Last October, I had the privilege of joining an advocacy training programme in Seremban, Negri Sembilan, organised by the Girl Guides Association Malaysia (GGAM) to work towards ending child marriage.
The training was facilitated by two representatives from the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) who flew in from Greece and London, respectively.
It was an intense two-day, one- night programme where we brainstormed campaign models to address the issue.
First, we identified the beliefs held by pro-child marriage communities. It turns out that many have the misconception that marrying a child off when she is very young helps the family financially and secures a more financially stable future for the child. We then identified our campaign objectives, key messages, campaign models and key decision-makers within our groups.
For our campaign model, my group proposed adapting the biennial public speaking competition held by GGAM to meet the objectives of ending child marriage.
In previous years, the competition was only open to members of the association with themes based on topics like millennium development goals and sustainable development goals. This year, however, we proposed having “Ending Child Marriage” as the theme and a new category open to non-girl guides.
My group’s proposed campaign aim was to raise public awareness of the subject and to encourage male figures to get involved in the movement.
Although the executive board of GGAM will only choose one campaign model to carry out, I am certain that we are able to make some changes within Malaysia with the determination and passion I witnessed during the two days. Seeing each of us being empowered to make a difference in the lives of young girls in our country motivated me.
After the programme, we handed a petition with over 156,000 signatures to Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Hannah Yeoh in the presence of several other government representatives.
GGAM also signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) to work more closely towards ending child marriages in Malaysia.
One of us even represented GGAM at the regional forum on solutions to end child, early and forced marriage (CEFM) at the Asean hall in Jakarta, Indonesia, last March. I have learned a great deal from the girls and women who took part in the programme that weekend.
Admittedly, we have a long way to go to fundamentally change the general public’s mindset. While the future may be uncertain as we continue to fight our way through the storm, one thing’s for certain, we will hold fast to our stand against child marriage.
Note: This article was written and published in The Star's NIE pullout in April 2019.
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