriage in India”,Available at: https://plan-international.org/uploads/2022/01/child_marriage_in_india_low_res.pdf “Ending Child Marriage in Indonesia: The role of Courts”, Available at: https://law.unimelb.edu.au/centres/cilis/research/publications/cilis-policy-papers/ending-child-marriage-in-indonesia-the-role-of-courts Mies, H.Hoko, (2018), “Child Marriage in a Village in West Java (Indonesia): Compromises between Legal Obligation and Religious Concerns”, Asian Journal of Law and Society, 5(2). Suresh, (2015), “Child Marriage in India: Factors and Problems”, International Journal of Science and Research, Vol 4, Issue 4, Maila D.H. Rahiem, (2021), “COVID-19 and The Surge of Child Marriages: A Phenomenon in Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia”, Vol. 118, ISSN 0145-2134, Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0145213421002416 Manusmriti: The Law of Manu ( ca.1500BC- or later-) Available at: http://eweb.furman.edu/~ateipen/ReligionA45/protected/manusmriti.htm Joseph, R.M.Fajar, R. Mayang , “Prevalence of Child Marriage and Its Determinants Among Young Women in Indonesia”, The SERUM Research Institute Sri, (2020), “The Marriage Age Limit According to Indonesian Law No. 16, 2019 as Effort to Child Protection”, Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341516246_The_Marriage_Age_Limit_According_to_Indonesian_Law_No_16_2019_as_Effort_to_Child_Protection Rumble, L., Peterman, A., Irdiana, N. (2018) ” An empirical exploration of female child marriage determinants in Indonesia”,  BMC Public Health18, 407. Available at:  https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-018-5313-0#citeas S Chris, (2016), “ Early Marriage and Education Outcomes in Indonesia”, Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/306400448_Early_marriage_and_education_outcomes_in_Indonesia The Study on Child Marriage in India: Situational Analysis in Three States, Available at: http://feministlawarchives.pldindia.org/wp-content/uploads/A-Study-on-Child-Marriage-in-India-three-states.pdf Links: https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal5 https://www.worldbank.org/ https://www.unicef.org/ https://www.savethechildren.org/ &nbsp