By Wilfred S Gortor
MONROVIA, Sept. 30 (LINA) — Mantene was 15 and in Grade Seven when she believed marriage would not necessarily mean giving up her education, she dreamed of becoming a nurse.
But after becoming her husband’s second wife, her plan to continue school has remained unfulfilled.
Mantene said she agreed to the marriage after her husband promised that she would be able to return to school. After the marriage, she gave birth to her first child.
She said her husband continued telling her that he would support her education and that she would eventually return to school. More than five years later, however, Mantene remains out of school.
She is now pregnant with another child and spends much of her time caring for her home and children. “I wanted to become a nurse,” Mantene said, but, the longer she remains away from school, she said, the more difficult it feels to return.
Mantene also grew up in a family where girls were expected to marry at around 15. She said remaining unmarried at that age could raise concerns among family members. Today, all of her siblings are married, she said, adding that the consequences have extended beyond education.
According to Mantene, she has become almost completely dependent on her husband financially and cannot meet many of her personal needs without relying on him.
Even when she wants to learn a skill such as baking or catering, she said she needs assistance from other people. She hopes to receive support to attend vocational training so she can develop a skill and eventually earn an income.
“I want to learn something that can help me,” she said. She believes having her own source of income would allow her to contribute to her household while reducing the financial pressure on her husband.
Her husband, when interviewed, maintained that he has not abandoned his promise to support her education. He said he still intends to help her return to school, possibly after the birth of their next child.
For Mantene, however, the promise of returning to school remains unrealized. The nursing dream she carried as a 15-year-old student is still waiting.
Liberia’s National Policy on Girls’ Education identifies economic pressure and social norms as factors contributing to early marriage among girls. The policy says some parents, particularly in indigenous settings, encourage girls to marry at an early age when they should still be in school, sometimes viewing marriage as a source of support for the family.
The policy warns that girls who marry as children face increased health risks linked to early sexual activity and childbearing, including HIV and obstetric fistula. It also says they may face domestic violence, sexual abuse and exploitation, while early marriage can deprive them of education and meaningful work, contributing to persistent poverty, (5.1 Girls’ Rights and Protection Issues).
Right to Education, adopted on 19 October 2012 states: “Girls’ and women’s right to education is a central obligation of States parties under the CEDAW Convention.
“This obligation is set out in Articles 2 and 10 of the CEDAW Convention as well as in other international human rights documents (United Nations, 1979).
Gender-based violence takes on many forms, including incest, rape, sexual exploitation and abuse, genital mutilation, sexual harassment, domestic violence, and trafficking. Gender-based violence remains one of the most atrocious symptoms of gender inequality. Gender- based violence continues to increase despite protection mechanisms put in place to curtail these occurrences of physical, sexual, emotional, and psychological abuse and neglect.
Speaking to an official at the office of Local Government in Monrovia about child marriage, William Jallah said children getting under the age of 18 is against the law and it is a human rights violation.
He added that he can’t also tell people how to practice their culture; they can only engage with the community and have a dialogue about harmful practices.
The Ministry of Gender and Social Protection services in Liberia was reach but they didn’t provide much information concerning child marriage.
Speaking to a parent about child marriage, Mafant Kromah said it is good to marry your girl child soon before they commit sin. According to her, children having sex out of marriage is against Islam and their culture.
She added that if a child gets married young, she will be able to have children and won’t commit sin.
She said she is about 60 to 70, though she doesn’t remember her exact age but she was a virgin when she got married and if she was going to wait to be 20 or above, she would have done something out of her culture and religion.
She said it is just that things are changing but if she has her own will all her kids would have gotten married at a young age.
Sonii Kollie, a mother in her 40s, said she does not support early marriage and would not force her 16-year-old daughter into marriage.
Kollie said her daughter, who is in 10th grade, is already sexually active, but that would not change her decision to allow her daughter to continue her education.
According to her, she prefers talking to her daughter rather than forcing her into marriage.
According to Kollie, her own parents did not force her into marriage, and although she is not married, she said she was allowed to make her own decisions.
“If you force your child into marriage, you are risking her health,” Kollie said. She added that early marriage can make a girl feel more like a mother than a child because she may begin focusing on marriage and having children instead of continuing her education.
Kollie said she wants her daughter to become an independent woman and eventually make her own decision about marriage.
“I want my child to be somebody tomorrow, a good person who will be an independent woman and make her own decision about getting married instead of going into early marriage,” she said.
Imam Defends Early Marriage on Cultural and Religious Grounds:
Speaking to the head imam of the Duport road Mosque, Hassan Kamara said cultural and religious beliefs influence his support for girls marrying at an early age.
Kamara said, in his view, marriage can protect a girl from engaging in relationships outside marriage at a young age.
He questioned why people are strongly opposed to early marriage while not showing the same concern about young girls becoming involved with men before they reach adulthood.
He said many children in Liberia do not reach the age of 18 before becoming involved with men, but society often reacts more strongly when the issue becomes marriage.
Kamara said women in his own family, including his sisters and mother, married at a young age and, according to him, they are doing well and are happy in their homes.
He said his personal experience of seeing what he considers the benefits of early marriage has influenced his position.
“For cultural and religious reasons, it is better for your child to marry soon than for your child to be involved with men at a very young age,” Kamara said.
He said he would also allow his own children to marry at an early age because of his cultural and religious beliefs.
Kamara said he is grateful that he comes from a culture where early marriage is not viewed as negatively as it is in some parts of Liberia.
According to the national policy on girl education similar proportions of males (30.0 per cent) and females (30.6 per cent) are currently married, but widowhood is higher among females (3.0 per cent) than males (0.7 per cent).
Education and awareness campaigns could be intensified to highlight some potential benefits of reaching adulthood before marriage, such as increased maturity and stability.
Such campaigns could alleviate social pressure to marry early especially for females and ensure that girls stay in school. Policies supporting work-life balance (paid parental leave) and access to affordable childcare can empower individuals to pursue education and career goals before starting a family.
Child marriage remains a major problem in Liberia with 3.8 per cent (9,483) of females and 1.4 per cent (4,715) of males 12-17 years currently married.
In order to end child and early marriage, advocacy campaigns must be intensified to increase awareness about the poor consequences of child marriage using various channels such as media activities and also through grass root engagements.
The Government should partner with the relevant agencies to provide alternative opportunities like education, vocational and technical training to girls with a focus on rural communities.
Excellence Wutoh, a gender equality activist and head of the Initiative for Youth Empowerment and Economic Development (IYEED), said child marriage can take away opportunities that girls need to grow, receive an education and determine their own future.
Wutoh said some attitudes toward child marriage are rooted in the belief that men are entitled to control or “own” women and girls.
She recalled an elderly woman explaining to her that some men see women as property, creating a sense of entitlement to marry a girl regardless of her age.
“It’s where that entitlement comes in to feel like whether you’re of age or not, I should have you as my wife,” Wutoh said.
She said early marriage can affect a girl’s education, independence, health and future economic opportunities.
Wutoh also connected early marriage with poverty, saying girls who do not receive education and empowerment can become financially dependent.
“So, yes, if women are not educated, they’re not empowered, they’re definitely going to be behind financially,” she said.
She argued that Liberia loses potential when girls are pushed into marriage instead of being allowed to continue their education.
“Liberia tends to lose so much: economic impact, development, sustainability—everything is at stake if Liberia as a country does not empower their girl children,” she said.
Wutoh said girls should be given time to grow and become empowered before making major decisions about marriage and their future.
“The girl child should be given time to grow, she should be mature and empowered to the point where she can make her own decision about her body, her life choices, who she wants to have fun with, who she wants to marry,” she said.