Society for Gender Justice and Women Rights has retrieved 21 Girls married off in Chief Mwanza and Ufwenuka Chiefdoms.
The girls were retrieved by Chiefs Mwanza and Ufwenuka during a two days Community Sensitization meeting conducted by the NGO.
Gender Justice Executive Director Karen Simutelo narrated that the exercise was as a result of the calls by the community to raise awareness on Ending Child Marriage in Zambia.
Ms. Simutelo further said many young girls in rural areas are victims of child marriage because of some harmful traditional customs that promote child marriage.
“In rural areas some girls where regarded as adults when they reach puberty even if they were 10 years old. This is the major challenge we have,” said Ms. Simutelo.
And Chief Mwanza has commended Gender Justice for coming to the aid of the 21 girls who are willing to go back to school under the re-entry policy.
Chief Mwanza who spoke through his senior headman Mwanza said the chiefdom will not allow young girls getting married at the expense of school.
He has since appealed to well wishers with financial support to come on board so that the girls can get back to school.
He further urged Gender Justice to take legal action against the perpetrators.
Meanwhile Monze district child protection DCPC has appealed for well wishers to contribute towards the renovation of the safe house.
DCPC Vice Chairperson Collins Mumba regretted that Monze district has no safe house to keep survivors of Child Marriages.
Mr. Mumba said that it is difficult to protect survivors of GBV because the district has nowhere to keep them.
He added that this is negating the efforts being rendered by stakeholders.
And when asked as to where the 21 girls are being kept, Gender Justice Executive Director declined to mentioned for fear of jeopardizing the security of the survivors.
She has since warned that no one will be spared as the law will catch up with anyone violating child rights in the name of traditional customs.
Elisa my Swiss wife who has done lots of work in Zambia and especially southern province states that no such thing can happen in southern province which has level headed people. She says maybe eastern or northern
That’s rubbish, I have a lot of cousins in such relationships. I think it’s not isolated to the southern but in other provinces as well!
It is a great injustice to have a child married off against her will and whilst she is underage, this destroys most young females mentally and affects their physical growth as well.
All culprits involved in this terrible vice must be punished and mass education should be rolled out to prevent it from continuing, chiefs who only promote such programs as long as they get something to eat are equally to blame and they must be dethroned.
The Tongas…!
One wonders what goes on into people’s head as they send comment. Sometimes, you may be tempted to think that such messages are sent by some robots of some kind. Utter Nonsense!!!!!!!!!
Retrieved to where? I hope you have a place them as sending back to Parents homes when they have got cattle for them in exchange is a non starter.
Its not just early child marriages as per cultural customs , but the now crisis level problem of teenage pregnancy. This is way out of control and the well meaning efforts at reducing child marriages are undermined by a situation of high prevalence , out of control teenage pregnancies.
I have stopped talking about this issue, my cousins daughter was married at the age of 15 years. When I tried to send her back to school the mother refused and said the man has already paid Lobola. she is 25 years now and still stay with the same guy and doing fine in business but no education. This happened in copperbelt so it happening through out the country.
Comment:
According to God, there is no ” Early ” or ” child ” marriage. All marriages are sacred and no man has a right to break them. When the issue of breaking marriages was brought before Jesus Christ, this is what the Bible account states, ” The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? 4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. 7 They say unto him, Why did Moses then…
According to God at what age is a girl expected to be in marriage? 1Corinthians7 : 36 answers, “But if any man think that he behaveth himself uncomely toward his virgin, if she pass the flower of her age, and need so require, let him do what he will, he sinneth not: let them marry.” please, note that the girl should pass the flower of her age. This means that she has to be matured or ukuwa icisungu in Bemba. God has no placed any age limit at which the girl can get married. It is human beings an their imperfect and selfish brains that have brought age limits for the girl.
In fact, school has been the main enemy fighting marriage.