Advocacy: Children loud and clear say NO to Child Marriage
If Toubagno has got up very early this morning, it is definitely not to go to school. This 18 year-old girl is a student in the 9th grade at the CEM in Dabo, and today Toubagno is very excited at the prospect of hooking up with her friends during the party. The occasion, an event to celebrate children in their rights, is a party thrown in honour of the children of the Dabo ADP. What is putting an extra spring in her step is that she is going to be in a play with some other members of the theatre group that she has been attending for nearly two years. What is giving Toubagno the motivation for such dedication?
Children dancing during the celebration
It is time to change the laws Sir.
The Kolda region has the dubious distinction of recording the highest number of forced marriages in Senegal. Everyone who is active in the protection of child rights makes the same observation - many young girls are given in marriage at a tender age by parents with little concern for their education. According to a report from UNPFA (United Nations Population Fund) published in 2012, ‘Senegal has one of the highest prevalences of child marriage in the world.’ And topping the table is the Kolda region, on 68%, which is what prompted Ms Seynabou Baldé to flag the issue to the authorities in these terms: “Mr Police Prefect sir, we the children of the region call on you in your high authority to take measures to encourage people to come forward and to apply the law effectively against the phenomenon of child marriage. We know that we can count on you for your unfailing commitment to child protection.” (Read extract from the memorandum delivered to the authorities in Kolda, on the occasion of 40 years of SOS Village in Senegal, December 2016.)
This practice is not without consequences for the personal development of girls. Mr Bouna Koita, Mayor of Dialambéré, notes how forced marriage has a negative impact on girls’ education: “Child marriage causes a lot of harm to young girls. In our various villages we notice that girls leave school very early because of this practice. This does not help girls with their socio-professional integration, as the majority remain housewives, occupying themselves with running the household, doing housework and educating the children.”
Music, creativity and theatre - vehicles to make change happen
Theatre, along with music, is turning into an important vehicle for messages in a way that hits home with the target audience. It is a vector for raising awareness among local people and galvanising them into action. Mamoudou Baldé, Community Development Facilitator and Theatre Group Supervisor considers the theatre to be a vital channel for winning hearts and minds in the area. As he puts it, “theatre is a great way of combining fun and function; we make the audience laugh while getting messages across to them. This is what made us choose to put on a play for the children’s party dealing with the theme of early marriage. It’s a way for children to highlight the issue to adults and address them with no sense of embarrassment.”
The play retells the story of a young girl in the 9th Grade who has just passed her exam with flying colours. This ambitious young lady is already eyeing a place at secondary school in order to continue her studies. Alas for her, her father has already decided to give her in marriage. The mother of the girl, called Toubagno, makes plain her disagreement with the father, who despite everything remains deaf to the entreaties of the girl and her mother. After consulting her friends, the decision is taken to bring the matter to the child protection agency. The threat of the police getting called also weighs on the father’s mind. Finally, he caves in to the pressure and reverses his decision, and the girl’s marriage comes to nothing.
The theatre group play, with Toubagno on the far left
The audience enjoyed the show that the young people put on and soon sided against the father. The actors criticised the actions of the father, one after the other with a unanimous contempt. The spectators really took the moral of the story to heart and, willing the girl on, they got a big emotional pay-off when the father changed his mind.
Elated by how well the play went down, Toubagno thanked World Vision for giving young people the chance to express themselves in front of adults. It was a very interesting experience for her because it tackled a social issue that follows every girl around like a cloud, no matter where they come from.
Toubagno Baldé : “To give your daughter in marriage at a young age is to hurt your child.”
Opportunities like this for kids to make a statement about their difficulties in life should be spread far and wide. Let us work together to help children to not suffer in silence the evils that adults inflict on them.
Photos Credits: Amar Diaw