As BBC notes, the practice of marriage between close relatives is widespread in Tajikistan, especially in the mountainous, rural areas of the republic. According to the country's Ministry of Health, about 30-35% of disabled children are born to parents who are close relatives, and this is causing serious concern among the authorities.
“There are cases where in one family four children have developmental defects. And they are born to couples in closely-related unions. From healthy parents, deaf, blind children are born. We conducted a large-scale survey across the country, and the results showed that the cause of disability was precisely the factor of consanguineous marriages,” Tajik deputy Gulbahor Ashurova told the BBC.
The amendments adopted to the law “On State Registration of Civil Status Acts” and to the Family Code of the country will come into force on July 1, 2016. At present, the country's government, which proposed these amendments, is determining the list of medical tests that young couples must take before the wedding, the mechanism for controlling the family ties of those entering into marriage, as well as the punishment that will be provided for non-compliance with the adopted norms. It is expected that fines will be applied to violators of the law.
Parliament member Gulbahor Ashurova fully supports the ban on marriages between relatives: “The registry offices, upon receiving an application from the young, will contact local mahalla councils, who know exactly who is related to whom and how. That is, everything will be controlled by the state,” says the Tajik deputy.
The initiative to ban consanguineous marriages and medical examination was proposed by the country's President Emomali Rahmon. Throughout the year, the new proposals were discussed among the country's population, given the specific nature of the issue and the widespread prevalence of consanguineous unions in the country.
Tajik deputies admit that initially many parliamentarians were also against the innovations, refusing to support bans on traditions that have a centuries-old history. “In many Tajik families, it is believed that marriages with close relatives guarantee safety and good treatment of women. Such marriages, according to people, further strengthen family ties. However, in practice, in the event of a divorce, conflicts and grievances between relatives can be much more terrible than if they were strangers. Close relatives – sisters, brothers – stop communicating. And the grievance can last for years, or even a lifetime,” explains deputy Gulbahor Ashurova.
In addition, in Tajikistan, future spouses now must, along with their marriage application, also bring a health certificate to the registry office. The country's authorities insist that young couples undergo a full medical examination before the wedding to find out if the future spouses have sexually transmitted infections, as well as to rule out risks associated with poor heredity.
These measures, as Tajik authorities believe, will help young people create strong marital unions and protect families from divorce, the number of which has increased many times in recent years.
Tajik authorities have repeatedly stated their desire to save the nation's gene pool. Young people who are found to have any infections are not prohibited from marrying, but according to doctors, they will be dissuaded from doing so.
The new requirements are especially relevant for Tajik labor migrants returning home. They will be recommended to undergo a full medical examination for various infectious diseases. The authorities began to consider the possibility of a mandatory medical check-up after the number of HIV-infected women increased in Tajikistan, most of whom were infected by their migrant husbands. It turned out that many young women learned about their husbands' illness only after the wedding and the birth of children, when doctors in clinics reported the diagnosis to them. Young couples will be required to take tests for HIV-AIDS, hepatitis B and C, syphilis, and tuberculosis.
According to official data, up to three thousand unhealthy children are born in the country each year. The main reason is that parents did not undergo timely examinations that could identify various infectious diseases affecting the baby's intrauterine development. According to the new amendments, young people will be consulted about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.
Most human rights activists and doctors supported the new amendments. “These are very good proposals. But writing laws does not mean enforcing them. The main thing here is that all this is implemented. I am a doctor, and I understand how important health-related issues are, but the population may not immediately accept the positive in the new proposals. It is necessary to carry out explanatory work, explaining that it is important to learn about problems that can be solved in a timely manner,” says Firuza Abdullaeva, head of the public organization Avesta.
The Minister of Health of Tajikistan announced that the medical examination will be free, but in reality all medical services in the country are paid.