The working session will be convened by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Forum for National Human Rights Institutions in Kigali, Rwanda, 5-7 May 2015.
National human rights institutions, with the support of the Commonwealth Secretariat, civil society organisations and regional bodies will formulate a set of commitments aimed at the prevention and elimination of child, early and forced marriage in the Commonwealth at a two-day meeting in Rwanda.
The working session convened by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Forum for National Human Rights Institutions will take place in Kigali, Rwanda between 5 and 7 May 2015.
The meeting will provide a platform for Commonwealth national human rights institutions to discuss best practice initiatives currently underway to prevent and eradicate child, early and forced marriage. They will also agree on a set of actions and commitments – the Kigali Declaration - to support and strengthen initiatives to prevent and eradicate child marriage.
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Josephine Ojiambo described the meeting as “timely” to step up efforts to prevent and eliminate child, early and forced marriage as mandated by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their meeting in 2013.
She said: “Child, early and forced marriage poses a serious challenge to the development and human rights of the girl child. For as long as the global estimate is that by 2020, 140 million girls under the age of 18 will be forced to marry, with half of these girls living in the Commonwealth, there remains a significant challenge for us to address.
“The working session in Kigali marks an essential step for national human rights institutions across the Commonwealth to consolidate and calibrate successful and impactful interventions and outline a common, pragmatic and sustainable way forward.”
The Commonwealth Charter, Strategic Plan and Plan of Action for Gender Equality all identify equality and women’s empowerment as essential preconditions for sustainable development in the Commonwealth.
Child marriage disproportionately affects girls. It is not only a cause and consequence of gender equality but is also a violation of basic human rights.
The removal of children from education in order to prepare for, or to enter into such a marriage severely impacts upon further intellectual, social, sexual and self-awareness development, which is a requisite for participation within a larger community or society.
Not only does forced removal from schooling result in the loss of crucial educational qualifications, which is a requirement for income earning to support the girl and her family, it deprives the child of self-authorship and a sense of autonomy crucial for independence within personal, professional and sexual relationships.
Child marriage also undermines the right to health, exposing girls to a forced and traumatic initiation into sex, as well as unplanned and frequent pregnancies. Complications in pregnancy are the main cause of death for 16-19 year-olds in developing countries.
Child brides often have heavy restrictions placed on their movements and have little or no recourse to justice to escape situations which are tantamount to sexual slavery, child trafficking and child labour. Without skills, mobility, education, autonomy and supportive networks, they are unable to lift themselves and their children out of cycles of poverty, violence and deprivation.
The first UN Human Rights Council resolution to prevent and eliminate child, early and forced marriage was adopted in 2013. The resolution recognised the practice as a barrier to the economic and social development of women and girls and the community as a whole, therefore limiting progress on achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
Following this working session, the Commonwealth Secretariat will continue its support to national human rights institutions to implement commitments made in Kigali. It will also take further its leadership and advocacy for the prevention and eradication of child, early and forced marriage at the Commonwealth Women’s Forum at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Malta in November 2015.
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