This week WRO’s Jian Center for Internally Displaced Women and Girls in Sharia Camp facilitated workshops that brought awareness to young girls and their parents of the risks of early marriage. The workshop for parents focused on why early marriage is a harmful tradition that is wrongly considered a practice that will protect their daughters from societal instability. The parents are made aware that in reality this practice makes their daughters more vulnerable to many forms of GBV. Early marriage impedes young girls’ ability to continue education, harms their health as many bear children too young and restricts their freedom within society and in the home. The parents and the social workers discuss alternative forms of protection for displaced girls that will empower them. The workshop for girls at risk of early marriage discussed the ways young girls and boys can lead the way as agents of change to break the tradition of early marriage in their communities. Together with the social workers, the young girls brainstormed ideas for peer to peer awareness to explain to other girls interested in early marriage the risks of it and know that under the Kurdistan Region of Iraq they have the right to not marry underage. They discussed the idea of holding community dialogue events for girls and boys to speak to parents openly about the need to end the practice of early marriage.
