Disregarding the Reproductive Rights of Women in Child Marriage in Indonesia

: The phenomenon of child marriage frequently disregards children's reproductive rights. This study aims to explain the negligence of reproductive rights in child marriages by examining practices, factors, and the impacts of such neglect on girls' human rights. This paper employs a qualitative descriptive approach, and the data was gathered through the use of keywords to search the term "neglect of women's reproductive rights in child marriage”. The data was analyzed by reducing, describing, and interpreting the data in depth in order to reach a conclusion. This paper demonstrates that the practice of child marriage not only places females in a disadvantageous position, but also has an impact on reproductive rights, which has negative repercussions for survival, such as miscarriage, baby blues syndrome, and death. It is also anticipated that this paper can serve as a resource for conducting research on child marriage and the neglect of girls' reproductive rights from a broader and more multidisciplinary perspective, so that it can be used as a basis for formulating firm policies on reproductive rights


Introduction
Marriage is seen as a significant part of religious teachings, since it elevates women to a sacred status and provides a legal channel for sexuality in a healthy manner. This is distinct from the practice of child marriage, in which girls' reproductive rights are frequently disregarded. In 2018, the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection reported at least 1,220,900 child marriages, placing Indonesia among the top 10 countries with child marriages worldwide. 1 According to UNICEF, there are approximately 1,2 million juvenile marriages worldwide each year. 2 In 2019, there were approximately 765,000,000 cases of child marriage on a global scale, and 1 in 5 of these children were married before the age of 18. 3 Thus, child marriage is not only a analyzing the experiences of domestic workers who are subjected to workplace violence, discrimination, and violation of their rights by their employers. 9 In addition to discussing the law regarding domestic worker protection as a legal umbrella. 10 Thirdly, women's voice are marginalized when it comes to the violation of children's reproductive rights, which impacts their lives negatively. 11 Out of these three important issues, relatively little has been written regarding the issues of early marriage and the negligence of reproductive rights of women.
So far, studies on the practice of child marriage have been viewed as the origin of gender-based violence and have had a negative impact on females, particularly in terms of reproductive rights. 12 Due to a lack of knowledge about reproductive health, people are frequently unaware of their sexual and reproductive rights, despite the fact that this practice is frequently viewed as part   Athur et al. (2018), the global practice of child marriage constitutes discrimination against females. 14 This paper examines the other side of the practice of child marriage, which frequently disregards the reproductive rights of girls, regardless of whether it occurs in the name of custom or as a legal exemption, so that girls can later choose to continue or postpone the practice of child marriage in order to be granted reproductive rights.
This paper seeks to investigate the disregard for the reproductive rights of women in child marriages. Providing a detailed analysis of the primary issues pertaining to the forms of ignoring the rights of young brides. 15 children's rights that must be granted that are unrelated to reproduction, such as the right to legal and religious protection, so that the neglect of reproductive rights against children in child marriages does not continue. 16 In addition, the disregard for reproductive rights is accompanied by various forms of domestic violence in the practice of child marriage, and the disregard for health and life begins with the disregard for reproductive rights. 17 It also describes the effects and repercussions of ignoring the reproductive rights of minor brides. This paper argues that juvenile marriage has created a significant burden for women. Moreover, children's distress is not limited to the loss of opportunities to experience life at their age. In addition to altering children's psychological behavior, the practice of child marriage has a significant impact on the denial of their rights. Neglecting what is their right increases the difficulty of adapting to the situation, to the point where there is a lack of knowledge and ignorance on the part of parents toward their children regarding the neglect of reproductive rights resulting from child marriage.

Rights to Reproduction in Child Marriage
Women's health and reproductive rights include individual and partner rights, as well as those pertaining to body, sexual, and reproduction decisions, freedom, non-discrimination, and physical or psychological violence. 18 As part of Human liberties, these liberties are frequently disregarded. In Indonesia, the neglect of women's health and reproductive rights is a result of the patriarchal system that positions women and children as objects of weakness. 19 Women's and children's rights are frequently disregarded, particularly when it comes to reproduction and minor marriages. 20 Child marriages continue to occur for a variety of reasons, as is the case in rural areas, where girls are frequently viewed as a burden to their parents; consequently, the sooner girls are married, the lighter the burden on the family. The practice of child marriage is also frequently legitimized for the sake of traditions. Child marriage is also the beginning of the neglect of children's rights, such as the right to growth and development, the right to education and information, and the right to binding reproductive rights in child marriage with unwritten rules that the wife is only to give birth, raise children, and do household chores, etc. 21 This is definitely not a simple task for girls who marry at a young age.
The lack of respect for the reproductive rights of women in Indonesia, particularly the practice of child marriage, cannot be divorced from the traditions and dogmas of the society. 22 The practice of marriage frequently implies that the child's age does not pose a problem for carrying out the ijab and qobul. 23 Thus, there is widespread age falsification in order to petition for a waiver to marry at a young age. This is sometimes done not only by the prospective bride and groom, parents, and family, but also by several community members who participate in child marriage. 24 In child marriages, the reproductive rights of minors are rarely considered. 25 Consequently, this practice persists in a stimulating manner from generation to generation, placing child marriage as an integral part of sociocultural, economic, and educational factors, as shown in the table below: The data in Table 1 indicate that marriages between children under the age of 18 have reached a level of concern. According to the data presented above, the island of Java has the highest number of minor marriages by region, with as many as 668,900 instances. In addition, there were 190,700 instances of juvenile marriage on the island of Sumatra, followed by 123,400 instances on the island of Sulawesi and 104,600 instances on the island of Kalimantan. There are 96,500 cases on the islands of Bali, Nusa Tenggara, Maluku, and Papua. Several factors, including rape, forced marriage, arranged marriages, etc., continue to contribute to the occurrence of child marriages.
Child marriage has negative effects on reproductive health, both during pregnancy and labor, and can contribute to infant mortality due to immature reproductive organs. stated that the minimum age for women to marry was 16, despite the fact that Law No. 16 of 2019 article 7 raised the minimum age to 19 for both men and women. 26 The Convention on the Rights of the Child (KHA) was ratified through Law Number 23 of 2002, which includes the rights to life, development, protection, and participation. 27 These four elements must adhere to the principles of nondiscrimination, life assurance, the child's best interests, and their participation. It is the responsibility of the state, parents, and society to grant these privileges to children. The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo also discussed reproductive health rights and sexual life in 12 main points. In addition to these rights, reproductive rights for adolescents included the right to be themselves, the right to obtain information, the right to be protected and self-protected, the right to receive health care, and the right to participate. 28 The practice of child marriage has violated the rights of children as free human beings, in addition to ignoring their reproductive health rights. In fact, children have the right to growth and development, the right to education, the right to a source of life, socio-political rights, and the right to be protected from all forms of violence. In Brunei, Chile, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, India, Jordan, and Indonesia, research indicates that 85 percent of child marriages result in the termination of children's right to education. According to cultural prejudices, women's education is less valuable. At least 50,000 of the 16 million infants who gave birth perished, according to Paul Van Trigt. 29 Indonesia has the greatest maternal and infant mortality rates in Southeast Asia. High rates of child marriage have an effect on fertility, as well as complications during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum. Additionally, infants born to mothers under the age of 18 are at risk of premature birth and mortality.

Between Child Marriage Rights and Abandonment
The 1994 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) was convened by 192 countries, including Indonesia. Not only did Indonesia ratify the law, but the government is also responsible for establishing a system to ensure the fulfilment of children's rights. The convention on the rights of the child states that girls may marry at the age of 18, but other rules allow the practice of child marriage to continue due to cultural values and religion. The Indonesian government has yet to have the resolve to determine the age limit for marriage, despite the fact that the convention allows girls to marry at the age of 18. This demonstrates that the Indonesian government has not provided the rights of women and children in accordance with international agreements, particularly in relation to the negative effects of child marriage. Thus, the state has disregarded the rights of women and children, particularly females, who are always considered to be victims of a lack of legal protection. Marriage of children under the age of 18 has become a violation of children's human rights that is not only neglected by parents and the society, but also by the government; there are several causes of child marriage, as shown in the table below: As shown in Table.2, child marriages are motivated by a variety of factors, including the influence of religious norms and doctrines and cultural traditions; however, a significant number of children marry as a result of rape, and parental coercion due to arranged marriages, as well as children's propensity to marry at a young age. 30 In addition to a lack of understanding of the reproductive risks of child marriage and community cultural practices that have been practiced for generations, it is not uncommon for these children to be exploited by their parents in order to profit from the marriage procession itself. 31 The Child Protection Law specifies the maximum age at which children can obtain health rights; consequently, the government and guardians are responsible for children up to the age of 18. According to Kuhar, Europe and the United States also experience a decline in sexual and reproductive rights as a result of controversies surrounding the regulation of sexuality, gender, and physical autonomy. 32 Young, unplanned, and high-risk pregnancies in the absence of antenatal care should be our main concern. Horii identifies child marriage as a deviant behavior resulting from cultural and religious practices regarding the optimal age of marriage. 33 The controversy has given interventionists the justification to prohibit juvenile marriage. According to the United Nations, this is deemed a forced marriage because it violates the universal declaration of children's rights. Child marriage places an early emphasis on the child's responsibility. According to UNICEF, the transition from childhood to maturity is accompanied by extraordinary consequences. The international pros and cons of child marriage deny tradition discursively but disregard the rights of children as human beings.
Reproductive rights and responsibilities in child marriage necessitate the conceptualization of the preservation of children's reproductive rights in the form of an irrefutable construction. Occasionally, it becomes a dilemma in the actual world. This omission in human rights has the potential to jeopardize the protection of children's rights. This must begin by creating a forum for multidisciplinary dialogue in order to eliminate blind spots in the issue of reproductive rights in adolescent marriages. 34 One of these is by reforming the health system and focusing on the preservation of children's rights in child marriages. At least three reproductive health issues, namely health during pregnancy, health during delivery, and health after birth, require reconstruction. 35 Due to child marriage, children will experience hemodelution during pregnancy, which can be fatal. During childbirth, particularly for primigravidas, a process of 10 to 15 hours will be necessary. 36 The third problem after birth causes bleeding, infection, and even mortality, resulting in a transformation on all levels, including individuals, families, communities, and state institutions, to advocate for the reproductive rights of child brides.

Implications of Women's Reproductive Rights on Child Marriage
Child marriage is a worldwide issue that has spawned harsh criticism of claims to human rights (HAM) from both a democratic and secular perspective. At least, as Rosalia stated, there are currently legal abortion services available in many significant nations. This does not provide adequate protection for children's rights, although some health experts disagree despite the fact that it is mandated by law, 37 such as the distribution of the abortion drug misoprostol, which is predominantly used by adolescents. In fact, the elimination of child marriage has been agreed upon by a number of countries and they are committed to realize the idea, but this practice persists in all regions of the globe, where the highest marriage rate occurs between the ages of 15 and 20. These practices are also rooted in the culture and dogma that religion and beliefs impart. In Table 3, it can be seen that child marriage has a wide variety of effects, including retardation of children whose mothers are too young to give birth and whose uteruses are not yet mature enough. 38 In addition to causing diseases such as uterine cancer and anemia, the procedure of giving birth at a young age contributes to high rates of maternal and infant mortality. Domestic violence can also have an effect on family harmony when child marriage occurs. Unstable emotions and immature methods of thinking contribute to the high divorce rate associated with child marriage. Psychologically, children are not prepared to become wives and mothers, not to mention the negative views of society on child marriage. Child marriage also places children in the position of being exploited in the name of tradition and culture. 39 The reproductive rights of females in child marriages are tied to sexual initiation, whether it occurs before or after the marriage, forcibly or voluntarily. According to Padma Anagol, women as young as 15 have engaged in sexual activity in 14 countries around the globe, with 47% of these women undergoing forced sexual initiation. 40 According to the WHO, this will impair children's reproductive organs and lead to sexual violence in child marriages. 41 Meanwhile, Lewoleba et al. explained that the impact of child marriage is experiencing spousal violence; otherwise, the child's reproduction will become unhealthy, resulting in the birth of children with weak conditions, abortion induction, and psychological and psychological depression. Several components of society must be directed to participate in directing the preservation of children's reproductive rights by adjusting regulations in accordance with their traditions and belief doctrines. 42 Child marriage disregards the internal and external reproductive rights of children, such as the right to education, the right to growth and development, the right to protection, and other rights inherent to a child. 43 Compared to the endeavors of other nations to provide child reproductive protection, Indonesia lags behind in all areas, beginning with the minimum age for marriage as a means of reducing child marriage. 44 Women's reproductive rights are presently limited only by rules, so the protection of children's rights must still find a solution to this issue. The societal paradigm has always viewed reproductive rights in children negatively, necessitating fundamental adjustments in the way state regulations, culture, and religion view reproductive rights. So that children can exercise their reproductive rights, including the right to choose a partner, sexual rights, the right to determine pregnancy, and the right to bear, nurture, and care for children. 45 This must be possessed by all females across the globe in a balanced and secure manner. So that later the legal, cultural, and religious protection of the reproductive rights of children in early marriages can be implemented.

Conclusion
This article demonstrates that the protection of women's reproductive rights in child marriages not only affects the reproductive organs, but also has negative psychological and psychological implications for children in the lives of child-age couples, such as the loss of education rights, protection rights, and other children's rights stipulated in the international convention on children's rights. The impact of child marriage is not always manifested by a disregard for children's rights; it can also take the form of negative preferences in a society where religious dogmas and traditions remain ingrained and even present pros and cons in terms of child reproduction. In accordance with this, the implications of child marriage do not only emphasize laws and regulations and public perceptions related to the practice of child marriage, but also highlight key findings in this article regarding the functioning and non-functioning of the legal system in protecting children's reproductive rights. In other words, the neglect of reproductive rights in child marriages in Indonesia is not only an example of problems with children's rights in general, but also of a culture in a society where the protection of children's rights is still denied to a very low degree.
Protection of reproductive rights in child marriage is a global issue that is frequently discussed in dialogue spaces, especially in relation to offline and online acts of violence against reproduction. However, the conception of reproduction, its factors, and the implications of child marriage in relation to reproduction have not been formulated comprehensively. As a result, this article provides an overview of the dynamics of the neglect of reproductive rights in children as a result of child marriage, within the context of mutually agreed upon concepts of values, norms, and rules, as part of a shared commitment to reduce the practice of child marriage. It is anticipated that the contribution of this concept will contribute to the contextualization of the concept of law enforcement for the protection of children's rights, particularly reproductive rights.
This paper demonstrates that several factors contribute to the violation of children's rights in child marriages; therefore, this research is unable to describe the pattern of forced child marriage practices that exist in society as a whole; it must be analyzed to obtain a more comprehensive understanding. In accordance with this, it is recommended that additional research be conducted that includes more representative cases, rather than relying solely on a single scientific study, as well as analyzing the relationship between culture and the practice of protecting reproductive rights in child marriage, so that it can supplement the scope that is lacking in this research regarding the practice of child marriage in protecting child reproductive rights.