Fighting child marriages in Zimbabwe: From Theory to Practice

The Sunday Mail 2 July 2017 screamed with the headline, "Child brides: From frying pan to the fire." The heading itself is loaded and portray a society that has failed the girl child. But the question is, 'What could be the missing link in the fight against child marriages in Zimbabwe?' Is it lack of  deterrent legal and policy framework? Could it be ignorance on the net effects of child marriages? Could it be lack of political will to fight the scourge?  Definite answers to the preceding questions are difficult to come up with but this article seeks to cross pollinate ideas on how to end child marriages in Zimbabwe. In the process of searching for answers, I would want to quote Nelson Mandela, "There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children." This paper is intended as a contribution to a debate about child marriages and how to end the scourge. A key premise of the paper is that the state- the political system matters most in the fight against evils in the society, such as child marriages.

Statistics on child marriages in Zimbabwe leaves a lot to be desired. It boggles the mind that a country with such literacy level is still suffering from a stone age practice where the girl child was viewed with disdain and reduced to be a sexual toy. According to the Sunday Mail 2 July 2017, the statistics of child marriages are as follows: Mashonaland Central 50%, Mashonaland West 42%, Masvingo 39%, Mashonaland East 36%, Midlands 31%, Manicaland 30%, Matebeleland North 27%, Harare 19%, Matebeleland South 18%, and Bulawayo 10%. These statistics are a tip of the iceberg. They are only cases that were reported yet there are so many cases that are swept under the carpet especially in the mapositori sects. What baffles the mind is that while the girl child is suffering there is someone involved in complicit.  

Limitations embedded in the current political system
The Constitutional Court ruling on child marriages was delivered on 21 January 2016. The court ruling was hailed in all corners of the country and even by the outside world as a great leap forward in the area of child protection. The writer penned an article hailing the court ruling as a step in the right direction but pointed out that we still have a mountain to climb. Indeed, it never occurred to many that the court's effort would be frustrated by a political system that lack urgency. It is now one and half years since the constitutional court outlawed child marriages but up to this day there is no law in place to effectively buttress and reinforce the court ruling. The Ministry of Justice has failed the girl child and the community at large. One wonder if someone is sleeping on duty. As if that is not enough, Parliament as full as it is, continue to betray progressive minded Zimbabweans who wish to see the end of child marriages. Parliament has been conspicuous about its absence in the fight against child marriages. Parliament's role to put the executive to account and to enact progressive laws has at worst been ad hoc and at best disjointed. The August house has failed to come up with a law criminalising child marriages in Zimbabwe. It's sad. It paints a gloomy picture.

The arguments above are that there is lack of political will to fight child marriages in Zimbabwe. There is case of indicating left but turning right. The three arms of the state are operating without jellying when it comes to issues to do with children. The right hand does not know what the left hand is doing. Therefore, it is apt to argue that the state is complicit in the fight against child marriages. As long as there are no laws that criminalise child marriages, then the fight against child marriages remain a rhetoric. It is just one of those issues that are only talked about for expediency sake and to get political mileage by politicians.   

What can be done?: An Agenda for research, policy and practice

Strong engagement with political leadership
There is need for engagement with political parties and parliaments more fully and directly. While parties have a poor reputation in many countries, they remain an essential intermediary institution linking citizens to governments. Therefore, parties are a necessary evil in the fight against child marriages and its related evils. On the other hand, parties, like parliament, urgently need to broaden their scope. They should come up with manifestos that accommodates the down trodden. Beyond winning votes, parties should be more responsive and professional as well as to develop greater policy expertise to address the genesis of child marriages. Our greatest tragedy at the moment is that women's issues are only considered for convenience purposes. They are not taken seriously. In her book entitled Women, Power and Policy, Marchbank (2000) talks about skirting the issue: power, non decision making and gender. She laments the subtle and covert uses of power to maintain the status quo. Thus non decision means are used to undermine women issues. Male chauvinists still view women in general and the girl child in particular with disdain.  

Moving away from buzzwords to action oriented approach
The catch phrase in Zimbabwe is that Zimbabwe has shown great commitment to the protection of children! What? Is that what we want? Do we eat commitment? What is fundamental is to ensure that the country's commitment is put into action in the fight against child marriages. To continue boasting about commitment is like bragging about untapped potential. Yes the country managed to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and other conventions meant to protect vulnerable members of our society. But that is not enough. The country's commitment should be put into action. We need results from the commitment. The girl child is suffering while the nation is busy bragging about commitment. Laws should be enacted to align them with the letter and spirit of the CRC, ACRWC as well as the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment Number 20 ACT 2013. Perpetrators of abuse against the girl child should be brought to book and deterrent measures should be put in place. Why are we massaging the egos of people who are destroying the jewel of our future? Parliament should deliver. As it stands today, parliament is a ghost character of itself. It is failing the nation. Imagine 210 members of parliament failing to take it upon themselves to engage the executive to spearhead the promulgation of child friendly laws! What a circus? Parliament should take a leading role to advocate for the vulnerable members of the community. The executive should be proactive in championing the implementation of child friendly laws and policies.

Making a more serious commitment to improving prevention and response to child marriages
The current discourse on child marriage is myopic. It is kneejerk oriented. This is an ordeal situation that exists in our midst. As a result the girl child continues to suffer in silence. What should be done is to go beyond a narrow focus on symptoms of child marriages. There is need to understand that child marriage is political, social and development issue. The focus should be on alleviating child marriages for sustainable and equitable development of the society. Therefore, the issue should actually be a priority in all child protection and gender policies.

In the final analysis, we need to go beyond rhetoric and be proactive. Let us put theory into practice. That is the Zimbabwe we want. A Zimbabwe free of child marriages.

Johanne Mhlanga is a social worker and he writes in his personal capacity. He can be contacted on johannemhlanga82@gmail.com or 0776308483