Children need to be cared for in a way that promotes their ability to thrive and ensures their survival and protection. Raising kids is one of the toughest and most fulfilling jobs in the world and the one for which you might feel the least prepared. Parents should always take care of their children, no matter the age. But, unfortunately, this was not the case with this 8-year-old girl – Rawa. The 8-year-old child bride, who was forced to marry a 40-year-old man, died after wedding night, local news outlets have reported.
The girl, only identified as Rawa, has reportedly died of internal bleeding on her wedding night after marrying a man five times her age, a social activist and two local residents said, in a case that has caused an outcry in the media and revived debate about child brides. Arwa, head of Yemen House of Folklore and a leading rights campaigner, said the girl was married to a 40-year-old man late last week.
“On the wedding night and after interc0urse, she suffered from bleeding and uter!ne rupture which caused her death,” she told Reuters. “They took her to a clinic but the medics couldn’t save her life.” Arwa said authorities had not taken any action against the girl’s family or her husband. A local security official in the provincial town denied any such incident had taken place. He did not want to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the press.
But two local residents contacted by Reuters confirmed the incident and said that local tribal chiefs had tried to cover up the incident when news first broke, warning a local journalist against covering the story.
Many poor families in the country marry off young daughters to save on the costs of bringing up a child and earn extra money from the dowry given to the girl. A U.N. report released in January revealed the extent of the country’s poverty, saying that 10.5 million of Yemen’s 24 million people lacked sufficient food supplies, and 13 million had no access to safe water and basic sanitation.
Featured Image – Representative
