By Jonathan Akweteireho
Standing by the roadside, I do it the analogue way counting road users; it turns out that 7 out of 10 bicycle riders are old or young women, all of which carry something on their carriers, or at best a child to three.
Baskets of merchandise, fruits and foodstuff are what they carry to and from markets. Many men ride sport bikes without carriers. At six, the first person to greet as I do the road run is a woman, a different one every morning. The teenage girl is riding her siblings to school, while another mother gardening.
Another one is carrying Jerry Cans of water on her old bicycle. Shortly, another is seen sweeping her courtyard, moments before she moves to the bushes to collect thatching grass for the family house. It is a market day eight miles away, time is running fast, yet she has to prepare food for the little ones before they arrive for lunch meal.
At the same time, poor woman must nurse the husband before he goes drinking mogamoga, returning later to demand for sex, good food and money. She must also not miss the women’s group meeting at the weekend, yet the next day she must meet the school director to explain why her six children have not cleared the fees.
Statistics from local councils and police indicate an upsetting trend of non-receding violence against the female gender, some of which have resulted into death or disability. The current ongoing Community policing programs, courtesy of the office of the Resident District Commissioner are so revealing of a towering problem that calls on everyone to rise up against gender based violence, a shame for this generation.
Humanity has evolved so much and where a woman is at fair play; her contribution to the community is as great. In sharing family land, it is a struggle educating husbands and the men boys about this but most play deaf even in presence of the highest authority. The woman’s right to own property is not yet approved by the man, sadly! Nevertheless, she never abandons her smile, her courage to a better life is endless, and her resilience to love the man and her family is unmatched.
This Sunday 8th March 2020 is yet another International Women’s Day, a day in which Uganda reflects on the progress of women empowerment, 25 years after the 1995 constitution laid out clear that we are equal, or at least started a journey of equality, whose achievements are fairly visible.
This year’s celebrations will be held in Malukhu Grounds, Mbale District under the theme: “Celebrating 25Years of the 1995 Constitution: Milestones on Promoting Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Uganda.” March 8 is a day meant to honor mothers as they celebrate their contributions. In actual sense, it is a gender awareness day and democratic struggles to make the world a better place for all people, able to access resources and opportunities equally and to contribute to the world same way.
Reflecting the above on the thickly religious and intensely cultural-fused Amolatar district, it comes with necessity to add in more energy by all stakeholders to completely end gender based violence. More than on anything else, building social fabrics is the way to go. An encouraged mother makes a good family, and in her children, nurtures good wives and husbands, and the family being society’s main pillar, we shall have good servants and great political leaders.
Some of the challenges we face in Ugandan politics and civil service originate from families. It is clearly deliberate that Uganda’s moves like the creation of the gender and social development ministry are for a purpose and programs like free education for all, UWEP,SAGE, women councils, women MPs curve towards that. The cascading impact of the 1995 constitution makes Uganda a learning tool for many other countries. But it makes no sense when at lower levels we still have the vice, so huge. Amolatar, we need to come clean. We are faced with 46 percent teenage pregnancy, which comes with massive school dropouts.
We have had children as young as twelve giving birth, and girls of 18 years with four children. Many young mothers are single parents. UNICEF figures of disability in Amolatar that are too huge to believe; 12,000 disabled persons in a population of about 170,000 people causes sleepless nights. They break my heart. Disability, oftentimes is associated to young mothers who many times fail to fulfill the all-important prenatal and postnatal procedures.
From rape, defilement to being child mothers, the infants themselves, a result of gender based violence end up into violent lifestyles and on climbs the cycle. Government efforts in uplifting the lives of women can be successful if cultural heads like clan leaders do their part, some of which is known but invisible. Likewise religious leaders, local councils, police, local government extension staff as well as schools. The impunity with which we stifle the girl child and her mother must stop. We need to get annoyed with this situation.
The writer is the Deputy Resident District
Commissioner Amolatar
