[File Photo]

Civil society and faith-based organizations are calling for a collaborative effort to prohibit early and forced child marriage in the country.

This comes as Fiji’s first-ever Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey reveals that 12 percent of women in the Northern Division, nine percent in the Western Division, followed by eight percent each in Central and Eastern, aged 20–49, were married before the age of 18.

In response to this, the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement carried out a survey with 96 Fijian women across Fiji to understand why child marriages are still happening in Fiji.

FWRM Director, Nalini Singh

Fiji Women’s Rights Movement Executive Director Nalini Singh says that such an illegal practice not only compromises a child’s development but also severely limits their health, wellness, and opportunities in life.

“The main reason for underage girls to be married, not formally registered but customarily traditionally, was due to unintended teenage pregnancies. Secondary to that, in very small numbers, were poverty, unemployment, and low education levels.”

While highlighting concerns over less reporting on this matter, Singh is calling on enforcement agencies to focus on identifying victims of child marriage and prosecuting perpetrators.

Fiji Council of Churches General Secretary Simione Tugi also agrees that such matters are detrimental of our society.

“There are a lot of issues now in terms of poverty and all other issues that you raise, including social issues, and the only solution to them is to get married. But that’s not the answer to this problem because when you get married at a very young age, below 18 years old, you are exposing yourself to a lot more problems than what you’re trying to fix.”

These stakeholders also aim to work closely to disseminate information on access to justice in relation to child marriage.

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