Quest for a World free of Child Marriages

Recently, India invited the wrath of the international community as well as that of the domestic civil rights bodies when it refused to co-sponsor a United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution recognising child, early and forced marriage. Although the resolution was unanimously adopted with India's support, India refused to join over 100 countries in co-sponsoring the resolution. Perhaps, the harsh realization of the magnitude of commitment required to free herself of this diabolical social evil made her adopt such stance.

It is nevertheless ironical as India continues to be the country with the highest number of child brides. While there exists statues to curb the evil (Prohibition of Child Marriages Act), certain sections of the society such as the Khap Panchayats and certain Islamic religious bodies continue to endorse the practice. As law is rendered toothless without social sanction it is important to analyse the sociological perspective behind early marriages. I came across this wonderfully written editorial in Economic & Political Weekly that seeks to analyse the unfortunately widely prevalent nefarious practice in the Indian society and urges the administrators to be more pro-active in curbing it.

Bilateral Investment Treaties and their overriding effect over sovereign law

Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT) are agreements entered into between two sovereigns with the fundamental objective of promoting investments. While such international commitments do ensure an influx of foreign capital, they often undermine the legislative framework of the countries parties to the agreements. 

In an erudite article in the The Hindu, Mr. Deepak Raju and Mr. Prabhash Ranjan have pointed out the danger of entering into such agreements in relation to hazards they pose to public health.