Swara (custom)
Encyclopedia
Swara is a child marriage
custom in tribal areas of Pakistan
and Afghanistan
. This custom is tied to blood feud
s among the different tribes and clans where the young girls are forcibly married to the members of different clans in order to resolve the feuds. It is most common among Pashtuns.
Child marriage
Child marriage and child betrothal customs occur in various times and places, whereby children are given in matrimony - before marriageable age as defined by the commentator and often before puberty. Today such customs are fairly widespread in parts of Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America: in...
custom in tribal areas of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. This custom is tied to blood feud
Blood Feud
"Blood Feud" is the twenty-second and final episode of The Simpsons second season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on July 11, 1991. In the episode, Mr. Burns falls ill and desperately needs a blood transfusion. Homer discovers Bart has Burns' rare blood type and urges...
s among the different tribes and clans where the young girls are forcibly married to the members of different clans in order to resolve the feuds. It is most common among Pashtuns.
See also
- Child marriageChild marriageChild marriage and child betrothal customs occur in various times and places, whereby children are given in matrimony - before marriageable age as defined by the commentator and often before puberty. Today such customs are fairly widespread in parts of Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America: in...
- Arranged marriageArranged marriageAn arranged marriage is a practice in which someone other than the couple getting married makes the selection of the persons to be wed, meanwhile curtailing or avoiding the process of courtship. Such marriages had deep roots in royal and aristocratic families around the world...
- Watta sattaWatta sattaWatta satta is a tribal custom in Pakistan of exchanging brides between two families. At the time of marriage, both families trade brides. That is, both families must have a daughter and a son and be willing to betroth them to a daughter and son of the other family...
- Karo kari
- VaniVani (custom)Vani is a child marriage custom in tribal areas of Pakistan. Besides tribal areas, it is widely followed in Punjab in Pakistan. This custom is tied to blood feuds among the different tribes and clans where the young girls are forcibly married to the members of different clans in order to resolve...
External links
- Custom of swara in vogue despite govt claims, November 29, 2010
- Six-month-old girl married off in Swara incident, May 31, 2010
- Present law insufficient to check swara, vani custom, April 26, 2010
- Swara practised with impunity in tribal areas, November 13, 2006
- Swara Practice in Pakistan Caused Young Women's Deaths, November 7, 2006
- Swara girl decreed by jirga rejected, April 17, 2006
- Blood Feuds Trap Girls in 'Compensation Marriages', April 1, 2006
- Documentary highlights inhuman Swara custom, December 27, 2005
- Pakistani Girls Forced to Settle Men’s Disputes, April 16, 2004
- Swara: The Price of Honour, February 20, 2004
- Legislator Fights Pakistan's 'Blood' Marriages, October 20, 2003
- Girls as 'compensation' still in vogue, August 22, 2003