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Rising conservatism new challenge for family planning program
The increasing popularity of the movement has raised concerns among promoters of planned parenthood.
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Two children are enough: Two children pass in front of a family planning program campaign mural at Kampung KB in Pucang Sawit, Surakarta, Central Java, on Nov.14. (Antara/Maulana Surya)
“Being married brings peace to your heart. So, what are you waiting for?” said @gerakannikahmuda, an online movement that promotes marriage to young people, on Instagram, a message that received nearly 6,000 likes in just two days. The account itself is followed by over 400,000 users.
Similar accounts encouraging young people to get married have also emerged, each gaining hundreds of thousands of followers. Among the popular accounts are @indonesiatanpapacaran (Indonesia without dating) with roughly 955,000 followers and @beraninikah (dare to get married) with over 100,000 followers.
The promoters of the movement call on the young generation to avoid committing sins, mainly extramarital sex, by getting married while they are still young.
The increasing popularity of the movement has raised concerns among promoters of family planning, including authorities, which champion planned marriage and parenthood to create a prosperous family.
“Early marriage is also related to infant and mother mortality. Several studies suggest that the younger the mothers are, the higher the rate of deaths is,” said Alifah Nuranti, a top official at the National Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN), on Tuesday.
She further added that, for that very reason, women were strongly advised to get married at the age of at least 21, when their uterus is strong enough to bear a fetus. Being pregnant at the age of 19 or younger -- called teen or adolescent pregnancy -- poses some health challenges.
A World Health Organization (WHO) report reveals that adolescent mothers, aged 10 to 19, face higher risks of eclampsia, a condition that causes seizures during pregnancy, and systemic infections compared to women aged 20 to 24 years.
