Deep Disappointment: Father in Lombok Burns Daughter's Certificates and Uniform After Child Marriage

A father in Sekotong District, West Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), has expressed deep disappointment after his daughter, who was still in her second year of junior high school, entered into an early marriage. His emotional outburst was captured in a video that went viral on social media, showing him burning his child’s school certificates, uniforms, and learning materials.

In the circulating video, the man is seen throwing various items belonging to his daughter into the fire. Her primary school certificate, school uniform, notebooks, and even shoes were consumed by the flames.

While recording his actions, the man voiced his disappointment at feeling he had failed to educate his child, leading her to choose marriage while still a student. ‘This is the disappointment of a parent who failed to educate his child. I hope this is not experienced by friends who have daughters still in school. Let me be the only one to feel this,’ the man said in the video.

The local village head confirmed the incident. According to him, the burning of the school items was an outlet for the parent’s disappointment with his child’s decision. ‘Yes, it is true (the incident occurred). It was more about his feeling of disappointment,’ he said when confirmed via WhatsApp.

It Began with the Child Coming Home Late

The village head explained that the incident began when the girl had not returned home by around 9:00 p.m. local time while she was with her boyfriend. Her father then picked her up and brought her home. However, because he could not accept his daughter being out until late at night, the father ultimately handed her over to the boyfriend’s parents’ house to be married. ‘According to the hamlet head, it was only 9 o’clock, but the girl’s parents did not accept it. Eventually, she was brought home, then handed over to the boy’s side. It’s the usual Lombok custom, if she’s out late, she gets married,’ he said.

The Village Government Tried to Prevent It

The village authorities admitted they had tried to prevent the early marriage. Various outreach programmes had also been conducted at the hamlet level. However, these efforts were unsuccessful and the marriage still took place. ‘It has already been carried out. But we still made prevention efforts; in fact, we have been conducting outreach in all hamlets for a long time,’ he said.

Not Due to Out-of-Wedlock Pregnancy

The village head also denied rumours suggesting the marriage occurred due to an out-of-wedlock pregnancy. According to him, that information is not true. ‘Regarding pregnancy beforehand, I have indeed heard no sources for this. There aren’t any. And according to the boy’s parents, I just confirmed, he only knew her for a week, so how could she be pregnant? In my opinion, this is purely an early marriage,’ he explained.