Child, Early and Forced Marriages

Physical Health: Especially in girls, due to early pregnancies, health issues of mothers or the baby, numerous miscarriages, risk of death during birth, unwanted, early, or frequent pregnancies, exposure to sexually transmitted diseases and many similar health risks are observed .

Every year, 11% of the births are given by girls between the ages of 15 to 19, and every year 50.000 girls lose their lives due to pregnancy. According to UNFPA figures, there are 7.3 million births under the age of 18 in developing countries each year, and 2 million of these births are given by girls under the age of 15 (UNFPA, 2013).

The main cause of death of the girls aged between 15 to 19 is complications due to pregnancy and birth (WHO, 2018; as cited in UNFPA, 2020). Moreover, girls who do not have a civil marriage and are under the age of legal marriage must be reported by the health teams that provide pregnancy follow-up and delivery services. This situation may cause the girls’ access to health services to be prevented by their spouse or family in order to avoid legal sanction and may make girls vulnerable to all kinds of health risks (Yakıt, Coşkun, 2014).

Mental/Psychological Health: Trauma, depression, anxiety, suicide attempt, withdrawal from social life, substance use, risky behaviors, and psychosomatic problems can be observed frequently in people who are subjected to child, early and forced marriages (UNFPA, 2021). One of the important reasons of the negative psychological effects of child, early and forced marriages and these effects lasting throughout life is that it is being experienced during adolescence. In this period of life, children try to complete their physical, psychological, and social development and to form their unique identity. The physical changes that come with adolescence may cause a false perception in the society that the child is a “little adult” and may cause the idea that the child is ready for marriage. However, marriage before reaching sufficient physical and psychological maturity causes children to face many responsibilities that are not suitable for their age, and causes them to break away from their peers, which interrupts their social development (Aktepe ve Atay, 2017).

In a study published in 2021, women who were married under the age of 17 and women who were married over the age of 20 were compared in terms of marriage type, exposure to domestic physical violence, alcohol, substance and tobacco use, and mental health disorders. According to the results of the study, more than half of women who were married at an early age have at least one mental disorder. Women who were married at an early age reported that they were exposed to physical violence during marriage more than women who were married at the age of 20 and over. Additionally, it was stated that rates of suicide attempts and amount of nicotine consumption of women who were married at an early age are considerably higher than women who were married after the age of 20 (Kaya, Alnak, Subaşı, Arslan, Şahin, 2022).

Being Subjected to Violence: It has been proven by research that children who are subjected to child, early and forced marriages are exposed to many types of violence more than those who are not. According to the research conducted by the International Center for Research on Women, which compares the rates of exposure to violence between girls married at a young age and women married in other age groups, girls who marry at a young age are exposed to physical violence 2 times more and sexual violence 3 times more than women in other age groups (Malatyalı, 2014).

According to the “Research on Domestic Violence Against Women in Turkey” conducted in 2014, while the rate of physical violence is 48% among women who get married at an early age, it is 31% among women who get married after the age of 18. Moreover, 19% of women who got married before the age of 18, and 10% of women who got married after the age of 18 were exposed to sexual violence. The same research indicated that 42% of women who got married after the age of 18 have been exposed to emotional violence/abuse at some point in their life, while this rate reaches 51% for those who were married before the age of 18 (T.C. Aile ve Sosyal Politikalar Bakanlığı Kadının Statüsü Genel Müdürlüğü, Hacettepe Üniversitesi Nüfus Etütleri Enstitüsü, 2014).

Access to Education: Although the relationship between child marriage and school dropout is complex, qualitative studies conducted in Turkey show that it is very difficult for girls who are married to continue their education due to the burden of housework. Restriction of freedom of movement with marriage, pregnancy and having children, home-related responsibilities and, in some countries, legal barriers to married/pregnant/with children girls’ attendance at school/work disconnect children from education life. Disconnection from education and employment prevents girls from accessing social networks and support services and causes them to enter a cycle of poverty. The isolation of children from education by marriage makes it difficult for them to acquire a profession, reduces their participation in working life and increases their dependence on other people because they do not have an income of their own. All these negativities affect not only young girls and women, but also their children (UNFPA,2020). Uneducated girls are three times more likely to marry at the age of 18 than girls with secondary or higher education. More than 60% of uneducated women (aged between 20-24) were married before the age of 18 (UNICEF, 2018; as cited in UNFPA, 2021).

Such risks and adverse effects not only cause life-long physical, mental and social injuries/barriers/damages to the married child, but also hinder the development of the society in economic and social areas.