Category Prevention

In the social work sector, during training or interactive events, the event management team or NGOs strive to understand the reasons behind advocating and taking a stand against child marriage.

In October 2022, a representative from Console Mission attended an event hosted by a coalition of NGOs dedicated to eradicating child marriage in Nepal. During an introductory session, the director divided the attendees, asking those married before the age of 18 or related to someone who was to move to the right side, and all others to the left. The exercise aimed to identify victims of child marriage. Surprisingly, more than half belonged to neither category, and while some knew of such cases, no direct victims were present. Locating a victim is feasible, yet it requires public outcry. Nonetheless, questioning the effectiveness or deeming efforts to halt child marriage as futile is not constructive.

Our research indicates that three out of five individuals marry early and either do not complete their education or stop after grade 10. It is common to find that many parents and their ancestors also married at a young age.

Discussing marriage with teenagers is not a common practice now. However, our colleague, a male, was encouraged by his grandfather at the age of 12 to find a wife. His grandparents had married at the same age without understanding what marriage entailed. Another case involves a woman employed at the Chief District Office in the western part of the country, who was abandoned by her husband after giving birth to a daughter. She was a teenager in love. Similarly, her daughter and her niece also married as teenagers and did not finish their schooling.

Many of our parents, and their parents before them, married before the age of 18, some even before 16, and often had children within a year of marriage. This practice continues today. Last June and July, three 14-year-old girls associated with Console Mission were married. Today, Console Mission learned that one girl, Sumitra, and her husband will soon have a homecoming celebration. They were friends, and after one married, the other two followed. This occurred as Console Mission was transitioning the Our Study Place project to the community. Over the past five years, since 2018, there had been a decline in such cases. The older sisters of these girls, who were students and volunteers at OSP, completed school and were expected to take on their roles. One who had married earlier began her role but then visited Console Mission’s office, possibly hoping to find a place at the Self Managed Home. It wasn’t easy for her to ask, and she may not have shared her situation, especially with her older sister who was planning to attend college after completing her SEE.

Indeed, it’s not just in the past; we are still surrounded by victims.

While marriage might be a means for many teenage girls to support their lives, they often end up as victims. They are expected to give birth, manage household chores, tend to livestock, and work the land to cultivate crops such as maize and green vegetables.ables.

A girl who excelled in the SEE was advised to enroll in a technical course beneficial for her village, known for its milk production from livestock such as buffalo, cows, and goats. However, she married. The Console Mission learned from her husband’s uncle that she was expected to manage the household, livestock, fields, and bear children. Yet, the girl insisted her husband valued education and would support her college attendance.

Before Console Mission initiated Our Study Place, an educational program for children, underage marriages were rampant from 2015 to 2017, with girls under 15 marrying and conceiving.

Console Mission encountered a grade 9 scholarship recipient who married. She claimed she quit school to care for her ill father, but soon after, she fled. Her mother, speaking to Console Mission fearfully, revealed her daughter could have married a year earlier if not for the scholarship. Despite counseling from Console Mission on family planning and sexual health, the young girl faced life-threatening complications during childbirth and was rushed to the hospital.

Another case involved a boy whose mother died during his birth. He never met her and grew up with two older sisters. His father had longed for a son, possibly pushing the mother beyond her physical limits. She married young, had two children, and succumbed to the strain. Teenage years should be for growth and development, but early entry into the reproductive cycle, contrary to medical advice, can lead to both social and physical ailments.

The story unfolds with a boy whose mother passed away during his birth. He never had the opportunity to meet her. He grew up with two older sisters, and a father who longed for a son. Perhaps his mother was physically unable to bear more children. She married young, had two children during her teenage years—a time when individuals should focus on their personal development. Medical science sets guidelines for entering the reproductive cycle, aimed at improving global health. Ignoring these guidelines leads to social and physical disorders that persist over time.

Breaking this cycle is imperative. Without collective support, it is not feasible. Thus, we invite you to join us. Leaving no one behind is crucial, or else our world faces jeopardy. The pandemic has shown us that the suffering of one person, family, or community can have a lasting negative impact worldwide.

Console Mission’s initiative highlights the importance of advocacy for children’s needs and rights. While parents and adults may know the law, the absence of enforcement leads to the continuation of teenage marriages as cultural norms, perpetuating these practices.

Roshan is a faith-based emerging young volunteer targets to reach each household in his village. In 5-days he learned that his community is in need of health materials and food relief.

After learning about how communicable disease spreads and how it is prevented, Rohan started reaching each household. There are 120 households that he is planning to reach. In the last 5 days he reached about 35 households. The villages are part of the hill district but the areas are plain and being close to the tropical district, it is hot.

In the last 5 days he experienced new things. He never thought that he would be capable of playing an important role in the areas of health. Everything is closed but he managed the necessities before starting. As he walks and meets people, he feels he is creating hope by teaching about prevention from communicable diseases.

Toilet: Proper sanitation facilities (for example, toilets and latrines) promote health because they allow people to dispose of their waste appropriately. Throughout the developing world, many people do not have access to suitable sanitation facilities, resulting in improper waste disposal.

Absence of basic sanitation facilities can:

• Result in an unhealthy environment contaminated by human waste. Without proper sanitation facilities, waste from infected individuals can contaminate a community’s land and water, increasing the risk of infection for other individuals. Proper waste disposal can slow the infection cycle of many disease-causing agents
• Contribute to the spread of many diseases/conditions that can cause widespread illness and death. Without proper sanitation facilities, people often have no choice but to live in and drink water from an environment contaminated with waste from infected individuals, thereby putting themselves at risk for future infection. Inadequate waste disposal drives the infection cycle of many agents that can be spread through contaminated soil, food, water, and insects such as flies.

Prevention is better than cure

Prevention is better than cure

Earth has been a challenging place for us and all living being. If we look at our cloths that we are wearing, it is either thin or thick that might be according to what we are feeling warm or cold. And, is not it is directly connected to the changing weather? Or, how do you select for your body? Right here, I suggest that if you have not considered nature as adversaries for surviving, then please start thinking about it. When was the last time you flew to another place? It is an innovation that has brought world nearer. It is really useful and meeting the need by shortening the time that used to take more hours or days before. Still plane manufacturers and scientists are exploring ways to shorten the time taken shown in Discovery TV Channel. My grandfather used to share that reaching the nearest place taking 2-hours now by road used to take 3-days; he used to walk up the hill, passing jungles and rivers, needed to hold at villages or in cave at night. During monsoon it was challenging to cross rivers. But, since his height was 6.1 feet, he used to help other traveller to cross. There are stories on journey by foot when there were no vehicles and roads. But, concentrating the title of this article: Have not we human changed the picture of past, created uncountable wearable, edible and usable goods in different form, shapes and sizes, tastes and colours that is troubling enough? In Nepal we can find bread made by Nanglo, a bakery company that has expiry date clearly mentioned in it. It is a tiny example, I have experienced that as the expiry date approaches, the color of crust or end piece of bread was changing into green and next day suddenly white moist was seen. The fact is that human made things has limitations. Is not anything manufactured caution safety matters? However, safety and precautions are applied producing goods or designing services, the end of human life is sure.

Human being is better journeying days to reach from one place to another. It helped to keep physically fit, caring the environment and increase and develop close intimacies between human beings. Moreover, it helped to understand the controls of nature.

Similarly, the current situation created by coronavirus health pandemic, death/life situation is not only the time that uncertainties and safety concerns. Every time when we travel by or drive modern means, we follow rules because risks matters most. Now, yes, it is stupid to talk about hope but better first to talk about fearlessness because if a person has hope he/she do not have fear, mostly fear of death. Those who have not found full happiness or a little happiness then fear of the current situation kills. As well as every moment is fearful because of the lack of hope. The another fact is that the world is full of fear. And, crossing the limitations has brought us into this hopeless situation. Thus, those who have been living understanding the fact about the limitations and the unlimited love that is already available for us have no fear of this kind of sudden situation. Because, once human being has crossed the limitations failing to follow the advise though there was limitless environment managed by the creator.

The earth is in such a situation that a result of uncaring prevention. Squeezing the margins between risk and safety/caution is the result of current situation.

A place managed by the Government of Nepal for study.

“It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.” Mahatma Gandhi