These days, the promotion of child marriage has shocked the Indonesian people. This promotion is under the guise of a wedding organizer to attract the public and then ‘sells’ religious identities. Not only by printed information media such as brochures and posters, but this promotion is also targeting the users of social media such as Facebook and Instagram. Undeniably, it shocked all parties, especially government of Indonesia, who is still not serious about overcoming this phenomenon.
In Indonesia, child marriage issue is not a new thing. Before the Independence Day of Indonesia, child marriage was a common problem and it was still perpetuated by culture and tradition. Indigenous communities in Indonesia have been familiar with the practice of ‘kawingantung’ for decades, which means that children are married in a religious pattern, but are only allowed to live in the same house after they grow up or mature. To those who respect human rights and the principles of gender equality, it might sound odd. Then a question arose: Why is this phenomenon still rooted in our society?
Between Tradition, Culture, Patriarchy and Poverty
Although Indonesia is recognized as a nation that respects and upholds human rights, it cannot be denied that the traditions and cultural values are remained strong. Indonesia will face the greatest obstacle in managing this problem. According to data by the Ministry of Women and Children’s Empowerment of the Republic of Indonesia (2020), from the 270 million of Indonesia total population, for about 11.2 percent of female were getting married at the age of 20-24 and 7.2 percent of female were getting married under the age of 17. Indonesia is ranked second according to the child marriage rate in the ASEAN countries.
From the historical perspective, during the chaotic period rights before independence of Indonesia, in the 1920s, women activists from the Netherlands had a deliberation about the tradition of marriage in Indonesia. One of the most worrying at that time is about child marriage which is very detrimental to women. These findings were later recorded in De Vrouw in Huis en Maatschappij: Propagandabladvoor de Vrouwenbeweging in Indonesie (1926). Through this book, it then triggered the implementation of the first Women’s Congress in Indonesia, namely on December 22, 1928, which later became the forerunner to the opposition to child marriage issue. After 20 years, to be precise in 1950, the Indonesian Women’s Congress proposed that the age limit of marriage for men is 21 years and for women is 18 years. But to strengthen the determination of the age limit for child marriage, it needs to be passed into a legitimate law in the legislative domain. The Marriage Law in Indonesia itself was issued and passed in 1974, then amended again in 2019, by setting the minimum age for marriage to be 19 years for both men and women.
The introduction and promotion of child marriage (for children aged 12 – 21 years) is strictly forbidden by the government when it comes to current regulations. In addition, this promotion tried to attract the public by using the tradition, faith and religion as the key factor. They also ensured the public that marrying children or young girls is one solution to avoiding sin. The tremendous fact also revealed by this promotion, which claimed that children or young girls could reduce the economic burden within their families by conducting early marriage. In this scenario, young girls are used as a sexual and economic asset for service providers. The strong system and adherence of the patriarchy in Indonesia is also become one of the reasons for the complexity of this problem. Greene and Stiefvater (2019) in their writing entitled “Social and gender norms and child marriage: A reflection on issues, evidence and areas of inquiry in the field” revealed that “Child marriage was one of the first areas of gender related inequalities to which social and gender norms perspectives have been applied. The rules of patriarchy underlie most systems of marriage, and an understanding of gender norms is fundamental to explaining and working to end this practice that is so harmful to girls in many parts of the world”. It can be interpreted that the practice of marriage for minors is very dangerous for girls, and this happens in almost all developing countries in the world.
How can we avoid child marriage?
The problem of child marriage in Indonesia is indeed difficult to overcome. However, that does not mean that it is impossible to take firm action against the perpetrators. There are several actions that might be conducted; first, the concerned of the people’s welfare is becoming the crucial homework for government. By elevating the people’s well-being, the child marriage on the pretext of economy can be avoided. Second, providing children and even their parents with an understanding of marriage is another fundamental thing that must be carried out by the government and relevant stakeholders immediately. Third, supporting traditional and religious leaders as the representatives of the society who can educate young girls about the effects of child marriage. Last, but also very important, by improving law enforcement against child marriage in Indonesia. The primary objective is to ensure that the law and human rights values are not simply a discourse, but are instead pursued and enforced upon with firm and real action.
