In a landmark initiative to prevent child marriages during the upcoming festival of Akshaya Tritiya and the ongoing wedding season, faith leaders from across different religions in Salem have joined the awareness campaign led by Indian Community Welfare Organisation-ICWO, under the banner of Child Marriage Free India (CMFI). With faith leaders publicly pledging their support, Indian Community Welfare Organisation-ICWO is confident that no child marriage will take place in any temple, mosque, church, gurdwara, or other religious establishment across the district.
As part of the campaign, posters and banners have been prominently displayed at places of worship, carrying clear messages that child marriage will not be permitted on their premises. CMFI, supported by Just Rights for Children (JRC), is a national movement committed to ending child marriage in India by 2030 through legal intervention, mass awareness at scale, and community mobilisation.
Just Rights for Children (JRC) is the world’s largest legal intervention network for child protection and the driving force behind CMFI. Over the past two years, through this campaign, over two lakh child marriages have been stopped and more than five crore people have pledged to stand against child marriage.
In Salem, Indian Community Welfare Organisation-ICWO —a partner of CMFI and JRC—has worked closely with district authorities, faith leaders, and communities. Through timely legal interventions, family counselling, and widespread awareness programs, they have prevented/ stopped over 3 lakhs child marriages.
All partner NGOs are implementing the strategic framework outlined in JRC Founder Bhuwan Ribhu’s 2023 book, When Children Have Children: Tipping Point to End Child Marriage, which also aligns with the recent Supreme Court of India’s guidelines (2024) to eradicate child marriage nationwide.
Buoyed by the immense support from faith leaders, A.J.Hariharan, Director of Indian Community Welfare Organisation-ICWO, said, “This is a crucial step forward in our fight to end the heinous crime of child marriage. While the laws exist, what we often lack is widespread awareness. Many people are still unaware that child marriage is a criminal offense in our country. They do not realize that simply attending, performing, or providing any kind of service at a child marriage can lead to imprisonment. However, with the strong support of faith leaders — without whom no marriage can take place — we are confident that this Akshaya Tritiya will be truly auspicious, marked by the absence of any child marriage in the district.”
The director further said that the NGO has explained to the priests and faith leaders that child marriage is impeding rape and no faith can allow such a crime. Without their support, no community can perform a child marriage and so as the faith leaders extend their unwavering support, the NGO is confident that no child marriage will be performed on Akshaya Tritiya in the district this year.
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