Girls, Not Brides: Colombia Poised to Ban Child Marriages

Following a 17-year struggle to address the devastating impact of child and teen marriages, the Colombian Senate passed the “Girls, not Brides” legislation, which would prohibit these marriages, with no exceptions. The approval of this bill on November 13th positions Colombia to join 11 Latin American countries that protect the rights of their minors. Although President Gustavo Petro has yet to sign the bill into law – conciliation in the House of Representatives is still in process – the outlook is positive given that his administration celebrated the approval of the project on its website.

“Today, Colombia leaves the shameful list of countries that allow child marriage,” said Congresswoman Jennifer Pedraza, the youngest member of the House of Representatives, who with Congresswoman Alexandra Vásquez co-sponsored and promoted the legislative project. The legislators come from different political parties, Dignidad y Compromiso and Pacto Histórico, respectively.

In an interview with IDARE, Congresswoman Vásquez attributed the successful passage of the legislation to “a broader group of women entering congress, who put in place a gender-based agenda, an agenda focused on the children and adolescents of this country.”

Advocacy groups in Colombia committed to children’s rights and gender equality, such as Girls Not Brides, Equality Now, and Valientes Colombia, recognize that Child, Early and Forced Marriage or Union (CEFMU) is a fundamental violation of human rights. The passage of "Girls, not Brides" eliminates an article in Colombia’s civil code from 1887, which permitted marriages and unions of minors.

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment of Colombia – UN Women – and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) supported the bill. The UN's 2018 regional study of Latin America and the Caribbean found that Colombia ranks 20th globally in child marriages of girls under 15 years of age, with approximately 28% of women in Colombia married or entered into a union before the age of 18.

According to girlsnotbrides.org, 23% of girls in Colombia marry or enter a union before age 18 and 5% before age 15, while 7% of boys marry before the age of 18.

CEFMUs are more common in Colombia’s rural areas where four in 10 girls are married or in informal unions before the age of 18. There are significant differences depending on race and ethnicity, such as Afro-descendant girls who are almost twice as likely to enter a marriage or union before the age of 15. Close to a third of indigenous girls and adolescents marry before the age of 18, compared to one in 10 in non-indigenous groups.

“To familiarize Colombians with this legislation, we held workshops around the country with other organizations to urge that they prioritize the initiative in their agendas”

Danitza Merentes, co-founder of Valientes Colombia, spoke to IDAR/E about how the movement around the bill engaged Colombians and built momentum for it. “To familiarize Colombians with this legislation, we held workshops around the country with other organizations to urge that they prioritize the initiative in their agendas,” she said. "Letters went out to senators. We met several times with the authors of the legislation to refine our engagement strategies. And to spread the word broadly, we reached out to the press and developed a robust social media outreach.” This work became all the more critical as Colombia’s Senate debated the legislative proposal nine times.

According to two UN studies, girls who end up in these early “unions” are vulnerable to violence and sexual abuse, often at the hands of partners years older than themselves. According to UNICEF Colombia, 73% of girls aged 10 to 14 in unions reported being with men over 20 years old. Poverty, they report, also has an adverse impact on the girls, putting them at higher risk of being sold in exchange for cattle, land, or money, a culturally sanctioned practice not limited to Colombia.

“Barriers exist in impoverished communities,” explains Vásquez, “where poverty makes [this type of exchange] seem like the only possible alternative to getting out of poverty and misery. There are many stories of that practice here in Colombia. We hope that by implementing the civil code that eliminates child marriage and by proposing legislation for a dignified life, that these historically entrenched practices will be eradicated.”

Advocates also encountered resistance to the proposed law when confronted with the deeply rooted practices of indigenous communities. In what appeared to be an uphill battle, some indigenous women did come forward to express their support, wishing to end these practices and protect the girls in their community, an advance that advocates consider significant.

Both Pedraza and Vásquez speak of two Colombias, the urban and the rural, and point to the different realities that characterize them. A significant gap is the lack of access to health, sexual and reproductive rights and services, a much bigger problem in the countryside.

In an TV interview with “Nos cogió la noche,” Pedraza makes clear that the legislation does not guarantee that the practice of adolescent marriages and unions will be resolved. “I am aware that this is a multicausal problem,” she states. However, she said the bill is “sending a clear message that Colombia’s civil code does not sanction adolescent marriages.” Beyond prohibiting child marriage, the expected states that the Colombian government should implement a holistic national program that supports personal development and offers alternatives for the future of boys, girls, and teenagers.