🌐 WOMEN’S STORIES _ Theresa Kachindamoto
By Amber Karlins,
The Heroine Collective
Ending
Child Marriage
Child Marriage
Theresa
Kachindamoto is a mother of five. She is former secretary and the youngest of
12 children. She is also a chief, overseeing almost 1 million people, and
she is rapidly becoming one of the greatest threats to child marriage in
Malawi.
Kachindamoto is a mother of five. She is former secretary and the youngest of
12 children. She is also a chief, overseeing almost 1 million people, and
she is rapidly becoming one of the greatest threats to child marriage in
Malawi.
I said to
the chiefs that this must stop, or I will dismiss them.
Malawi
has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world, with a 2012 UN
study estimating that more than 50% of the country’s young women are married
before their 18th birthday. Potential child brides are often forced to submit
to horrifying cleansing rituals wherein children as young as seven are removed
from their homes and taken to camps where they are taught how to seduce and
satisfy men. In some cases, they are forced to have sex with their teachers. In
others, the girls are returned home, where they are raped by “hyenas”— men who
have been hired, by their parents or prospective husbands, to teach them how to
perform sexually. Many of the young girls face dangerous pregnancies because
they are too small to have children. Those who are not impregnated still face
the risk of STDS, a risk that is particularly high in Malawi where 10% of the
population is infected with HIV.
has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world, with a 2012 UN
study estimating that more than 50% of the country’s young women are married
before their 18th birthday. Potential child brides are often forced to submit
to horrifying cleansing rituals wherein children as young as seven are removed
from their homes and taken to camps where they are taught how to seduce and
satisfy men. In some cases, they are forced to have sex with their teachers. In
others, the girls are returned home, where they are raped by “hyenas”— men who
have been hired, by their parents or prospective husbands, to teach them how to
perform sexually. Many of the young girls face dangerous pregnancies because
they are too small to have children. Those who are not impregnated still face
the risk of STDS, a risk that is particularly high in Malawi where 10% of the
population is infected with HIV.
Despite
being born into a family of chiefs, as a girl and the youngest of 12, Theresa
had no expectation of ever becoming one. Instead, she built a life for herself
as a mother and a secretary at a local college.
being born into a family of chiefs, as a girl and the youngest of 12, Theresa
had no expectation of ever becoming one. Instead, she built a life for herself
as a mother and a secretary at a local college.
Almost
thirty years later however, Theresa received an unexpected call. Her
exceptional people skills had resulted in her being chosen as the chief of the
Dezda District, and she was going to become their chief — whether she wanted to
or not. Although she didn’t want to leave her job and her life, Theresa rose to
the challenge, using her position to change the lives of thousands of
young girls in the process and devoting herself to ending child marriage
in Malawi.
thirty years later however, Theresa received an unexpected call. Her
exceptional people skills had resulted in her being chosen as the chief of the
Dezda District, and she was going to become their chief — whether she wanted to
or not. Although she didn’t want to leave her job and her life, Theresa rose to
the challenge, using her position to change the lives of thousands of
young girls in the process and devoting herself to ending child marriage
in Malawi.
She began
by gathering her 50 sub-chiefs and working with them to pass a law banning
child marriage in her district. If a sub-chief failed to comply, she dismissed
him. It only took four firings for the rest of the sub-chiefs to fall in line.
Similarly, Theresa banned the cleansing rituals from being performed in her
district. Again, she made it clear that any sub-chief who allowed these horrors
to continue would not be a sub-chief for long.
by gathering her 50 sub-chiefs and working with them to pass a law banning
child marriage in her district. If a sub-chief failed to comply, she dismissed
him. It only took four firings for the rest of the sub-chiefs to fall in line.
Similarly, Theresa banned the cleansing rituals from being performed in her
district. Again, she made it clear that any sub-chief who allowed these horrors
to continue would not be a sub-chief for long.
I said to
them: “Whether you like it or not, I want these marriages terminated.”
These
moves represented significant improvements for young girls in Malawi, but
Theresa wasn’t inclined to stop there. Instead, she worked with her sub-chiefs
to annul 850 child marriages over the course of three years, a move that earned
her the nickname “marriage terminator.”
I talk to
the parents. I tell them “if you educate your girls you will have everything in
the future.”
These
changes did not come freely or easily. Theresa received substantial backlash
from the families in her district. She’s even received death threats. Still,
she perseveres. And when she was told that the girls she saved from child
marriages could not go back to school because the families could not afford it,
she made sure each and every one of the 850 girls whose marriages she annulled
received the funding necessary to continue their education, often financing
their studies personally.
changes did not come freely or easily. Theresa received substantial backlash
from the families in her district. She’s even received death threats. Still,
she perseveres. And when she was told that the girls she saved from child
marriages could not go back to school because the families could not afford it,
she made sure each and every one of the 850 girls whose marriages she annulled
received the funding necessary to continue their education, often financing
their studies personally.
Malawi
still has a ways to go when it comes to women’s rights, but, thanks to Theresa,
things are getting better — one educated, unmarried girl at a time.
still has a ways to go when it comes to women’s rights, but, thanks to Theresa,
things are getting better — one educated, unmarried girl at a time.
