The hard choice between early marriage and education

In Zambia, particularly in rural areas, stories of taking young girls out of school and marrying them off in arranged marriages is alarmingly high. These cases normaly take place with family and community blessings but often with unconsentng girls. However, in few lucky cases, such as the story below, authorities have had to intervene and retrieve young girls and get them back to school.

The story below is a moving story of a young girl determined to get an education against all odds. The story was reported in one of our local newspapers and I have reproduced it here to show a living example of the vice, how it manifests itself, the perpetrators, causes and the potential effects it has first on girls and secondly on national development. The story is a classic example of what role teachers can play in the life of their students or pupils beyond just class room teaching but to protect, guide and counsel young people. Its a story that stresses the importance of having institutions to offer educational, personal and social counselling services. Of particular importance perhaps is how to be alert! This is the story.

Eight years ago, Mirriam Michelo's life was almost condemned to a life of misery after her parents planned to give her away into a forced marriage. But luckly for Marriam, the Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) and the police came to her aid three days before the pre-arranged marriage was to take place.

Marriam, 20 years now, explained that when she was 13 years old, her parents kept her incommunicado for three months in the house while she was taught all details about marriage and how to keep a man. All these rituals were done despite the fact that she was officially under age and from a traditional perspective, not come of age yet. Yet all this was been done in readiness for her impending marriage to man she had never seen or hardly knew.

Marriam explains that in 2003 when she was doing her seventh grade, her parents informed her that they were looking for a man to marry her.

Marriam from Lusaka, West is said to have refused, telling her parents that she preferred to continue with her education a proposotion her parents rejected on account that they new better what was good for her. She said during those three months she missed classes and everytime she insisted going to school or tried to inform anyone about her situation she was verbally abused and beaten.

She explained that sometime during the period of marriege preparations, a man who was arranged to be her husbad visited her parents to make final arrangements. It is at this point that she learnt the man was a widower with three children. 'I didnt even know this man but what I knew was that he had paid my parents (bride price)and that he had a wife that had died and had three childreen. When he came one day, they (parents) just told me that this is the man you are going to get married to. I tried to refuse and my parents and other women would beat me and tell me that I was rude because I didnt want marriage' recalls Marriam. 'for me all that I wanted was education and I continuously told them that' she added.

Then one day, during her confinement, she was visited by her friends from school and she used this opportunity to write a letter to her teacher explaining what was happening to her. She said she explained in detail everything to the teacher who in turn contacted YWCA and Victim Support Unit of the Zambia Police.

Two weeks later the police and YWCA visited her family and after some initial difficulties, in which some money was paid as per tradition, she was finally seen. She said after hearing from her the police and YWCA officers left and only returned three days before her planned marriage date. According to Mirriam her parents initially refused to let the police and YWCA people to take her. But after a fiece urgument she was taken away from here parents home.

Under the care of some people, Mirriam has since completed school. She says she is now happily reunited with her parents whom she has forgiven suggesting they are uneducated and dont really know the value of education.

The story of Mirriam is as depressing as it is heartwarming. The role of institutions like YWCA, Victim Support Unit and others is highly commendable and need support. CareerMate is committed to supporting young people with relevant and uptodate educational, vocational,personal and social information and services to help them make sound career choices.

If you are in a position of influence or able to help in any way to give thousands of young people like mirriam a chance of life, please step forward and contact us.

How to become unemployed

In Zambia where unemployement is high, students tend to be drawn to work that appears to have a high labour market demand, or for the purpose of money or prestige. When students realize that the work is not well suited to them, they drop out of the training or the occupational field.

It is for this reason that CareerMate is commited to undertaking appropriate research and strategies on how to educate students regarding the value of choosing suitable occupational field. Our view as CareerMate is that students should be encouraged to follow through with their training and more crucialy teach them to consider self-employement/entrepreneurial ideas in areas where unemployement is high.

Education for Life