Child Marriage: Gross Violation Of Human Rights In Bangladesh

Child marriage in Bangladesh: Gross violation of human rights

1. Introduction:

Marriage is a solemn event of a human life as it is the recognized form of family union in a country like Bangladesh. However, this solemn event may not be same for all, particularly when it is about child marriage of a girl. Marriage is seen as providing social and economic security for women in Bangladesh (Altschuller, 2003) According to United Nations Children’s agency (UNICEF), Bangladesh has the fourth highest rate of child marriage in the world . Indeed, it has the highest rate of child marriage in the South Asia (52%), followed by India (47%), Nepal (37%) and Afghanistan (33%). About 52 percent of girls are married before the age of 18 and 18 percent of girls are married before the age of 15 . The child marriage are a common practice in rural areas compared to urban areas of the country. Moreover, the practice of child marriage is prevalent in poor and marginalised society irrespective to urban and rural areas. The child marriage causes diverse forms of exploitation and deprivation of the right of girls. This discursive practice lead to sexual abuse, rape, murder, induced suicide and other forms of exploitation and consequently, violates the human rights of a child.

This article argues that child marriage is a violation of the human rights of a girl child. It further illustrates how child marriage violates the human rights. The article also asserts the international