Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
Avenue de I’Independence
Ouagadougou o1 Bp 526
Burkina Faso
Dear Department of Human Rights,
I am writing to you about my serious concern about these girls that are being forced to marry at a really young age. Maria, who is a 13-year-old girl, was forced to marry a 70-year-old man, who had 5 wives before her. But she did not want to marry the man, her father forced her to marry the man by threatening her by saying he will kill her if she does not marry the man.
On the other side of the country where Maria lived, there were girls being forced to marry before they turned 18 years old. Also the girls were supposed to have as many children, as their “husband” commanded. This is really dangerous because these girls are young and their bodies are not fully matured enough to have children. This can cause serious damage to them and the baby. It is a health issue to them. They are not ready yet.
These girls would have to cook, clean, take care of the baby if they had one, take care of their husband,and also have to work in the farm fields. This is like slavery, back in the days it was just like this. These girls deserve to be treated like girls and not slaves. They are not ready for marriage yet or to have any children. They can not be forced to do something they do not want to do. These girls like Maria tried to escape in search for food and shelter where they can be safe.
The government of Burkina Faso needs to make a law to help these girls out.And my kindly request is to please make a law so these girls can be safe. Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Mabel Narayanan
Rambler Times 