Think of yourself as a teenager, enthusiastic about the world. You have ambitious goals, which will help you achieve your dreams. You want to be a teacher, a lawyer, a doctor, or maybe an engineer. You see your body as a freshly bloomed flower, and enjoy immersing yourself in a romantic love story. However, life sometimes overturns all expectations. You are asked (or rather “forced”) to marry in order to improve the fate of the family. You are forced to marry in order to avoid sin. You are forced to marry by custom. You live your life as a mother, even though you’re still a child. You marry to obey your parents, and now you must obey a husband you do not recognize. Your dreams of becoming a lawyer, teacher, or doctor instantly waver.
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The Judicial Review Judgment of the Constitutional Court No. 30-74 / PUU-XII / 2014, which fails to raise the marriage age in Indonesia, is alarming in the middle of the world’s call to end child marriage. Data released by the Council of Foreign Relations, stated that Indonesia is one of the ten countries in the world with the highest number of children. In the ASEAN region, Indonesia is second only to Cambodia. In Indonesia, West Java accounts for the highest number of children. Of course this is increasingly intertwined with the high instance of human traffiking within this region. The current state of the global economy, will lead to poverty that drives people to do anything to survive. In the ASEAN region, marriage has been used to camouflage issues child prostitution and trafficking (Plambech, 2010; Lainez, 2010).
The law of marriage in Indonesia is still discriminatory, and is likley a contributing factor to the high instances of violence against women. This particular law will no doubt lead to the inhibition of girls’ access to their basic rights, such as education and health. The Marriage Law No. 1 of 1974, article 7, paragraph 1, states that marriage is only permitted when the man reaches the age of 19 years, and when women have reached the age of 16 years. Refusal of judicial review of the marriage age limit indicates that the state is neglecting to protect girls. The Decision of the Constitutional Court (MK), is also contradictory to Law No.35 of 2014 on Child Protection, especially article 26 paragraph 1 (c), which states that parents are responsible for preventing marriage of their children if they are underage. Under Article 1 of the Child Protection Act, this includes all children under the age of 18.
Issues relating to child marriage in Indonesia can not be separated from underlying economic, social, and cultural issues. In addition to poverty and low education, cultural situations also affect the rate of child brides. In West Nusa Tenggara, child marriage occurs because of the mechanism of merariq culture in the Sasak community. The Merariq system indicates that when a woman goes to the house with a man at night, then it is a sign that they are getting married. Therefore, the education of customary law of merariq culture must be addressed so that child marriage can be prevented (Fajriyah, 2016: 72-73).
Child marriage in Indonesia is worrying. Data in 2012 shows that about 11.13% of girls marry between the age of 10-15 years, and about 32.10% marry between the age of 16-18 years. The practice of child marriage must be stopped. In addition to limiting the potential of children, it can also result in high maternal mortality rates in Indonesia. Statistics shows that mortality occurs in 359 / 100,000 live births, and 48/1000 births where mothers are between 15-19 years (SDKI, 2012 in Candraningrum, Journal of Women Vol .88, February 2016).
The causes of child marriage can not be separated from three things: (1) poverty and poor access to education; (2) the rise of religious fundamentalism which renders the discussion of sexuality and adultery taboo; and (3) poor access to HKRS (sexual health rights of reproduction) (Grijns, et al, 2016). Based on these studies, it is recommended to reduce child marriage rates by incorporating comprehensive sexual education into the school curriculum, so that children and adolescents know their sexual reproductive health rights.
Another avenue to prevent child marriage is to create policy through the Regional Regulation (Perda). This has taken place in the Gunung Kidul district, Yogyakarta, through the Regulation of the Regent (Perbub) Gunung Kidul No.36 of 2015. A similar process has occurred in the West Nusa Tenggara Province, through the Governor’s Circular Letter No. 150/1138 / Kum on Marriage Maturity (PUP), which recommends marriage age for men and women to be at least 21 years of age (www.ntbprov.go.id, 2015). Various policies made by local governments as an effort to eradicate child marriage, is promosing at a time when the central government is ignorant of this issue. In addition, the involvement of the community is also necessary, as has been the case in Gunung Kidul, Yogyakarta. Policymakers, in conjunction with citizens, have together promoted a MoU-based integration network (collective agreement) to eliminate child marriage (Sundari, 2016). During child marriages, related parties such as the Head of RT, RW, Village Head, KUA officers, puskesmas, farming groups, police and NGOs visit and educate families, so that marriage can be prevented. This movement has been succesful in reducing child marriage from 9 cases in 2012, down to 8 cases in 2013, and to only 5 cases in 2014. (Sundari, 2010: 45-46).
However, the push to eliminate child marriage is not only necessary in terms of prevention, but also must be approached through providing post-marriage assistance. Childhood should be a happy time, involving playing, learning, and developing self potential. Counseling young married mothers should include education on sexual reproductive health, parenting, teaching, and strengthening capacity to eliminate possible trauma, including legal counseling when there is a tendency to divorce, as well as training to encourage their potential in the area of a creative endeavor. Such assistance should involve various social groups such as the government, community, clerical groups, and especially families.
Child marriage is a global problem experienced by many countries in the world. ASEAN itself has also committed to eliminating violence against children, including child marriages through the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Children (ASEAN RPA on EVAC). The ASEAN commitments include prevention, protection and raising awareness to prevent violence against children physically, sexually or psychologically. The aspirations of ASEAN should encourage the Indonesian government to respond to the emergency of child marriage that is currently occuring.
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This article was written by Meike Lusye Karolus, a researcher at the Center for Southeast Asian Social Studies (CESASS).