ANY proposal that seeks to place restrictions on male ‘privilege’ where it pertains to women triggers a predictable storm of protest in this country. Whether the issue is that of sexual harassment, domestic violence or child marriage, good sense and empathy are in scarce supply. Instead, self-righteous pontification and regressive obduracy animate the most vocal participants in the debate. So it was on Thursday, when the National Assembly Standing Committee on Religious Affairs declared as ‘un-Islamic’ the amendment suggested by PML-N MNA Marvi Memon to the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2014, which proposed that the minimum marriageable age for girls in Pakistan be raised to 18. Under the extant Child Marriage Act 1929, the minimum threshold is stipulated as 16 years. Members of the committee, after seeking the opinion of the Council of Islamic Ideology members, rejected the notion of placing any such limit, decrying it as a ‘Western’ idea and one that went against the culture, traditions and family values of Muslims.

The smokescreen of faith is a handy recourse in this country to counter attempts at ameliorating the rights of women and girls. Tradition is no excuse for retaining customs that are out of sync with modern thinking. Indeed, customs change over time — if that were not so, the practice of slavery would not be illegal in Pakistan. Marriage is not a relationship fit for those categorised as minors in other aspects of life. Operating a vehicle or casting a vote in this country require individuals to be aged 18 and above. And quite rightly so, for 18 is legal age of maturity in Pakistan. Why should marriage, navigating the many complexities of which requires not only physical maturity but also — and far more importantly — mental maturity, be any different? The pernicious custom of child marriage, still widely prevalent in many parts of the country, robs girls of their childhood and deprives them of opportunities to access education and gainful employment. It also puts their immature bodies at risk of conditions such as obstetric fistulae and increases their chances of dying in childbirth. The legislators’ callous disregard for the lives of Pakistani girls in rejecting the amendment could well slow the momentum created by Sindh, which in 2014 became the first — and so far only — province to raise the minimum marriageable age for girls to 18. It will, however, be welcomed by misogynistic sections of society, of which there are sadly too many.

Published in Dawn, January 17th, 2016