Instigator / Pro
0
1309
rating
269
debates
40.71%
won
Topic
#5052
In most cases, child marriages should be allowed
Status
Finished
The debate is finished. The distribution of the voting points and the winner are presented below.
Winner & statistics
After not so many votes...
It's a tie!
Parameters
- Publication date
- Last updated date
- Type
- Rated
- Number of rounds
- 5
- Time for argument
- One week
- Max argument characters
- 10,000
- Voting period
- One month
- Point system
- Multiple criterions
- Voting system
- Open
- Minimal rating
- None
Contender / Con
0
1525
rating
23
debates
58.7%
won
Description
Definitions:
Child marriage is a marriage between adult and child, or marriage between child and child
Round 1
Introduction
Child marriages are a sensitive topic for many people. However, there is a growing number of debates rising as to what is the right thing to do when one child has sex with the other child or with an adult, what is the right thing to do when child has sexual urges. In this debate, we will talk about problems that children face, and what can be done to solve them.
Definition
Child marriage - a marriage between an adult and a child or a marriage between a child and a child.
Arguments
1. Children have sexual urges
Sexual urges dont start at age 18. In fact, they sometimes start as young as 7 or 8.
Some children masturbate as young as 4.
In USA, 30% of children had sex before age 16. 50% of children watched porn before age 13.
2. Children have problems in controlling sexual urges
Children struggle to control their sexual urges. There is simply no way from preventing children from acting on their urges. Children have urges. Children need a safe outlet for their urges.
3. Marriage is the best way to control urges
Having multiple sexual partners is harmful. However, children will act on their urges. Marrying to a person and committing to that person is the best for those children who have problems with urges.
If children dont marry, then they will have more sexual partners.
If children do marry, then they will have less sexual partners. They will bond with one partner.
Marriage will allow them to have stable relationship before they reach adulthood.
It will help them avoid making risky choices later on in life due to loneliness or restlessness.
In marriage, they would have sex with just one person, which is the safest type of sex. Even if marriage ends in divorce, it still limited the amount of sexual partners while it lasted. Child marriages usually last for many years or for a lifetime. Child marriage makes a person commit to just one person while marriage lasts.
4. If there is no child marriage, there is harm
Legalization would help protect children from exploitation by ensuring they have legal protection under the law, and that relationships are regulated by the law. Without marriage, children will still have sexual urges and will still act on them. They will do so with much more partners. They will change lots of partners and increase risk of STI and STD. Having lots of partners throughout life increases depression and suicide rates. Marriage would make it so that child has only one partner and is committed to one partner, and not separated from the partner by others. Stigma causes harm to children. If there is stigma, stigma causes harm to everyone in adult-child relationships. If child marriages are banned, then there is stigma on adult-child relationships. Legalizing child marriage would help to reduce the number of people who resort to sex work in order to earn money. People who resort to sex work are often those with failed relationships early in life. Child marriage helps protect relationships.
5. Banning child marriages increases prison population and torture in prisons
Torture is a very serious problem in prison. Prisons are, in most cases, forms of torture. Prisoners are often treated poorly, abused and violated.
Not arresting adult who has sex with a child means that adult will have sex with a child and adult wont be tortured in prison.
Arresting adult who has sex with a child means that adult will have sex with a child and adult will be tortured in prison.
Having sex with child and being tortured is more harmful than having sex with a child and not being tortured.
Arresting adult who has sex with a child is more harmful than not arresting an adult who has sex with a child.
Decreasing prison population would improve lives. It would also improve economy, with less people in prison there is more available workforce for buisnesses.
6. Allowing child marriage increases child's happiness
Removing stigma would help children who are in sexual relationships. It would allow them to marry the person that makes them happy. Children in foster care would also have opportunity to marry and be saved from foster care. Child marriages save children from poverty. They make it possible for children from poor families to marry and live in a wealthier, better family. This helps those children, as well as their families who no longer have to provide for the child by themselves.
7. Society should listen to child's voice
Most of children who are in relationship with an adult dont want for that adult to go to prison. Sending that adult to prison would destroy child's happiness. It is better to let them marry. Society cannot decide what child does with own body. Child's body belongs to the child, not to society. Children have autonomy. By law of autonomy, you cannot use someone else's body without consent. Allowing young people to make decisions about own bodies without fear of judgement creates safe environment. In such environment, everyone feels that their decisions are respected no matter what kind of a relationship they are involved in. This promotes overall sense of autonomy among all population. Giving children ability to choose allows them to decide about their relationship which they are involved in, as opposed to adults making those decisions instead of them.
8. Banning child marriages causes trauma for the child
If child has a parter, if child is in love with that partner and if that partner makes child happy, to separate them would cause trauma for the child. They should be allowed to love each other and give each other happiness.
9. Historical proof of valuing marriage and valuing child marriage working for the benefit of children tells us that child marriage isnt bad
In countries where child marriages are legal and where marriage is valued, there is much less STI, STD, and much less suicides.
In Afghanistan, child marriages are common. Marriage is encouraged and divorce is discouraged. Afghanistan has more birth rates, less suicides, less divorce, less STI, and less STD than USA. If arranged child marriages have all those benefits, then it logically follows that valuing marriages and child marriages is good. Of course, I argue for child marriages that are not arranged by adults only, but also where child desires to be in that marriage. Such marriages would provide even more benefits for children. Child marriage also increases care between people, as it strengthens ties between families.
10. Allowing child marriages controls birth rates much better
Woman will give birth to most children if she starts giving birth as early as possible. The longer she waits, the less children she can give birth to. Allowing child marriages makes it possible to raise more children. Allowing child marriages lowers the cost of raising children, as children no longer have to be provided by the parents until 18.
Child marriages lower birth rates if society regulates them to lower birth rates. Society can educate children and teach them about safe sex in marriage, and about how to prevent getting pregnant. Banning child marriages increases birth rates more than allowing child marriages and regulating them to lower birth rates. When child marriages are banned, children still have sex and get pregnant more. They are not guided and regulated by society if child marriages are banned.
11. Allowing child marriages helps adults, teenagers and children who are attracted to children
There is a significant amount of people who are sexually attracted to children. If society condemns child marriages, and calls those people monsters, then those people feel bad from their teenage years when they realize that they are attracted to children. Allowing child marriages would help them satisfy their urges in a way that is safer.
About 15% of minor attracted persons are children and teenagers who feel pressure because of society's judgment.
12. Allowing child marriages allows society to better regulate adult-child relationships
Most of adult-child relationships are never discovered. Both adults and children in such relationships have no one to guide them or to set rules of behavior. Adult has no guide on how to better treat a child. Child has no guide which could explain to a child how adult-child relationships are supposed to work. Allowing adult-child relationships changes that. Allowing adult-child relationships by allowing marriage would mean that both adult and a child would get more advice from others, and child would be better protected. It would be possible to regulate those relationships, and make them better for children and secure that children are happy in them.
This topic does not deal with abusers. Abusers should still be punished.
However, if an adult is kind and friendly to the child and doesnt force a child to anything, and if child is happy and wants to be with that adult, judging such a relationship would be harmful for that child and for that adult.
Punishing such an adult by torturing him in prison is wrong. Prisons are always torture, as lack of desired options is always a torture.
13. Great majority of adult-child relationships are not violent
In great majority of adult-child relationships, adult never used force or threat against a child, and never caused pain to a child. In great majority of cases, adult didnt have real sex with a child, but only did gentle sexual activities.
Sources for information used in this debate:
"The Trauma Myth" - scientific book about adult-child relationships
Thanks korea for this debate, ill explain my goal in this debate. I will show how the practice of child marriage is not morally permissible, the reason for such is because they cause immense harm, and that child marriages likely lead to physical abuse, bodily harm, psychiatric disorders, and a high risk of death
1. Children have sexual urges
No body can deny this premise, so I agree
2. Children have problems in controlling sexual urges
Certainly some do, probably not all.
3. Marriage is the best way to control urges
I would agree that multiple sex partners is not good for the child, but I will also say that child marriage & intercourse (which it appears as if your getting at with sexual urges) is bad as well, therefore we shouldnt allow either.
4. If there is no child marriage, there is harm
Maybe there is, but id argue with child marriage there is harm & munch greater risk so it shouldnt be allowed, the un defines a child as a human below the age of 18 years, yet for this argument I will define a child as anyone who has not completed puberty. (since this is what my argument will rest on) Girls specifically hit puberty at age 10-11, yet complete puberty when they are 15-17[1], so it makes sense that we grant adulthood at age 18, so id say marrying a child who has not hit puberty is immoral.
To explain that we must 1st specify what puberty is, its a process that takes many years, the girl's hips start to widen (to make giving birth easier, and not harmful), and her breast's start developing, this process is no where near complete when the girl has her 1st period (10-11). Puberty is the process where an adolescent reaches sexual maturity and becomes capable of reproduction. [2] A study from the NIH concluded this on child marriages (CM) [3]
The prevalence of CM (child marriages) was found to be 71.5%. Caste and spouse's education were revealed as important determinants for CM. CM was found to be significantly associated with mother's age at birth of first child, delayed antenatal care (ANC), spontaneous abortion, preterm delivery, low birth weight (LBW), health problems in new born baby, faulty feeding practices, lack of knowledge regarding family welfare methods, and health implications of CM.
They then note:
Exceptionally high prevalence of CM in rural community and its serious health consequences warrant stricter enforcement of legislation, better educational opportunities for girls, and easy access to quality health services.
It also says:
...Children who are married at young age are exposed to multiple risks pertaining to their physical, mental, and social health.
The last thing ill point out is: [4]
Girls who marry and give birth at younger age are more at risk of death or severe injury and illness in childbirth. In 2007, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported that a girl under the age of 15 is five times more likely to die during pregnancy and childbirth than a woman in her 20s
Given this we shouldnt allow child marriages, or intercourse with children since it is harmful for them, therefore inhumane. (although I dont like that word)
5. Banning child marriages increases prison population and torture in prisons
Well couldnt the same argument be used to legalize arson? Or alot of other crimes? Just because prison isnt a nice place & it causes suffering doesnt mean we should legalize something
6. Allowing child marriage increases child's happiness
The studies show otherwise, same study as earlier [4] says:
"CM is violation of ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ in general and ‘Rights of a child’ in particular. It exposes children to multiple risks pertaining to their physical, mental, and social health; leading to serious health consequences."
I also find the idea of using child marriage to get out of poverty or foster care somewhat manipulative & creepy.
7. Society should listen to child's voice
Lets be honest, children are not the smartest. Why should we allow a child to make a choice that could kill them, ruin their social & mental health, etc. Child marriage also makes them miss out on childhood:[4]
"Most importantly, early marriage bereaves young girls of their childhood by overburdening them with domestic responsibility, motherhood, and sexual relations rather than allowing them to play with friends, go to school, and dream about a career."
If we prioritize child happiness, then we should ban child marriage
8. Banning child marriages causes trauma for the child
I haven't found any study to support this, only studies that say affirm children marriages cause mental & physical trauma
9. Historical proof of valuing marriage and valuing child marriage working for the benefit of children tells us that child marriage isnt bad
Ive listed many reasons its bad but to adress the std claim:[5]
"Child brides are at a relatively high risk of HIV infection due to their young age and physicalimmaturity,8their limited power to negotiate safer sex, the frequency of unprotected sexualactivity, and the pressure on them to demonstrate their fertility"
10. Allowing child marriages controls birth rates much better
Maybe it would help the birth rate, but consequently it would increase maternal mortality rate. As I pointed out earlier the child is 5x more likely to die than a woman in her 20's, I personally dont think thats a good thing to allow.
11. Allowing child marriages helps adults, teenagers and children who are attracted to children
Just because it helps adults, does not mean we should allow an harmful practice that kills & sexually abuses children.
12. Allowing child marriages allows society to better regulate adult-child relationships
Well should we regulate it in a degree that we allow a harmful practice & make laws around it, or should we just outlaw the practice entirely?
13. Great majority of adult-child relationships are not violent
There appears to be a correlation between domestic abuse & cm, check this study [6] https://www.icrw.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Child-Marriage-Toolkit.pdf
Sources for information used in this debate:"The Trauma Myth" - scientific book about adult-child relationships
I looked into this book since I like to see both sides, the main issue is that it ignores the fact that sexual abuse a) doesn't just happen in six-year-olds, but also eleven and twelve year olds who DO understand that something is wrong but are too powerless to deal with it (it's often older family members and family friends, as the article discusses) and do indeed have to deal with the shame and depression.
Even more importantly it ignores the fact that, while the experience may not be horrifically traumatizing at the time, it still screws up the chemistry of the brain and absolutely decimates the psyche of the victim.
The author of the article states that the severity or type of abuse doesn't matter later on, well, this is simply not true. People who experience physical/sexual abuse will act out and search for a mate who is overly physical during sexual acts and it can be downright dangerous. Pedophiles are almost 100% victims of abuse in their childhoods, and the nature of the pedophilia can be different based on their abuse.
Even more importantly it ignores the fact that, while the experience may not be horrifically traumatizing at the time, it still screws up the chemistry of the brain and absolutely decimates the psyche of the victim.
The author of the article states that the severity or type of abuse doesn't matter later on, well, this is simply not true. People who experience physical/sexual abuse will act out and search for a mate who is overly physical during sexual acts and it can be downright dangerous. Pedophiles are almost 100% victims of abuse in their childhoods, and the nature of the pedophilia can be different based on their abuse.
Sources:
[1] - Gehlbach, hunter. (2014) Adolescent Development in "Encyclopedia of Educational Theory and Philosophy." united states: SAGE publications. 18
[2] - Breehl L, Caban O. Physiology, puberty. [updated 2022 apr 5]
[3] - Pandya, Y. P., & Bhanderi, D. J. (2015). An epidemiological study of child marriages in a rural community of Gujarat. Indian Journal of Community Medicine, 40(4), 246. https://doi.org/10.4103/0970-0218.164392
[4] - Pandya, Y. P., & Bhanderi, D. J. (2015). An epidemiological study of child marriages in a rural community of Gujarat. Indian Journal of Community Medicine, 40(4), 246. https://doi.org/10.4103/0970-0218.164392
Round 2
14. Children can consent to be happy
Relationship with an adult in most cases causes happiness to a child. If the adult was friendly and nice to the child, respected child's desires and interests, and respected child's consent and respected what child says, then he didnt force a child to anything. That is the opposite of forcing. To say otherwise would make every activity with a child forced, including school, playing, learning or reading bed time stories. Force would become an irrelevant word that can be applied to every activity. If the adult is kind and friendly to the child and doesnt force the child to anything, then the child will like that adult. Children know what happiness is.
15. Child marriage increases relationship stability
Allowing children to marry gives them more control over their lives. If two young people have known each other since childhood and decide they want to get married before reaching adulthood, then this would give them more stability in their relationship than if they were not allowed to marry until 18. This would also lead to better financial security. Marriages provide more wealth than if person lived alone, while they cut down on expenses.
16. Child marriage improves education for children
Child will have much better education if married, since then both the partner and parents can provide for the education. That is more resources than having parents alone. This especially helps single parents. Allowing child marriages also removes stigma from sexual education, allowing children to be better educated about their rights in a relationship, and about how to protect themselves from diseases. They dont learn that when child marriages are banned, and banning child marriages doesnt stop adult-child relationships.
17. Child marriage protects pregnant teens and unborn children
There is a common misunderstanding that banning child marriages prevents early pregnancy. It does not.
Allowing child marriages allows society to better educate children, and lower or increase birth rates if necessary.
Without child marriages, children still get pregnant. However, it is more difficult to regulate and educate children about safe sex if child marriages are banned. It is also more difficult for pregnant teens to maintain their relationship if they are judged and not allowed to marry.
Pregnant teens often have their reputation ruined by pregnancy. Sometimes they end up as single mothers. Sometimes the father of the child leaves the pregnant teen due to society's judgment. Sometimes a teen is forced to have an abortion due to stigma, and due to the lack of marriage that is needed to have economical stability and support to raise a child. Allowing child marriages would prevent this. Being allowed to marry, and father being made responsible for his child would help pregnant teens and unborn children.
18. Children are held accountable for their actions
We cannot say that children arent accountable for their actions. If a child commits a crime, child goes to prison. If child behaves bad, child gets punished. In the same way child is held accountable for bad behavior, the decisions that child makes are also to be considered important. We cannot say that child is only accountable when doing something bad, but not accountable when consenting to marriage. The decision of a child to enter marriage should be respected.
If a 12 year old murders someone, she would be charged. However, she wont be charged if she has sex with another 12 year old. But if she is 18 and has sex with a 12 year old, she will be charged. Therefore, we see that person's age in one crime is much more relevant to sentencing than in the other crime. In fact, in the case of sex, it literally goes from "not a big deal" to "very horrible" just because of the age of a person doing the action, not the action itself.
19. Child marriages are the tradition of our ancestors
By legalizing child marriage, we can preserve cultural heritages that have been passed down from generation-to-generation since ancient times.
Our ancestors married sometimes very young, at age 12 or 11. The age of consent 1000 years ago was usually 12, but it was not enforced and people married even younger.
Indigenous cultures around the world rely heavily upon early marriages between partners so that family lines remain intact. It also serves as strengthening of ties between clans through intermarriage agreements made prior birth. This becomes difficult without legal recognition. Allowing these practices legally ensures continuity within societies. It gives people freedom to express themselves culturally regardless of external pressures placed upon them by society.
20. Allowing child marriage gives child a choice
If a child is treated badly by her own family, allowing child marriages would allow that child to leave family and marry for someone who will treat her better. Maybe you cant always find someone you love, but sometimes you can. That sometimes should not be prevented.
21. Banning child marriages harms innocent people who are in prison
There is no doubt that there are innocent people in prison. Some people didnt commit the crime, but the witnesses lied about them and put them in prison. If someone is put in prison for having a relationship with a child, but is in fact innocent and didnt do that, he would still be beaten and abused in prison.
22. Sexual activities in marriage are healthy for children
There are plenty of benefits of sexual activities and orgasms. The benefits include living longer, being less likely to get ill, having better mood and improved reasoning. There is no reason to believe that only adults receieve benefits from sexual activities. Children receieve same benefits. Sexual activities make children happy when they are desired by children themselves. There are plenty of examples of children engaging in sexual activities with other children. Child marriages make children happy and serve for their benefit. Banning child marriages wont make relationships with children go away. Banning child marriages will just cause more broken relationships and more sex outside of marriage. Sexual activities are safest in marriage.
23. It is wrong to say that if children dont fully understand something, it should not be done
It is wrong to say: "Children shouldnt be vaccinated. Children cannot fully understand vaccinations. Children should not be born. Children cannot fully understand life.".
If children dont fully understand child marriages, that does not mean that child marriages are wrong. Children can desire to be married. Children have partial understanding of child marriages. Partial understanding is enough to have a desire. Most adults dont have complete understanding of each other, as they cant read each others thoughts. Allowing child marriages is beneficial for children. Child marriages make children happy and provide health benefits.
24. Judgment harms children
Society's judgment harms children who are in relationship with adults, teenagers or other children. They would not be able to figure out why society hates their relationship. This would make them feel shame, and be uncomfortable to even mention their relationship due to fear of upsetting others. The judgment would make them feel like they are approving of something bad and participating in something bad. The judgment would make them blame themselves. It would make them more scared, confused, depressed and suicidal. That blame comes once they grow up and learn that society strongly judges such relationships. Its the society that puts pressure on those children and makes them think that what they agreed to was horrible. Also, they hear rape stories on media, and believe that they are bad for approving that which society condemns.
25. Judgment causes general harm
People often justify their evil actions by saying that they are still better than others. For example, a person might justify polluting the environment by thinking that it is not bad because he is still better than map which he judges. Judgment causes harm by harming children who are futute scientists. It harms innovation.
26. Child marriages help prevent violence over children
Banning child marriages wont make violence go away. Banning child marriages will make violence harder to detect. Allowing child marriages makes the relationship known. If the relationship is known, it is easier to regulate it and prevent violence.Violence and dropping out of school is common in poor communities, just as child marriages are common in poor communities.
Banning child marriage will not make violence go away, as violent people dont stop being violent if they are not married to a person they commit violence against. Child marriages make the relationship known and easier to regulate, making it easier to prevent violence. In USA, there is plenty of violence over children, plenty of depression, plenty of suicides. Child marriages are banned in USA.
27. Child marriages give the child more autonomy
Child's body belongs to the child. It does not belong to anyone else. Therefore, only child can make decisions regarding own body. Other people dont get to decide instead of the child. Child marriages allow a child to make a choice, and make it so that the child is better informed. Child marriages allow a child to marry for who child wants, who child likes, who is kind to child and who makes child happy, and who doesnt force a child. Children are not a property, and banning children from marrying who they want would decrease child's autonomy. Banning children from making important decisions decreases their knowledge about important things, and harms them once they are adults. Child marriage teaches a child to be more responsible by educating a child and giving child more knowledge in decision-making. Even if child makes mistakes, child learns from them, as opposed to not making a mistake and not learning.
My opponent has pointed out in the comment they dont really debate, instead they post copy & pastes, and dont even read the other's arguments. So I ask my opponent to refute the points I made in the previous argument before we continue, that's only fair.
Round 3
Comments dont count in debates. Anyway, since my opponent basically forfeited and dropped my arguments, vote me.
28. It is not possible to prevent children from having sex
We see that it is not possible to prevent children from knowing about sex, with all the movies containing sex, and with child's curiosity to discover themselves, and with regular community talk which informs children, and with people who seek to inform children to build a relationship with them. You cant teach children not to have an urge. Entire history shows that controlling sexual urges is impossible to implement. It is also harmful and causes mental pain and discomfort, along with losing health benefits of sex, along with those who cant control their urges be judged by everyone and therefore, harmed. No country was able to stop children from acting on their urges, or adults from being with children.
29. Future consent tells us what is right
Preventing children from learning would be bad for them. Banning child marriages prevents children from learning. They will be less informed if they are not allowed to be in relationships. It was shown that child marriage benefits children by reducing depression and suicides, by reducing sex outside of marriage, by making children happier and healthier, by protecting children in relationships, by removing stigma which hurts children. It also helps better guide adults on how to treat children, as opposed to increasing prison population and torture. It was also pointed out that most relationships are never discovered and great majority of children dont want for their partner to go to prison. They keep same opinion even when they grow up. Their opinion should be respected.
Children do not need to fully understand child marriages. Society can understand child marriages, and decide that children should be allowed to marry because of the benefits it gives. Children in child marriages are not on their own, as society and parents are there to advise them and protect them if something goes wrong in marriage.
Banning child marriages leaves children on their own, as there is no one to guide them as the relationships are secret when child marriages are banned.
Child marriage is a child's choice. When child grows into adult, she doesnt want for her partner to go to prison. Since adults are well informed, it follows that child marriage is well informed decision of a person who approves of her child marriage after becoming adult.
This is what is known as "future consent". When child grows up, she agrees that her marriage as a child wasnt a bad thing.
30. Power doesnt matter in a loving relationship
Most of child abuse is caused by children. A 14 year old can easily abuse a 10 year old if in relationship with her. A 14 year old can easily abuse another 14 year old if he is much stronger than her. Even among adults, man can easily abuse a woman due to being stronger.
Children are more likely to get abused by other children than by adults. Adults have more control over their actions. They can be better educated by society. They also have more moral maturity.
In every relationship, one person is more "powerful". In parenting, parents are more powerful than children. However, in loving and consensual relationships, power doesnt matter as there is no force at play. Adult and child have attachment to each other. They love each other and make each other happy. They do that which both have the desire for. Child marriage helps create stronger attachment and increases happiness.
31. Child marriages prevent children from being in bad company
Most of the children who enter into bad company do so because they dont have guidance and because they desire sex.
Child marriage satisfies child's sexual urges and gives guidance to children.
32. Child marriages ensure that children have same rights as adults
Children have the right to love and to form relationships. It would be cruel to deny children of that until adulthood, as certain percentage of children never reach adulthood. Child marriages are in child's interest. Future consent demonstrates that. Child desires love and creates attachments. To destroy child's love and child's attachment would be very cruel and inhumane, and would reduce children to mere property without a voice.
33. Banning child marriages increases the number of child sexual abuse
You cannot reduce sex with children by criminalizing it. The victims, as explained before, dont want to speak out. They like the adult and dont want him harmed.
The number of abuse cases keeps growing. Map always assume they wont be caught. Due to lack of marriage and lack of legality, some map resort to having sexual activities with lots of children. There were even cases of one map being with over 100 children. Without the ability to marry and without legal protection, map person has less reasons to stay with just one child. There is no education to guide map in behavior. There is no legal law that he must follow. The longer map stays with one child, the more likely map is to get caught. Due to having to hide the relationship, map is more likely to end a relationship and seek other children when map suspects that the current relationship will be discovered if he continues. When child marriages are banned, map would impose himself more on a child, due to no education and no legal guide for behavior. Map is also more likely to use threats against a child, in an attempt to hide the relationship. Map is also more likely to hurt a child when child marriages are banned. This is due to less reasons to treat child well. If he is nice, he might go to prison. If he is not nice, he might go to prison. No matter what he does, he might go to prison. If child marriages were legal and regulated, map would be able to satisfy his urges legally and at the same time follow the rules not to hurt a child. He would be punished if he hurts a child, but tolerated if he doesnt. This gives him a reason not to hurt a child, as he would be much safer and in much better position if he doesnt. Most map are kind non-violent people. However, there are those who are violent. Banning child marriages makes them much more violent and harder to control.
The proof for child marriages reducing sexual abuse is Afghanistan and USA. In USA, 30% of children have sex before age 16. In Afghanistan, only 4% of children are married before age 15. In USA, child marriages are banned and condemned. In Afghanistan, they are seen as normal. We see that allowing child marriages does not harm children, not in terms of scale and not in terms of abuse, as Afghanistan has less suicides, less divorce and less STD than USA. STD is confirmed even by random testing, and all sources agree that STD is lower in Afghanistan. Let us be reminded that Afghanistan is a poor country, and that USA is among world's most developed nations. The fact that Afghanistan has child marriages and outmatches US proves that there is value in child marriage.
34. Banning child marriages increases the number of forced abortions
If child is in a relationship with an adult, and if child gets pregnant and relationship is discovered, child will be convinced to have an abortion. Even if child doesnt want to abort, the pressure of adults will break her. The decision to have an abortion will be, by all standards, an adult's decision imposed on a child.
35. If child marriages are banned, child is treated differently
When the police gets involved, child is scared and confused. The police will persuade a child that what happened to her was wrong. Parents will continue the persuasion. Child will even visit psychologists who will add to persuasion. In short, entire society will try to convince her that the adult who was so kind to her was in fact a monster. This confuses the child who cannot find a reasonable explanation for adult's reaction, and is forced to accept adult's explanation that was imposed on her so many times. She simply isnt allowed to disagree, or she will be faced with more convincing, more emotional attacks and more visits to psychologists. Adults, who are in greater number and better at reasoning than she is, will simply outmatch her. That is the true power imbalance.
36. This society doesnt care about child's well being
Plenty of people spank children, even tho it was proven that spanking harms children. Plenty of people give children junk food, knowing it is bad for child's health, teeth and brain, and that it causes obesity. Plenty of people lie to children and therefore, teach children to use lies. Plenty of people break the speed limit, knowing that it increases the chances of children being hurt and dying in traffic. They dont care. Plenty of people support circumcision, knowing that it harms children. Plenty of people dont bother to try to fix foster care system, knowing that plenty of child abuse happens in foster care. Children abuse children there. Plenty of people smoke, knowing it increases the chances of birth defects and makes children more likely to smoke. People upload porn to internet making it easily available, knowing that children might see it. Its not the map who needs to change. This society is wrong about child marriages. This society is blind. Its this corrupt society which harms children while claiming that map harm children. This society harms animals too, by torturing them, slaughtering them and turning them into meat. These are double standards that society should abandon. You cannot judge others for that which you yourself do.
37. Being married to adult carries benefits for the child
Child being married to adult will learn a lot from that adult, much more than she would have learned from having other child as partner. Adults are much more morally advanced than children and have greater knowledge. Child cannot teach a child as much as adult can teach a child. Adult is also more likely to behave well and maintain a stable marriage, where relationships between child and child are much more likely to break.
Ill take it my opponent didnt read my argument once again.
Round 4
My opponent keeps not responding to my arguments, nor posting his own anymore. I dont know why he quit in the middle of a debate, but it will make it easy for voters to vote.
Now, since I have written over 30,000 characters of arguments so far and my opponent wrote only 10,000, a simple math will tell you that he dropped at least 20,000 characters of arguments.
Well, he didnt even respond to all argumemts in round 1, and then decided to skip 2 rounds. So yeah, easy vote.
Back to my arguments.
38. Banning child marriages leads to age discrimination
Adult child relationships are the crime in which crime is only a crime due to age of an adult. For example, two 12 year olds being in sexual relationship is condemned, but not a crime. But a sexual relationship between 12 year old and 18 year old is a crime. Therefore, person is assumed to have caused harm only because of his age, not because of the activity he does.
39. Banning child marriages harms child-child sexual relationships
Our society condemns children for having sex with other children and for masturbating. Parents still condemn if their 9 year old had sex with a 12 year old. Parents still shame 4 year olds if they catch them masturbate. This causes children to feel shame and guilt, which increases depression. If child marriages were allowed, relationships between child and child would also be better tolerated and children would be less depressed and less shamed for having sexual activities or masturbating. This would help them grow into free persons without judgment or fear.
40. Child marriages support LGBT rights
Trans children are being judged by our society, simply because our society believes that children shouldnt have a choice. The idea of individual's autonomy would be supported by legalization of child marriages. Child marriages support the idea of giving child a choice, which supports trans rights as trans children would be given a choice to make decisions about their bodies. Many people want to tell trans children that they are not trans, that boys cant dress as girls and much more. The idea that child shouldnt have a choice is a cruel idea, since some children never become adults. To deny them of choice during childhood means to deny them of choice for their entire life.
41. Banning child marriages harms economy and society
People who end up in prison stop being productive. Doctors who end up in prison are no longer able to provide medical services. Inventors who end up in prison will no longer invent. This makes everything more expensive, increasing poverty among adults and children. Children harmed by society's stigma will be less productive.
42. Survival of the fittest proves the power of child marriages and the value it has for society
Child marriage helped societies to survive. Societies before ours lived in a very difficult conditions. They needed to be at their best in order to survive. Those societies valued marriage and child marriage, and practiced it. If child marriage was bad for society, then societies who didnt practice it would be dominant. The opposite happened. Societies that practiced child marriage were dominant. Child marriage improved their birth rates, their economy and their ability to defend themselves. There were plenty of happy child marriages at that time. No one complained. Child marriage in ancient times saved children from being orphans. It took care of orphans. At that time, there was no foster care and no one wanted to take care of orphans except map. Without map, ancient orphans would all be reduced to begging in the street. People ignore all the benefits child marriages provided throughout history. Even Romeo and Juliet is based on child marriage that wasnt allowed to happen. Juliet was 14.
43. Having unsatisfied sexual urges is like feeling pain
If map are allowed to have one partner, they can satisfy urges legally in a way that doesnt harm them. If they are not allowed any partner, they cannot satisfy urges legally at all. And urges would still be there. Having urges that are unfullfilled is an equivalent of pain, since sexual urges are very strong and people are ready to risk their life and freedom to satisfy them.
44. Comparison of child to a drunk person doesnt work
If a person who is not drunk has sex with a drunk person, that person goes to prison for rape.
If two drunk people have sex, no one will go to prison despite that drunk people cant consent.
Adult can get drunk and have sex with a child, and then no one would get charged for rape because adult wouldnt have power to consent to sex.
We see that standards are inconsistent.
45. Attacking map means attacking victims of abuse
Life is not fair towards map. Many map were abused as children. They suffered a lot. To say that they should suffer more is a great injustice.
46. Map are not at fault for being map
Map didnt choose to be map. It was never their choice. Yet they suffer because of it. They are in pain. They feel guilty. Life dealt them bad cards.
47. There is no proof that consensual sexual relationship with a child causes any harm
We have proof of stigma causing harm. We have proof of judgment causing harm. We have proof of broken attachment causing harm. We have proof of broken relationships causing harm. We have proof of multiple sexual partners causing harm. We have proof of non-valuing marriage causing harm. Do we have any proof of consensual sexual relationships in marriage that is valued causing harm? No. We only have proof of it benefiting the child.
48. What if your son or daughter was map?
Surely, you wouldnt wish them to be imprisoned or raped.
49. Some kids are very smart
There are 11 year olds with IQ of 160. Clearly, they can learn anything that an average 18 year old knows, if not even much more.
50. Children dont consent to be banned from choosing
Children want to have freedom like anyone else. They dont want to be property or have other people make decisions about their life.
51. What if you were map?
Surely, you would want for society not to judge you.
52. If everyone was map, society would still work good
We see from examples of old societies that they did marry young. It seemed to be one of the things which helped them thrive in a challenging world where mistakes of society could have easily led to extinction of that society.
53. Adult-child relationships are less bad than circumcision
There is no logical explanation for why cutting a baby's penis is less bad than sucking it.
"Cutting baby's penis isnt traumatic for the baby, but sucking it somehow is" is a logic that makes no sense.
If sucking baby's penis is bad for the baby, then circumcision is many times worse. Yet circumcision goes unpunished. We see that society is blind and unjust, so wrong about adult-child relationships.
54. What if the map is hot?
If map is hot, there is greater chance that little girl really falls in love with him deeply and really enjoys his company. So then it obviously isnt bad.
55. What if the little girl falls in love with map?
If little girl falls in love with map, she would be very hurt if society separated them. She would want to stay with him, and not be forcefully separated from him.
56. Making child marriages illegal would punish children with sexual urges.
Children with sexual urges would have no safe and legal way to satisfy those urges. Unsatisfied urges are like pain, which would ruin the lives of those children by forcing them into bad ways, such as watching porn or having lots of sex outside marriage.
57. Lex talionis
Lex talionis is a law that says how punishment for the crime should be equal to harm done by that crime.
Since in most cases, map does no harm and no pain to the child, it follows that map should not be punished with any pain.
Therefore, it would be wrong to cause pain to map by not allowing him to be with the child, or by imprisoning him.
Yet society causes great harm to both map and child through judgments, separations and punishments.
58. Most children dont want to upset adults
Society places a lot of pressure on children, it shapes children. Currently, society teaches children to hate their partners even if they loved them while they were together. That is simply wrong.
59. Effect of social education
If children are taught to hate their partners, that will make those children sad and confused.
But if opposite happens, if love is encouraged and not punished, then children will be happier and will go on with their lives as normal. They will not have to worry about if their love is wrong or if society will be upset about their love.
Im not even sure why north korea started this debate if they dont even want to discuss the points.
Round 5
I am glad that you think North Korea is best Korea.
Anyway, I will just write conclusion at this point.
Conclusion
In most cases, child marriages should be allowed. My case stands on strong ground, supported by lots of strong reasons. The harm of banning child marriage greatly outweights any benefits it might have. The combined force of all the reasons I provided serves as a weight that greatly outweights my opponent's one round that he provided so far.
Sources for information used in this debate:
"The Trauma Myth" - scientific book about adult-child relationships
What do we say in the end? Bye!
I dont see any reason to adress Korea's arguments since he refuses to even read mine (read comments), in conclusion cm leads to harmful practices therefore should not be allowed.
There is still 1 round left where you can say you forfeit.
There is no shame in forfeiting the debate, you know. It happens. You can say in the next round that you forfeit and I will simply take the win.
It will of course mess up my plans of having lowest rating in debateart history, but its okay. I can take it.
You dont.
You debate with a copy paste.
I genuely couldnt care less about what you have to say lol
Like, I didnt even read your round 1, but I do have a lot more copy paste so basically you have a lot of work left to do in refuting and I wont even read those refutations.
Okay im unsure why I debate with you then.
Literally, I just copy paste the debate and let the idiots argue with copy paste lmao
I like how you assume that I will actually read your arguments.
I find Korea’s position reprehensible, but we ought to show him the risks of cm so he doesn’t go forward thinking it’s okay.
I know its a sensitive topic, but everything should be debated, no?
💀 what
See if anything needs changing.