DHAKA: A Bangladeshi teenage girl was selected as one of the world’s 13th courageous girl to receive the United States Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award 2017 for resisting her early age marriage.
Sharmin Akter, 15, courageously resisted her mother's attempts to marry her off and secured the precious right to continue her education, setting an example for teenage girls across South Asia facing similar pressure, according to a US embassy press release.
Bangladesh has one of the world's highest rates of child marriage, a trend that threatens the health, safety, and education of millions of girls and undermines the country's progress.
Sharmin demonstrated exceptional courage and self-possession by refusing to be coerced into marrying a man who is decades older than her. She dared to break the silence expected of women and girls and advocated for her rights, eventually bringing her mother and prospective husband to justice.
Celebrated for her bravery, Sharmin today is a student at Rajapur Pilot Girls High School where she dreams of becoming a lawyer to campaign against the harmful tradition of early and forced marriage.
First Lady Melania Trump and Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas A. Shannon will present the 2017 Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award to a group of extraordinary women from around the world on Wednesday, March 29 at the State Department.
The Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award annually recognizes women around the globe who have demonstrated exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equality, and women’s empowerment, often at great personal risk. Since the inception of this award in 2007, the State Department has honored over 100 women from more than 60 different countries.
The 2017 awardees are:
Sharmin Akter, Activist Against Early/ Forced Marriage, Bangladesh
Malebogo Molefhe, Human Rights Activist, Botswana
Natalia Ponce de Leon, President, Natalia Ponce de Leon Foundation, Colombia
Rebecca Kabugho, Political and Social Activist, Democratic Republic of Congo
Jannat Al Ghezi, Deputy Director of The Organization of Women’s Freedom in Iraq, Iraq
Major Aichatou Ousmane Issaka, Deputy Director of Social Work at the Military Hospital of Niamey, Niger
Veronica Simogun, Director and Founder, Family for Change Association, Papua New Guinea
Cindy Arlette Contreras Bautista, Lawyer and Founder of Not One Woman Less, Peru
Sandya Eknelygoda, Human Rights Activist, Sri Lanka
Sister Carolin Tahhan Fachakh, Member, Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (F.M.A.), Syria
Saadet Ozkan, Educator and Gender Activist, Turkey
Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, Blogger and Environmental Activist, Vietnam
Fadia Najib Thabet, Human Rights Activist, Yemen
On April 1, the honorees will travel to cities across the United States to engage with the American people through an International Visitor Leadership Program. They will visit Atlanta, Denver, Des Moines, Minneapolis, New York, Pensacola, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Diego, and Tampa on their individual programs. The women will reconvene in Los Angeles to reflect on their visit and discuss ways to work together to improve the lives of women and girls around the world.
BDST: 1847 HRS, MAR 29, 2017
AP/SMS
