As despicable as it is, child marriages/paedophillia is very common in our societies even with strong criticism and laws enacted against it. This disgraceful act is usually accompanied with child slavery and trafficking.
Even as I write, I have tears streaming down my cheeks and feel this soul crushing pain that makes one empty because I know we have not able to stop these abominable act. Those who should be advocating an annihilation and punishment for violators are even those engaged in it.
Statistics gotten is not enough to determine its occurrence because most people affected feel too helpless to report or seek justice. Cultural influence and stigmatisation is a steady fuel supply for this wild fire burning and scalding human dignity.
Every country has its unique legal age and this legal age may even be the genesis of our problems because even before this age, children seek independence over actions but puberty is usually linked to this behavioural change which I partially agree with.
At every developmental stage of a human's life, acquiring autonomy/independence is always our goal from crawling, standing,walking, trying to control our bowel and bladder amongst others. The strive for independence is innate and can only be suppressed temporarily.
Even after achieving the legal age, we still realise that we need guidance from people and situation around us to make decisions and strategize plans. Some will still argue that once a child decides on a request, it should be granted but we forget about that they are still undergoing development both in physical & mental fields and may not even have any experience or insight to what we are proposition that they do.
A horrendous thinking that children should be made to work "hard" at their young age as part of grooming is what triggers trafficking, abuse and child marriages. We forget that prepubescent and adolescent period are the times that determine and shape their personality, goals & attitude and guide them according to human right laws and legal laws of the Land. We abuse the power of guiding these young, vulnerable ones by choosing for them even when they show no interest in what we chose for them.
Marriage however is a sensitive issue that even adults still have difficulty understanding and coping with. Work on the other hand requires one's willingness, attention and decision to do it. Sexual activities concerning adults have different values and beliefs that surrounds it and all these requires one's consent, willingness and preparedness. This privilege is not given to some children as they are forced, cajoled, threatened to submit to these activities with no one to save them from it and the aftermath of its outcome on their lives.
It is no longer news to see under-aged children punished,mutilated, outcasted, humiliated and stigmatised for refusing to engage in these 3 controversial issues. Those who hide behind the charade of culture to promote these act of cruelty need to realise that change is eminent and those who refuse to adapt and define their way through it end up under-developed. With time we would need to adapt to change, modify our way of life and even abandon some act.
What is the use of indulging in acts that only endanger us with no value to our development? Child marriages traumatise the child physically, psychologically and emotionally because it inhibits the child from engaging in normal physiologic process of self discovery since the child will have to perform the marital duties, focus on work he/she has obliged to do. Potentials are limited, dreams are often crushed as the child will turn for focus to her matrimonial duties. We see all this happening around us and turn away because they are not our siblings. We act indifferent because we did not experience this cruelty.
These children that should be the solution to various problems in our society are allowed to waste away their potentials, bury their dreams and you still ask Why can't we get solutions to our problems? Why is our generation lacking innovations and inventions? The people who should achieve this are toiling day and night or suffering emotionally and physically with undiscovered identities.
Everyone has the duty to contribute his/her quota to development, peace,happiness of his immediate society and the world at large. Let's work hard together with no discrimination, marginalisation to help eradicate this menace forever. The second we all come to a resolve to physically adopt laws to punish people engaged in it regardless of their social status, we are 10steps closer to resolving this criminal case.
This fight for humanity must be won. Let us not relent, let us all fight for every child as if they are own own siblings or our child or our own twin. Let us leave no stone unturned in identifying people engaged in these act and bring them to justice. Let us not watch our future leaders toil/work away their potentials on menial jobs and slavery. Lets not enslave our future leader's happiness, dreams and life purpose to matrimonial bonds even we adults still don't fully comprehend. Let's give our future leaders a chance with guidance and education to identify their true self and explore what they can offer to develop our world.
Speaking in unity will help us to achieve success. We need to channel the resilience that was used to eradicate slavery into this because this is not just great crime to humanity but another form of slavery.
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