Marion Cotillard Instagram – THIS WOMAN!!! So lucky to get to spend some time with this superhero of a human being while in Europe! And so lucky to have her in @biggerthanus_thefilm @the_memorybanda is a Malawian children’s rights activist who has drawn international attention for her work in opposition to child marriage. there is a traditional rite of passage in her country in which young girls who have just reached puberty are sent to “initiation camps” to learn how to please men sexually. As part of their initiation, a man visits the camp and the young girls are forced to have sex with him. Many girls end up pregnant and therefor has to quit school When she was only 18, Memory championed a succesful national campaign that culminated in landmark legislation that outlawed child marriage. She advocated for traditional leaders to formulate by-laws that protect the girl child and at national level she advocated for the legal age of marriage to be raised from 15 to 18 years of age. This led to the law being changed to recognize 18 years as the legal age of marriage in Malawi. 🇫🇷 CETTE FEMME! Quelle chance d’avoir pu passer du temps avec cette merveille d’être humain lors de son passage en Europe, et qu’elle soit une des heroines de @biggerthanus_thefilm @the_memorybanda a osé défier la tradition du viol institutionnalisé des jeunes filles dans des camps d’initiation dédiés. Elle a fait cesser cette pratique dans tout le pays, puis a fait modifier la constitution du Malawi pour relever l’âge légal de 15 à 18 ans afin de protéger les filles du mariage forcé. Memory se consacre aujourd’hui à l’émancipation des filles par la sécurisation de leurs droits et leur maintien à l’école.
Au Malawi, 42% des filles sont mariées avant l’âge de 18 ans. Dans le monde, c’est 1 fille sur 5 (Unicef).