Say No to Child Marriage

The Say No to Child Marriage Campaign included a petition submitted to the Chief Minister, the Deputy Chief Minister, and government officials in India asking them to take serious action to prevent child marriage. According to the organisers, 8,000 people endorsed the campaign through their signatures. Children and community members sent approximately 1,000 letters/postcards to the Chief Minister in order to protest what they consider to be the continued complacency of the government in taking action on the issue.

The campaign includes action appeals to sectors that are considered to be important in encouraging social practices that encourage delaying marriage.

• NGOs - are encouraged to launch their own advocacy campaign against child marriage by issuing press releases, conducting programmes, and mobilising communities, They are encouraged to inform their own networks, and to raise this issue in forums and meetings. CWC is also requesting that organisations support the CWC petition or develop their own petitions to send to the Chief Minister of their respective states.
• Media - are urged to increase coverage of children's rights and child marriage, as well as write articles about the rallies and petitions that are part of the campaign. According to CWC, leading journalists have agreed to write feature articles, and awareness material in multiple languages is being developed. The media are being asked to print the petition, and to publish articles on the ill effects of child marriage and the extent of its incidence in Karnataka – in both urban and rural areas. The media are also encouraged to print articles written by children who have resisted early marriage and child activists who have supported their struggles by initiating direct action and sustained awareness campaigns against child marriages.
• The general public - is encouraged to support the petition either by sending an email to CWC or by sending an endorsement directly to the Chief Minister of Karnataka. Individuals are also encouraged to send letters to the press about concerns on the issue, and to inform family, friends, and colleagues about the campaign.

CWC's strategy includes incorporating children's participation into the campaign at all stages; they also encourage other organisations and government to consider children's participation. One example of this approach is a children's consultation in which children and accompanying adults were invited to discuss the campaign. CWC promoted the idea that the children who attended this consultation be given the opportunity to hold preparatory discussions with their peers, and to bring to the consultation a compiled set of suggestions and thoughts of their group about the campaign.

Face-to-face communication was also used to spread awareness. Field staff visited primary and high school students to conduct awareness workshops on the dangers and consequences of child marriages and HIV/AIDS, as well as the strategies they could use to prevent these problems in their communities. According to the organisers, teachers played an integral role in the sensitisation programmes in schools. Several discussions were held with community members, and public protests also took place.

A listserv was set up to spread awareness, initiate a dialogue, and keep people informed about the progress of the campaign. To subscribe, send an email to no_to_childmarriage-subscribe@yahoogroups.co.in

Children's rights.

According to CWC, every year, thousands of young girls and boys marry at an early age, resulting in mental, physical, and psychological trauma. Girls often bear children before their bodies are physically ready. CWC contends that the "State Government, elected members, the District Administration and the police have all turned a blind eye to the practice of child marriage even when actively requested to take action."