0:00:01.014,0:00:02.825 I'll begin today 0:00:02.825,0:00:04.891 by sharing a poem 0:00:04.891,0:00:08.026 written by my friend from Malawi, 0:00:08.026,0:00:10.162 Eileen Piri. 0:00:10.162,0:00:13.506 Eileen is only 13 years old, 0:00:13.506,0:00:19.380 but when we were going through[br]the collection of poetry that we wrote, 0:00:19.380,0:00:22.248 I found her poem so interesting, 0:00:22.248,0:00:24.245 so motivating. 0:00:24.245,0:00:26.358 So I'll read it to you. 0:00:26.905,0:00:30.503 She entitled her poem[br]"I'll Marry When I Want." 0:00:30.503,0:00:33.359 (Laughter) 0:00:33.359,0:00:35.890 "I'll marry when I want. 0:00:35.890,0:00:40.790 My mother can't force me to marry. 0:00:40.790,0:00:43.994 My father cannot force me to marry. 0:00:45.526,0:00:48.336 My uncle, my aunt, 0:00:48.336,0:00:50.681 my brother or sister, 0:00:50.681,0:00:52.863 cannot force me to marry. 0:00:53.885,0:00:56.254 No one in the world 0:00:56.254,0:00:59.550 can force me to marry. 0:00:59.550,0:01:02.499 I'll marry when I want. 0:01:02.499,0:01:05.077 Even if you beat me, 0:01:05.077,0:01:07.747 even if you chase me away, 0:01:07.747,0:01:10.928 even if you do anything bad to me, 0:01:10.928,0:01:14.364 I'll marry when I want. 0:01:14.364,0:01:17.267 I'll marry when I want, 0:01:17.267,0:01:21.005 but not before I am well educated, 0:01:21.005,0:01:25.323 and not before I am all grown up. 0:01:25.323,0:01:27.810 I'll marry when I want." 0:01:28.831,0:01:31.827 This poem might seem odd, 0:01:31.827,0:01:35.356 written by a 13-year-old girl, 0:01:35.356,0:01:40.139 but where I and Eileen come from, 0:01:40.139,0:01:43.900 this poem, which I have just read to you, 0:01:43.900,0:01:47.616 is a warrior's cry. 0:01:47.616,0:01:50.541 I am from Malawi. 0:01:51.191,0:01:55.115 Malawi is one of the poorest countries, 0:01:55.115,0:01:57.994 very poor, 0:01:57.994,0:02:02.522 where gender equality is questionable. 0:02:02.522,0:02:04.844 Growing up in that country, 0:02:04.844,0:02:08.095 I couldn't make my own choices in life. 0:02:08.095,0:02:10.393 I couldn't even explore 0:02:10.393,0:02:13.389 personal opportunities in life. 0:02:13.389,0:02:15.919 I will tell you a story 0:02:15.919,0:02:18.381 of two different girls, 0:02:18.381,0:02:22.026 two beautiful girls. 0:02:22.026,0:02:24.580 These girls grew up 0:02:24.580,0:02:26.693 under the same roof. 0:02:26.693,0:02:29.410 They were eating the same food. 0:02:29.410,0:02:32.173 Sometimes, they would share clothes, 0:02:32.173,0:02:34.982 and even shoes. 0:02:34.982,0:02:39.649 But their lives ended up differently, 0:02:39.649,0:02:41.646 in two different paths. 0:02:43.039,0:02:46.754 The other girl is my little sister. 0:02:46.754,0:02:51.677 My little sister was only 11 years old 0:02:51.677,0:02:54.329 when she got pregnant. 0:02:56.029,0:02:59.742 It's a hurtful thing. 0:03:01.352,0:03:04.633 Not only did it hurt her, even me. 0:03:04.633,0:03:08.232 I was going through a hard time as well. 0:03:08.232,0:03:11.947 As it is in my culture, 0:03:11.947,0:03:14.942 once you reach puberty stage, 0:03:14.942,0:03:18.820 you are supposed to go[br]to initiation camps. 0:03:18.820,0:03:21.118 In these initiation camps, 0:03:21.118,0:03:24.973 you are taught how[br]to sexually please a man. 0:03:24.973,0:03:26.761 There is this special day, 0:03:26.761,0:03:29.965 which they call "Very Special Day" 0:03:29.965,0:03:32.519 where a man who is hired[br]by the community 0:03:32.519,0:03:35.143 comes to the camp 0:03:35.143,0:03:37.572 and sleeps with the little girls. 0:03:39.252,0:03:41.766 Imagine the trauma that these young girls[br] 0:03:41.766,0:03:44.516 go through every day. 0:03:46.766,0:03:49.925 Most girls end up pregnant. 0:03:49.925,0:03:52.542 They even contract HIV and AIDS[br] 0:03:52.542,0:03:54.882 and other sexually transmitted diseases. 0:03:55.692,0:04:00.603 For my little sister,[br]she ended up being pregnant. 0:04:00.603,0:04:04.666 Today, she's only 16 years old 0:04:04.666,0:04:07.662 and she has three children. 0:04:07.662,0:04:11.307 Her first marriage did not survive, 0:04:11.307,0:04:14.604 nor did her second marriage. 0:04:14.604,0:04:18.781 On the other side, there is this girl. 0:04:19.341,0:04:21.314 She's amazing. 0:04:21.314,0:04:23.218 (Laughter) 0:04:23.218,0:04:26.163 (Applause) 0:04:27.723,0:04:30.138 I call her amazing because she is. 0:04:30.138,0:04:33.203 She's very fabulous. 0:04:33.203,0:04:36.964 That girl is me. (Laughter) 0:04:36.964,0:04:39.982 When I was 13 years old, 0:04:39.982,0:04:43.396 I was told, you are grown up, 0:04:43.396,0:04:46.228 you have now reached of age, 0:04:46.228,0:04:49.595 you're supposed to go[br]to the initiation camp. 0:04:49.595,0:04:52.567 I was like, "What? 0:04:52.567,0:04:56.549 I'm not going to go[br]to the initiation camps." 0:04:58.349,0:05:01.112 You know what the women said to me? 0:05:01.112,0:05:04.734 "You are a stupid girl. Stubborn. 0:05:04.734,0:05:12.001 You do not respect the traditions[br]of our society, of our community." 0:05:12.001,0:05:15.809 I said no because I knew[br]where I was going. 0:05:15.809,0:05:18.433 I knew what I wanted in life. 0:05:19.773,0:05:22.738 I had a lot of dreams as a young girl. 0:05:24.238,0:05:27.883 I wanted to get well educated, 0:05:27.883,0:05:30.363 to find a decent job in the future. 0:05:30.363,0:05:32.122 I was imagining myself as a lawyer,[br] 0:05:32.122,0:05:34.832 seated on that big chair. 0:05:34.832,0:05:37.138 Those were the imaginations that[br] 0:05:37.138,0:05:40.468 were going through my mind every day. 0:05:40.468,0:05:42.302 And I knew that one day, 0:05:42.302,0:05:46.876 I would contribute something,[br]a little something to my community. 0:05:46.876,0:05:49.407 But every day after refusing, 0:05:49.407,0:05:51.427 women would tell me, 0:05:51.427,0:05:54.817 "Look at you, you're all grown up.[br]Your little sister has a baby. 0:05:54.817,0:05:56.303 What about you?" 0:05:56.303,0:06:01.017 That was the music[br]that I was hearing every day, 0:06:01.017,0:06:04.894 and that is the music[br]that girls hear every day 0:06:04.894,0:06:09.043 when they don't do something[br]that the community needs them to do. 0:06:11.524,0:06:15.448 When I compared the two stories[br]between me and my sister, 0:06:15.448,0:06:20.185 I said, "Why can't I do something? 0:06:20.185,0:06:25.246 Why can't I change something[br]that has happened for a long time 0:06:25.246,0:06:27.661 in our community?" 0:06:27.661,0:06:30.169 That was when I called other girls 0:06:30.169,0:06:32.723 just like my sister, who have children, 0:06:32.723,0:06:36.187 who have been in class but they have[br]forgotten how to read and write. 0:06:36.187,0:06:38.297 I said, "Come on, we can [br]remind each other 0:06:38.297,0:06:40.432 how to read and write again, 0:06:40.432,0:06:44.240 how to hold the pen,[br]how to read, to hold the book." 0:06:44.240,0:06:47.885 It was a great time I had with them. 0:06:47.885,0:06:52.157 Nor did I just learn a little about them, 0:06:52.157,0:06:55.594 but they were able to tell me[br]their personal stories, 0:06:55.594,0:06:57.405 what they were facing every day 0:06:57.405,0:07:00.075 as young mothers. 0:07:00.075,0:07:02.072 That was when I was like, 0:07:02.072,0:07:05.996 'Why can't we take all these things[br]that are happening to us 0:07:05.996,0:07:09.873 and present them and tell our mothers,[br]our traditional leaders, 0:07:09.873,0:07:11.870 that these are the wrong things?" 0:07:11.870,0:07:13.937 It was a scary thing to do, 0:07:13.937,0:07:15.910 because these traditional leaders, 0:07:15.910,0:07:18.114 they are already accustomed to the things[br] 0:07:18.114,0:07:20.554 that have been there for ages. 0:07:20.554,0:07:22.481 A hard thing to change, 0:07:22.481,0:07:25.105 but a good thing to try. 0:07:25.105,0:07:27.357 So we tried. 0:07:27.357,0:07:29.865 It was very hard, but we pushed. 0:07:30.245,0:07:33.109 And I'm here to say that in my community,[br] 0:07:33.109,0:07:35.669 it was the first community after girls[br] 0:07:35.669,0:07:39.036 pushed so hard to our traditional leader,[br] 0:07:39.036,0:07:43.425 and our leader stood up for us[br]and said no girl has to be married 0:07:43.425,0:07:45.654 before the age of 18. 0:07:45.654,0:07:49.507 (Applause) 0:07:53.502,0:07:55.243 In my community, 0:07:55.243,0:07:57.890 that was the first time a community, 0:07:57.890,0:08:00.351 they had to call the bylaws, 0:08:00.351,0:08:03.858 the first bylaw that protected girls 0:08:03.858,0:08:06.052 in our community. 0:08:06.052,0:08:07.840 We did not stop there. 0:08:07.840,0:08:10.789 We forged ahead. 0:08:10.789,0:08:14.643 We were determined to fight for girls[br]not just in my community, 0:08:14.643,0:08:17.429 but even in other communities. 0:08:17.429,0:08:21.562 When the child marriage bill[br]was being presented in February, 0:08:21.562,0:08:25.208 we were there at the Parliament house. 0:08:25.208,0:08:29.294 Every day, when the members[br]of Parliament were entering, 0:08:29.294,0:08:32.383 we were telling them,[br]"Would you please support the bill?" 0:08:32.383,0:08:37.142 And we don't have[br]much technology like here, 0:08:37.142,0:08:39.139 but we have our small phones. 0:08:39.139,0:08:44.169 So we said, "Why can't we get [br]their numbers and text them?" 0:08:44.178,0:08:47.428 So we did that. It was a good thing. 0:08:47.428,0:08:49.448 (Applause) 0:08:49.448,0:08:52.421 So when the bill passed,[br]we texted them back, 0:08:52.421,0:08:54.849 "Thank you for supporting the bill." 0:08:54.849,0:08:55.919 (Laughter) 0:08:55.919,0:08:59.264 And when the bill was signed[br]by the president, 0:08:59.264,0:09:02.630 making it into law, it was a plus. 0:09:02.630,0:09:08.482 Now, in Malawi, 18 is the legal[br]marriage age, from 15 to 18. 0:09:08.482,0:09:12.127 (Applause) 0:09:14.495,0:09:18.071 It's a good thing to know[br]that the bill passed, 0:09:18.071,0:09:21.113 but let me tell you this: 0:09:21.113,0:09:25.501 There are countries where 18[br]is the legal marriage age, 0:09:25.501,0:09:29.773 but don't we hear cries[br]of women and girls every day? 0:09:29.773,0:09:35.416 Every day, girls' lives[br]are being wasted away. 0:09:35.416,0:09:41.870 This is high time for leaders[br]to honor their commitment. 0:09:41.870,0:09:44.239 In honoring this commitment, 0:09:44.239,0:09:49.951 it means keeping girls' issues[br]at heart every time. 0:09:49.951,0:09:53.712 We don't have to be subjected as second, 0:09:53.712,0:09:57.950 but they have to know that women,[br]as we are in this room, 0:09:57.950,0:10:01.000 we are not just women,[br]we are not just girls, 0:10:01.000,0:10:02.980 we are extraordinary. 0:10:02.980,0:10:04.893 We can do more. 0:10:04.893,0:10:07.888 And another thing for Malawi, 0:10:07.888,0:10:10.790 and not just Malawi but other countries: 0:10:10.790,0:10:14.575 The laws which are there, 0:10:14.575,0:10:20.426 you know how a law is not a law[br]until it is enforced? 0:10:20.426,0:10:23.839 The law which has just recently passed 0:10:23.839,0:10:26.463 and the laws that in other countries[br]have been there, 0:10:26.463,0:10:30.387 they need to be publicized[br]at the local level, 0:10:30.387,0:10:32.570 at the community level, 0:10:32.570,0:10:37.956 where girls' issues are very striking. 0:10:37.956,0:10:42.716 Girls face issues, difficult issues,[br]at the community level every day. 0:10:43.274,0:10:48.359 So if these young girls know[br]that there are laws that protect them, 0:10:48.359,0:10:51.145 they will be able to stand up[br]and defend themselves 0:10:51.145,0:10:54.816 because they will know that[br]there is a law that protects them. 0:10:57.254,0:11:01.363 And another thing I would say is that 0:11:01.363,0:11:05.961 girls' voices and women's voices 0:11:05.961,0:11:08.724 are beautiful, they are there, 0:11:08.724,0:11:11.905 but we cannot do this alone. 0:11:11.905,0:11:14.575 Male advocates, they have to jump in, 0:11:14.575,0:11:16.525 to step in and work together. 0:11:16.525,0:11:19.103 It's a collective work. 0:11:19.103,0:11:21.843 What we need is what girls elsewhere need: 0:11:21.843,0:11:27.601 good education, and above all,[br]not to marry whilst 11. 0:11:30.085,0:11:32.953 And furthermore, 0:11:32.953,0:11:36.018 I know that together, 0:11:36.018,0:11:39.966 we can transform the legal, 0:11:39.966,0:11:43.135 the cultural and political framework 0:11:43.135,0:11:47.906 that denies girls of their rights. 0:11:47.906,0:11:52.964 I am standing here today 0:11:52.964,0:12:00.004 and declaring that we can[br]end child marriage in a generation. 0:12:00.677,0:12:02.860 This is the moment 0:12:02.860,0:12:07.294 where a girl and a girl,[br]and millions of girls worldwide, 0:12:07.294,0:12:09.895 will be able to say, 0:12:09.895,0:12:13.099 "I will marry when I want." 0:12:13.099,0:12:16.144 (Applause) 0:12:23.284,0:12:25.219 Thank you. (Applause)