Gender, Development, and Marriage by Caroh'ne Sweetman i Oxfam Focus on Gender The books in Oxf am's Focus on Gender series were originally published as single issues of the journal Gender and Development, which is published by Oxfam three times a year. It is the only European journal to focus specifically on gender and development issues internationally, to explore the links between gender and development initiatives, and to make the links between theoretical and practical work in this field. For information about subscription rates, please apply to Taylor and Francis Ltd., Customer Services Department, Rankine Road, Basingstoke, Hants RG24 8PR UK; Fax: + 44 (0) 1256 330245. In North America, please apply to Taylor and Francis Inc., Customer Services Department, 325 Chestnut Street, 8th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA; Fax +1 800 821 8312. In Australia, please apply to Carfax Publishing Company, P.O. Box 352, Cammeray, NSW 2062, Australia; Fax: +61 (0) 2 9958 2376 [email protected] www.tandf.co.uk /journals All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the Publisher. The views expressed in this book are those of the individual contributors, and not necessarily those of the Editor or the Publisher. Front cover: Berta, a science teacher in Angola, with her husband Sebastiao, a head teacher, and their new-born child Photo: Crispin Hughes/Panos © Oxfam GB 2003 Published by Oxfam GB, 274 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7DZ, UK www.oxfam.org.uk / publications Typeset in Palatino by Oxfam; printed by Information Press, Eynsham Oxfam is a registered charity No. 202918 Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International ISBN 0 85598 504 6 This book converted to digital file in 2010 Contents Editorial 2 Caroline Sweetman Early female marriage in the developing world 9 Robert Jensen and Rebecca Thornton Rethinking culture and development: marriage and gender among the tea plantation workers in Sri Lanka 20 Amali Philips Negotiating violence and non-violence in Cambodian marriages 30 Rebecca Surtees Early marriage and poverty: exploring links and key policy issues 42 Naana Otoo-Oyortey and Sonita Pobi Marriage, development, and the status of women in Kerala, India 52 Elizabeth Chacko Child support as a strategic interest: la Asociacidn de Madres Demandantes of El Salvador 60 Kelley Ready Early marriage in eastern Nigeria and the health consequences of vesico-vaginal fistulae (VVF) among young mothers 70 Eno-Obong Akpan Marriage, well-being, and agency among women 77 Meenakshi Thapan Rethinking marriage and gender relations using evidence from the Pacific 85 Nancy J. Pollock Resources 91 Compiled by Ruth Evans Book Review 91 Publications 93 Papers and electronic resources 96 Training manuals and tool kits 99 Organisations 100 Websites 101 Videos 102 Editorial Caroline Sweetman 'A woman and an empty house are never alone for collection stress, researching marriage forms long.' and understanding how these affect women's (Ethiopian proverb) and men's human rights and development differently is essential to programme 'Most women and men in the world spend most of planning and implementation. their lives married.' It is only relatively recently that this (Seager 2003, 22) interest in diverse marriage forms has arriage exists in some form in evolved. Early Women in Development almost all communities through- (WID) research highlighted the chaos created Mout the world. The vast majority of by development projects which assumed adult women and men get married at least Western cultural norms about marriage to be once in their lifetimes, and some marry universal. In Western-style marriage - in several times. In popular culture, marriage is theory, if not in practice - men are primary variously seen as the end goal of teenage providers and breadwinners, while women romance and sex, a solemn and joyful are carers. Providing and bread winning is assertion of custom and tradition, or a secure associated with working outside the home, and respectable means of bringing up the while caring is assumed to keep women next generation. But what is often less inside a sheltered sphere of domesticity, to evident - particularly in affluent societies - is which men return each evening. What goes the essential role played by marriage in the on in the household from dusk until dawn is economic survival of individuals and their secret from outside eyes. This model of families. Feminist research has long been marriage and the household is responsible interested in this aspect of marriage. While for much inappropriate policy making marriage forms vary dramatically across the in both developing and post-industrial world, the conjugal contract - that is, 'the societies. For example, not only is the idea terms on which husbands and wives exchange of provisioning being men's task alone goods, incomes, and services, including unsubstantiated in most parts of the world, labour, within the household' (Whitehead but it was also never true for most sections of 1984, 93) - is biased in men's favour in most the population in the West. contexts. The inbuilt inequality within Some key aspects of the Western model of marital decision-making and workloads is a marriage were echoed in other societies. The powerful force that works against gender idea that men are suited to be 'household equality at home, in the workplace or head' making benign and wise decisions in government. Hence, as writers in this on behalf of the family, is one such aspect. Editorial Ideas about men's naturally superior wife in the gender division of labour is to qualities of leadership in marriage have care for children and any other dependents gone on to colour the nature of women's living under the couple's roof, and to participation in public life. Ideas of women's perform the unpaid work of household secondary role in the home affect the kind of maintenance. The husband is viewed as the employment they are deemed to suit. They primary provider for the family, going have also prevented women from becoming outside the household to generate income. It political leaders at every level, from the is important to emphasise that this model is village to parliament. Beyond the realm of an ideal type, which was relatively rare even work and politics, these gender ideologies in the Western nations who promoted it in permit intimidation, fear, and violent their colonial territories. In nineteenth- 'punishment' within marriage, if husbands century Europe, most households depended judge wives as not making the grade. This on the wages of both spouses, and often child socially-sanctioned abuse of women not labour as well, just as earlier generations had only violates individual women's human depended on the farm labour of the whole rights, but ultimately has a critical impact on family. the well-being of both the current and the Many studies exist to show the future generation. devastating effect that the export of this In the remainder of this editorial, key model had on gender relations in colonial aspects of current debates on marriage are territories. In sub-Saharan Africa, women's highlighted and the articles in this collection significant role in agricultural production introduced. But first, it should be stressed was sidelined when missionaries and colonial that the aim of this collection of articles is to administrators arrived to 'domesticate' them discuss the implications for development (Hansen 1992). Horror about the immorality policy and practice of marriage as a key of polygamy discouraged understanding of institution in gender relations, and space is the economic rationales for such alternative limited. For these reasons, we have not family forms. A man, his wife and children, focused on alternatives to marriage, for dressed in Western clothes and attending example people in same-sex couple relation- church on Sundays, was emblematic of the ships (who, in most countries, are prevented progress and civilisation colonialism was by law from marrying)1 or on widows and bringing to the Dark Continent. African widowhood,2 despite their importance. women's contribution to household livelihoods continued to be ignored by development, until inappropriate develop- Recognising multiple forms ment projects failed and it became obvious of marriage that something was very wrong. The reality Non-Western communities have been of women's agricultural work in Africa and invited, encouraged and coerced to adopt hence their contribution to the national the Western nuclear family form since the economy was 'discovered' by researchers in start of the era of colonialism. In the Western the 1970s - notably Ester Boserup (1970). By model of marriage, one man marries one that time, families had been impoverished woman. Both parties must be in their late and women's ability to make a livelihood teens or older. There is a single wedding compromised, as well as their status having ceremony, held in a public place, attended been eroded. by friends and family. It is traditional for the Even today, development and social bride to adopt her husband's family's name. policy in the global South and North After marriage, the couple lives together and continues to make the most basic mistakes in children are born. The primary role of the project planning, through underestimating women's contribution to the economy and in acquiring the many skills they need for the assuming the nuclear family to be the norm. repetitive - but rewarding - work that Despite this onslaught of inappropriate accompanies these roles. The reward referred policy formulation, Nancy Pollock shows to here is not the emotional satisfaction through her case study of a Pacific society which we all hope to get from our close that non-Western conjugal contracts have relationships.