Adolescent Health

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BRIDE Price AND Wellness:

Domestic violence and health inside the culture of bride price

Author: Dan K. Kaye

Paper presented at the International Conference on Bride Price and Development

Makerere University Institute of Pc Sciences

February 16th – 18th 2004

Bride price as a gender concern

Gender is the social construction of men’s and women’s roles and responsibilities, and the relative value as nicely as status attached to the socially determined roles and responsibilities. Gender is important for Sexual and Reproductive Health for a number of factors:

Gender influences decision-creating and access to or control of economic resources and opportunities, between males and females (gender equality). It also influences justice/fairness in distribution of resources according to the value attached to these roles (gender equity).

Gender is related to how we are perceived and expected to think and act as ladies and men because of the way society is organized, not because of the biological differences.

Bride price as a gender problem affects the broader context of women’s lives. This is due to the fact gender refers to how individuals are perceived (or perceive themselves), or perceive any activity, (such as payment of bride cost) as determined by the society in which they are. This influences what roles are regarded as proper for them. In various societies, the significance of bride price as a gender problem is dependent on:

1 what form it takes (supplies or cash)

2 when is it paid (at what stage of the marital relationship or the woman’s life cycle)

three how the payment is created (in 1 sum, once or in instalments)

Dynamics of bride cost payment

What are motivations for bride wealth?

1 Social security (Those who can supply gifts or bride wealth are perceived to be marriageable, much more significant about marriage)

2 Social status amongst peers. For women, having been paid for may possibly improve their social status, specially where they are in favour of the relationship

3 Economic security (Rich men and those who can afford to pay a high bride cost are perceived to be much more likely to support the woman if she became pregnant or sick). Numerous girls with older partners who offer material rewards have young or primary boyfriends with whom they maintain a far more severe relationship with intention of later marriage

four Social and economic institutions

The quantity of money or material gifts exchanged, and the value attached to the gifts by the community are a symbol of what the girl is worth.

This gift exchange increases the prestige of both the man, the woman and the two respective families

Bride cost and well being

Background conventions

1 United Nations General Assembly’s Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Girls (CEDAW)

Emphasized equality of the sexes

Post 1 deplores any forms of distinction, exclusion or restriction on basis of sex, which has the effect of or purpose of impairing or nullifying recognition, enjoyment or exercise of rights, by girls, irrespective of their marital status

Write-up three calls on member and signatory countries to take up all suitable measures which includes legislation, to ensure advancement for females in terms of rights and opportunities

2 The International Conference on Population and Development 1994.

In 1994, government delegations from 179 countries and a lot of representatives of civil society met at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo, Egypt.

Participants at this meting reached a consensus that emphasized meeting people’s holistic wellness and development needs. three. This Programme of Action called for:

Empowerment of females both as a matter of social justice and as the key to enhancing the good quality of life for all individuals.
Meeting the reproductive well being requirements of the people via choice and opportunity rather than coercion and control,
Mobilization of resources to meet previously neglected well being and social wants.

Reproductive well being

Reproductive Wellness is a state of total physical, mental and social nicely being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters related to the reproductive method and to its functions and processes (ICPD Programme of Action 1994).

It implies that men and women really should have satisfying and safe sex lives, and have the capacity to have kids and to choose if, when, and how typically to do so.

Key Problems about Bride price and well being

It contradicts the four ethical principles on which Sexual and Reproductive Wellness really should be based. These are:

1 Bodily integrity

Right of security and control over one’s life, such as sexual freedom.

In a lot of cases where bride wealth is paid, the girls do not take part in the negotiations, and usually do not know how considerably is exchanged. In a way, bride wealth deprives women of sexual freedom and ends up as a way of exploitation of the woman’s sexuality by way of commercialisation or commoditization of this sexuality

2 Personhood

The right to self-determination: treating ladies as principal actors on issues that relate to, impact or influence women’s well being. They ought to be subjects on important decisions to make, not mere objects

three Equality

There really should be equal access to opportunities, resources and power/control over resources between men and women. Where bride cost is paid, the impression is that the woman is bought into the men’s household, and so the man and his household have absolute powers and control over the woman. In this respect, the woman has little choice-creating power in the household.

The three dimensions of gender inequality relate to differences between males and females with respect to:

1 Power (control over resources, decision-producing for key functions at household)

2 Prestige (the woman’s status or esteem that is attached to her social position and multiple roles as a wife, mother, society member)

three Access to resources, opportunities (specially financial)

Although it may possibly in some situations improve prestige for some females, bride price tends to worsen the existing gender inequalities and inequities, with severe implications for reproductive well being. Gender inequality is of fantastic significance in reproductive wellness decision producing specifically:

In making decisions to seek care during medical emergencies

In freedom of movement

In freedom to use reproductive health services, such as family members planning, antenatal care, child immunization

Where it reduces on the power and prestige of the woman, the belief that the woman was paid for, belongs to the man and has much less choice-generating power in the property, such inequality may possibly lead to domestic violence that is sanctioned by the given society and culture

4 Diversity

Females are not homogeneous, and have different attributes that arise from their various races, ages, tribes, and social classes. There should be respect of the differences between ladies at all stages of the life cycle. Bride price tends to get rid of this heterogeneity between ladies.

Effects of bride price on wellness

1 It perpetuates the gender inequalities and inequities

Bride cost could lead to unequal gender power relations in the household and consequent domestic violence. Violence occurs when females try to challenge or overcome the existing gender inequality in regard to power, access to resources, choice-generating and prestige, within a given society or cultural context.

Those without economic power are at a disadvantage in negotiating sexual relations. Limited capacity of the “commodity receiver” to negotiate safe sexual practices and behaviour, such as use of contraceptives and barrier techniques

In order to get bride wealth for men in a given family members where there is a girl, the girl may possibly be forced to marry at an early age. His brothers then get the bride wealth to pay for their own wives from other families. This limits opportunities and access to resources to girls and girls in their parents’ households.

2 It leads to commercialisation of sexuality.

Girls who are young, educated or from some families could attract a higher bride cost than those who are not educated or are older. The bride wealth that is paid could be utilised by the brothers of the woman for marriage. Likewise, men more well off financially may be far more likely to marry off a lot more and even young girls.

Adolescents form a big proportion of men’s non-marital sexual partners. Commoditization of sexuality might lead to high rates of sexually transmitted infections, which includes HIV infection with greater rates in 1 sex compared to the other, or high rates that can not be explained by mere biological elements, at distinct stages of the life cycle. This may possibly be due to disparity for sex-caused and age-caused differences in the relative proportions of those who are HIV-infected. There is disparity in HIV infection rates between males and females among adolescents and youths, as men, who can afford to marry more females by affording bride wealth, go for younger women, or tend to have multiple partners. Such young females have higher rates of HIV infection than youths or other women of the very same age

Numerous girls who are not married grow to be stigmatised. They may have sexual relations with rich (frequently older) partners with the hope of improving their marriage opportunities. In case they conceive before marriage, this reduces their prospective for marriage. For that reason, such conception may lead to unplanned or unwanted pregnancies, a lot of of which end up as induced abortions with other adverse reproductive well being consequences

3 The desire to get bride wealth may lead to early or forced marriages, such as betrothing young girls. This affects the girl’s education opportunities. This may also lead to:

Early marriage and adolescent pregnancy with its complications such as adverse/poor obstetric outcomes

High fertility rate as many females may possibly desire to produce girls in order, when they are married off, they bring wealth into the family members to enable their sons to get sufficient bride wealth to also marry

High school drop out rates in order that girls are married off to get bride price. Girls miss out on formal education. This leaves such girls with little understanding about health and sexuality problems, life and livelihood abilities, poor negotiation abilities for secure sex behaviour

Unhealthy attitudes and poor health-seeking behaviour as a result of low self-esteem, lack of information or being financially dependent

4 Payment of bride cost could perpetuate dangerous practices and cultures or rites such as:

Wife inheritance, which, might lead to polygamy and spread of HIV/AIDS

Cattle rustling. In some societies leads to high rates of injuries and subsequent deaths amongst men (among the perpetrators) due to violence as they look for cows to use in payment for bride price. There may be sexual violence, rape and other reproductive health consequences amongst the victims.