RAJSHAHI, Sept 11: Fathers clubs have emerged to fight against child marriage taking the social curse into special consideration in Rajshahi region.
The fathers clubs have been formed in different villages and snake-ludo game is being arranged there to draw guardians of the girls aiming to teach them about the curse of early marriage through dialogue in disguise of playing.
Fourteen fathers’ clubs have so far been formed with 182 members while each of the clubs was constituted with 13 persons during the last couple of months.
Each of the clubs was given ludu boards printed with seven negative messages linked to child marriage, while seventeen other positive ones on freeing the society from the social menace.
“We have got the scope of gathering and thinking about the physical and mental development of the girls instead of their early marriage,” said Alauddin Ahmed, a father of Hamirkutsa village under Bagmara Upazila in Rajshahi.
“It’s very helpful to know about the evils of child marriage through playing ludu. We will not arrange marriage for girls at an early age,” he said.
He will send his daughter back to school. The conversation through ludo game has opened his eyes, inspiring many co-villagers to follow the ideal of stopping child marriage.
Mominul Islam, another father of Nitpur village in Porsha Upazila of Naogaon district, said they are seeing the negative messages of child marriage when they are playing the snake-ladder ludu game.
The villagers are also seen acquiring knowledge on protecting the society from child marriage, he said.
He also said the Public Health Improvement Initiative Rajshahi (PHIIR) project has been promoting the initiative to forge social resistance against child marriage through inspiring and encouraging fathers.
“I have learnt a lot. I will make everyone in the society aware of stopping the child marriage,” he added.
Islam said child marriages are taking place frequently in the rural areas due to lack of awareness and many other reasons.
Sharing his concern over the issue, he said that they are giving special importance on it. -BSS
News Source: Link