The marriage was unbearable; the man was abusive. She hated
herself and the life she was living.On many occasions, she even contemplated
suicide.
“I was only 15-years-old and I was in love with a man who
was 30 and stayed in Harare while I stayed here in Madziwa,” Catherine said,
recounting her ordeal to The Sunday Mail.
“He was more experienced and I guess that is how he took
advantage of me. “When I got pregnant, he refused to take responsibility and my
parents chased me away from home.”
She then relocated to Harare to stay with her sister, but
life in the big city was proving unbearable on account of poverty. It was then
that she met another man, aged 34, who said he was willing to take care of her
and her young daughter.
Catherine had fallen into the maze of child marriage, which
accounts for hundreds of young Zimbabwean girls every year.
“I was desperate, so I accepted the offer despite the fact
that he was not the father of my child. Little did I know that I was jumping
from the frying pan into the fire.
“A few months after moving in with him, he became abusive
and would beat me up for no reason. He was verbally abusive, called me hurtful
names. During all the time I lived with him, he never gave me money even to buy
a loaf of bread.”
After two years, Catherine decided to walk away from the
marriage before asking for forgiveness from her parents who took her back in.
It was then that she decided to resuscitate her long held
dream of completing her studies. Fortunately for her, she had already passed
her Ordinary Levels with flying colours.
She immediately registered for A-Level studies in 2019. Seven
years after plunging into misfortune and in the process abandoning her dream of
becoming a lawyer, Catherine finally completed her basic education last year.
Last week, she was among the thousands of 2020 A-Level
candidates who collected their exam results. Astonishingly, Catherine aced the
examination, scoring 15 points. Now she is preparing to enrol with a local
university to study for a law degree.
She has secured funding from the Rozaria Memorial Trust,
which provides financial and physiological assistance to child brides who opt
to go back to school. “It was not easy going back to school. Society does not
forgive and forget easily.
“The community labels you a bad apple and that can
potentially harm you. Oftentimes, you are treated as an outcast.
“You are called names which are meant to humiliate and
bring you down and you are always reminded of your past mistakes. “As a result
you are never really free to express yourself.”
Catherine said there were times she contemplated quitting
because of the pressure and stereotyping. Luckily, she received a lot of
counselling, which helped her through the tough times.
The Covid-19 pandemic and its attendant lockdowns, however,
emerged and threatened her dream. She said there was little in-class learning
during her final year and she had to go beyond the normal in order to continue
learning.
“We had to walk long distances in search of tutors who were
willing to teach for free or for very little money which my classmates and I
could afford.”
Powered by extraordinary determination, Catherine vowed to
use her second chance to change her life in spite of the challenges. “Because
of the ordeal I went through at the hands of abusive men, I want to be a
lawyer,” she said.
“I want to use that to help defend and uplift women and
girls who are going through what I went through.”
Just like Catherine, Samantha Chidodo (22) of Shamva
returned from an abusive marriage to continue with her studies.
“At 17, I fell pregnant and moved in with my boyfriend who
was aged 21 at the time,” said Samantha. “A few months into the marriage, I
realised that I had taken a wrong turn.
“I went back home, luckily my parents took me back in. I
later went back for my A’ Level studies with assistance from Rozaria Trust. “I
was grateful for the second chance and swore to use it wisely.”
Samantha scored 12 points in last year’s exams. Rozaria
Memorial Trust chief executive, Dr Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, said she was proud
of the girls being supported by her trust.
“We are very proud of the girls, it was not an easy road
but they pulled through,” said Dr Gumbonzvanda. “Our organisation will continue
assisting young women in such predicaments.”
In many developing countries including Zimbabwe, most cases
of child marriages are attributed to poverty, gender discrimination, lack of
education and peer pressure among others.
A recent report by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs,
Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development indicated that nearly 5 000
girls of school going age had fallen pregnant during the Covid-19 induced
national lockdown.
Government has pledged to eliminate the menace by 2030 in
line with Goal number 5.3 under the Sustainable Development Goals. Sunday Mail
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