BANGLADESH

Child marriage couldn’t stop her from soaring

Fatima was the fifth girl child born to her parents and she was definitely not the child her mother was hoping for – a son. In the agricultural and fishing village of Boroitola, there are little opportunities for women. Most Muslim girls are married off by their parents as soon as they hit puberty. Fatima was no exception.

“The society I [was] born in was covered [with] superstitions and bigotry. Ever since I was a girl I had to [wear a] purdah^[1]  to go outside of the house. My parents forced me to wear a burkha^[2] at the age of ten, long before I got to understand the meaning of all these,” Fatima wrote.

At the age of 13, Fatima had an arranged marriage, without her consent. Religion was a big factor. “They said, it would be a sin if I do not get married now,” she narrated in her journal.

At that time, she was in her eighth grade. Getting married meant stopping school. After a year, she gave birth to her first son.

Describing herself as “rebellious” in spirit, Fatima was determined to resume her schooling. This caused considerable tension with her husband and in-laws. “I was consumed by the conflict in my household about continuing my studies…I discussed this with my parents, but they told me that women should adjust. They tried to make me understand that my heaven is under my husband’s feet, that he is always right and I should obey him and accept everything,” she related.

Fatima pursued her studies secretly. Her teachers encouraged her and helped her along. After she got her Secondary School Certificate in 1998, Fatima’s husband and parents-in-law found out and got angry. Still, she persisted. Two years after, she acquired her Higher Secondary Certificate and in 2012, went on to study Law. She described the constant struggle to finish her studies as “brutal torture” because of her husband and in-laws’ opposition. Once, she attempted suicide to escape this torment. “While I was in the hospital, one doctor told me, ‘Your life is not for you only. You have to live for others in society. Death is not the only solution.’ After this, I tried to live my life in a different way,” Fatima said.

She started to write about her feelings towards child marriage and women’s rights. Fatima penned poems and novels, which were published in three national dailies and a magazine. “I was inspired. I thought that I have to do more for society, so that what happened to me does not happen to anyone else,” she said. Fatima began to talk to other women who were victims of child marriage and domestic abuse.

She discovered other Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) issues. According to her, women cannot speak about their problems freely at hospitals and health care centers. Women do not get adequate health care and usually suffer from post-delivery complications. They also do not have information and access to birth control. She started organising women around SRHR issues.

Recognising that women need economic empowerment, Fatima took her advocacy a step further by putting up a tailoring shop. Gathering donations from well wishers, she bought sewing machines and employed underprivileged women, most of whom were victims of violence. She also used the income to pay for tuition for her Law studies.