Valentine Marc Nkwame
2 February 2008
Arusha — She is young and about to become a candidate in this year's class seven exams, but her future stands in limbo because her parents have allegedly just cashed in on the dowry and they are now forcing the girl into accepting early marriage, sacrificing education in the process.
Logoilieki Shiwawa an old man with two wives and 12 children is alleged to plan to marry off his 11 year-old daughter, in an arranged marriage despite the fact that the girl has just entered class seven, expecting to sit for the National Examinations in September this year.
Local leaders in Kisongo have confirmed the incident.
The girl a pupil at the Ilkereiyan Primary school in Kisongo area has apparently caught the eye of a suitor aged about 50 years who has been showering the child's parents with assorted gifts since December last year. It is also reported that a full dowry has been paid by the groom to be.
And since that time, it was all nightmares for the girl who has been suffering beatings, verbal insults and threats from her father after she had made it clear that she had no intention of getting married. When schools opened this January she forced her way into the class but later on the father confiscated both her uniforms and books.
In effort to escape forced marriage the girl disappeared from her home in the remote Ilkereiyan Village of Matevesi ward about 10 kilometers from Kisongo shopping center, along the main Dodoma road. At least that was her story.
It is still not known where she had taken refuge for the last one week after she went missing but the girl was rescued last Sunday week when she turned up at a local church gathering in Kisongo Township seeking help. She was in bad shape too; apparently her father's beatings were really intended to cause harm.
"He first used to cane me with sticks but as I continued to refuse to get married then he started applying his rungu (club)," lamented the girl. Her father could not be contacted.
The Ilkereiyan Village Chairman Saivoiye Naigisa on the other hand, admitted that indeed the girl's father was planning to marry off his daughter; the chairman however refuted claims of her being harassed. "We summoned the father and warned him against marrying off a school girl and he accepted, the case is over and the girl continues to attend classes," he said.
The girl however say she was only able to attend class by hiding her way there and tattered clothing since the father had taken away all her uniforms.
"I don't know about that, because as far as I am concerned the girl has been reporting to school in uniform," said the Ilkereiyan Primary School Headmaster, Bernard Mchala. The teacher claims not to be aware of any reports of the said arranged marriage.
However some villagers who preferred anonymity confided that, the issue is being kept a secret and were it not for the media interference, the girl would have been sold off.
"This area is notorious for arranged marriages with school girls being the main victims, only a few are strong enough to resist the pressure, " they said adding that in Maasai land few can speak against elders and that is why even local leaders will never dare to make accusations against the practice.
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