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IN Zimbabwe many young girls are married off to men they do not love after they fall pregnant.
Many of these girls are victims of statutory rape, but the law, parents and society looks aside when the rapist dangles the carrot of marriage.
The unwritten rule is that a statutory rapist is exempted from punishment if he marries his victim.
This is mostly because culturally, the stigma of being raped is often too much for both rape victims and their parents, and many reluctantly agree to the marriage. Research shows that many statutory rape victims become victims of domestic violence.
Zimbabwe has a law that banishes and combats all forms of discrimination, including on the basis of sex.
The public authorities are encouraged to create conditions necessary for equality between female and male citizens and changes already made to Zimbabwe’s laws on women and girls have been heralded as an important step forward in promoting women’s equality in the family context.
However, the continuing practice of marrying off girls just because they got pregnant highlights that women and girls are still vulnerable to societal and legal discrimination and that accessing justice for abuse remains a serious challenge.
The law enforcers are still allowing the marriage of minors, and completely disregard the rights of the child and her vulnerability to abuse. Requiring a woman or girl to marry her rapist means that his violence is exonerated and her abuse continues. It sends the public signal also that a perpetrator, if caught, can have a way out of punishment.
The risk of violence starts early for many women and girls. Each year, millions of girls around the world are married before they turn 18.
Child marriage results in greater risk of domestic violence and sexual abuse, as well as a number of health issues, lower educational attainment, and lower lifetime earnings.
Where girls escape child marriage, they may still face violence at the hands of an intimate partner or family member.
Indeed, domestic violence is the most common form of gender-based violence, with not a single country in the world reporting prevalence rates of domestic violence lower than 5 percent.
Harmful social and gender norms, unbalanced power relations, low education, poverty and conflict are all either root causes or accentuate the risk of gender-based violence.
Once viewed as a private matter, domestic violence is now a matter of public health and global concern. Increased awareness has also led to significant changes in the legal framework of countries to step up protection for women and girls.
We call on the Government to make sure that all victims of statutory rape get justice.
The days of using marriage as an escape from justice must be banished to the past. Girls who cannot consent cannot be forced into marriages just because they are pregnant. Parents who force their girl children to marry must be arrested and charged with aiding and abating rapists.
Online Reporter