Friday, September 13, 2013

Blog 1: “Yemeni minister seeks law to end child marriage”



Blog 1: “Yemeni minister seeks law to end child marriage”

Summary:

This article takes place in the Middle East in Yeman. In this area, many girls wed at a young age. This is often common in poorer families for financial reasons. Recently, an eight year old girl, Rawan died of internal bleeding the night she wed a forty year old man, 5 times her age. There has still been no action taken against the man, however the prime minister says an investigation will be occurring and those involved will be brought to justice. The prime minister also believes that there is now a greater chance to fight to end child marriage in Yeman. A National Dialogue Conference has been meeting about the issue. However, there are still many people against setting a minimum marriage age due the country’s tradition, religion, and culture.

Analysis:

This story deals greatly with inequality. Getting married so early is a response to poverty to form mechanical solidarity. The family will let the girl get married at such a young age in order to help support their family and allow more financial stability. These customs are a part of their culture; however it becomes an issue when the girl is so young she is not sexually developed enough. The difference in social class in this society does not give young girls the same childhood experience. This issue is a social problem because it can be harmful to many individuals. From the response of the prime minister, one can see that she also believes it harms society and what is being caused is not what she believes their society should be.

Kasey Marshall
9-13-13
Child Marriage, Inequality


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