Inu wants realistic campaign against child marriage

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu has called for realistic campaign against child marriage and dowry instead of ‘wasting’ time and money doing researches and projects on the issues.

He inaugurated ‘Hello I Am’ a Population Services and Training Centre or PSTC programme focused on child marriage at a Dhaka hotel on Thursday. While speaking there, the minister criticised such work.

“There is only one finding by all the people in our society – child marriages are taking place all over the country. Then what is the need for research to find it out?” he asked the organisers.

“It would be more useful if you made some leaflets with the money you are spending on the research and asked the boys and girls not to marry before their time comes,” he suggested.

He said he was not in favour of such pilot projects. “Let's not waste time in these researches…We know how many children are dropping out every year.”     

Inu, the president of a faction of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, urged the social workers to take exceptional programmes such as cartoon series Meena.

“Meena is very popular among teenaged girls. So I will suggest practical campaigns at grassroots level. That will be more helpful for the teenaged girls."

He also called for more emphasis on boys and reproductive health.

PSTC Executive Director Noor Mohammad presided over the programme. Dushtha Shasthya Kendra Executive Director Dibalok Singha, BBC Media Action Country Director Richard Lace, and IKEA Foundation representative Nayana Chowdhury were among others who spoke at the function.