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Just Rights for Children convenes global leaders in NYC in fight against child marriage
JRC and its network partners have so far prevented or stopped over 390,000 child marriages in India.
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Fri, 26, Sep 2025
- 02:48 EDT
- 18
(From left) The Children’s Investment Fund Management CEO Christopher Hohn, Dr. Fatima Maada Bio and Bhuwan Ribhu / Just Rights for Children
Just Rights for Children (JRC), a New Delhi based global civil society network against sexual crimes on children, convened global leaders in New York on Sept. 25.
The event, titled, 'Creating Child Marriage Free World: Building case for Prevention, Protection and Prosecution,' aimed at strengthening the enforcement and international cooperation towards the realization of Sustainable Development Goal 5.3, 'ending violence on children',
Organized in the margins of the 80th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, the event showcased best practices, survivor voices, and pushed to reinforce international commitment to eliminate child, early, and forced marriage by 2030.
ALSO READ: Indian activists seek to save child brides
JRC’s founder, Bhuwan Ribhu, appealed to Head of States, governments, civil society leaders and jurists to come together to act on the worsening situation for the world’s most marginalized children, especially on the issue of child marriage.
He noted, "Child marriage, abuse, and violence are not just injustices: they are crimes.”
Ribhu added, “The end of child marriage is not only possible but eminent. By coming together as a global community, we can help ensure that child marriage and abuse are fully prosecuted and prevented, not only by legal systems but by society as a whole.”
The event was organized in collaboration with Dr. Fatima Maada Bio, the First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone and the president of Organization of African First Ladies for Development. Additionally, the Sierra Leone's permanent mission to the U.N. and the Government of Kenya also joined hands with JRC to organize the event.
During the event, Dr. Bio was awarded with the first Champions of Change Award by JRC for her leadership and efforts to end child marriage. Her work was
instrumental in the passage of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act of 2024, a landmark law that bans marriage for anyone under the age of 18, with no exceptions, in her country.
Accepting the award, she said, “I do not accept this award for myself alone. I accept it on behalf of our people, my sisters and brothers in Sierra Leone, who have been working on this difficult journey with me."
She added, “It belongs to every community leader, every teacher, every young activist, every parent who have dared to believe that girls deserve better. It belongs to all of us who believe that every child deserves a childhood free from fear, from abuse, and full of possibilities.”
“This high-level dialogue is the result of a unified call from leaders across continents who recognize that child marriage, abuse, and violence are not just injustices: they are crimes,” said Bhuwan Ribhu.
The event featured key political and bureaucratic figures from around the world, including, Najat Maalla M’jid, the UN Special Representative on Violence Against Children, Carren Ageng’o from Kenya, the Executive Director of Neem Foundation Fatima Akilu and Minister Åsmund Aukrust from Norway, among many other representatives of different countries and organizations.
JRC and its network partners have so far prevented or stopped over 390,000 child marriages through intervention, legal action, and community mobilization, between April 2023 to September 2025. During the same period, they have rescued more than 105,000 children from trafficking and forced labor; and
filed over 70,000 cases against perpetrators. Additionally, they have shared intelligence in 73,000 cybercrime-linked child sexual abuse cases.
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