Equip girls with information to own their bodies and make their own choices

Equip girls with information to own their bodies and make their own choices.

Growing up is the best part of our lives that we all cherish. Growing up is the part that no one can take away from us. Our innocent laughs, the share fun and joy playing with our peers are among the treasured moments of life. On reaching adolescent I see lots of changes in me, mensuration, interest in boys, how to get their attention, all add up to the craziness. We longed for the girly discussions on mensuration, boys, pimples and the latest product one can use. We long for the little gossips with our peers on our way to fetch water from the village stand pipe and the latest gossip about the sassy girls in the area and the strong and masculine boys in the village. Childhood is a period we enjoy and we don’t want to be rushed into adulthood.

But I was a precocious girl by nature. I loved to be above my peers. At a young age I dreamt of glamour and nothing else. The only mentor I had in the village was my class teacher. I told myself I will be the next female teacher therefore I stood for no mediocrity in whatever I do. My teacher drummed it well in my ears: I can only achieve my dreams through education. So I have two ideologies in my mind, not to conform to the village standard for young girls but to pursue my own, borne out from my fondness for my mentor my class teacher. In my village the only highest education level is junior secondary school. Afterwards the girls compete with themselves to give birth. If a girl reaches her 20s and she has not given birth she becomes the talk of the village and people think she is barren. Oh yes! There is a village prestige of the young mothers with some family members dressed in whites to christen their babies.

I ask the how and why questions: how can I get the girls to desist from that? Why are they not crazy to be “somebody” like I do? Why are they are not armed with information on choices? How can I unleash their potentials and make them see beyond the village standard? Where are the boys responsible for their pregnancies? Where are the responsible men who get the children pregnant?

The precocious girl that I am I further asked Mansa , a 19 year old young woman with 2 children. I asked: you got pregnant at the age of 14 years, whilst in school why did not you protect yourself then if you knew you were sexually active? Mansa told me when she discovered she was pregnant, she tried to abort it. A friend directed her to a lab technician who operates in secrecy as “abortion doctor”. She told me the ultimatum was for him to rape her before performing the abortion. She said in his hurried way to have sex with her she had bruises since she was not lubricated enough. No one can talk about it because it is a taboo. She said, this “sex ultimatum” deterred her from going there for subsequent abortion, all she can do is to give birth since she is now seen as adult after her first child birth, So I ask why are issues of abortion, choices, birth control to young ones hushed and silenced. I cannot fathom it, because it is from adolescent years that young women become very curious, have high sexual drives etc. These are the times we need the information in all its pros and cons. I lost 3 classmates of mine to abortion. Simply because there was scanty information if not nothing at all on abortion, and general SRHR issues to arm them in the most volatile stage of their lives.

I lift my eyes and faced with the reality here, teenage pregnancy is celebrated by the teenager themselves. Oh yes! Early birth, with its health and economic complications is celebrated here. Abortion is a taboo in my village it is frown upon, it, is only a good option if at the detriment of the mother. In the tradition and culture of the villages, it was meant to ensure that girls preserve themselves until properly married. I ask the question, in this age most of the young ones are sexually active. Most of them clandestinely employ dangerous chemicals to abort unwanted pregnancies. We lost lots of them to unsafe abortion. Therefore why don’t we make the information available to them, armed them with information, get good professionals to do abortion and save lives. Educate them on the pros and cons and guide them to make their own body choices. You darenot report any abuse meted out by the supposed “abortion doctor”. Who suffers from the abuse and shame, who bears the brunt of losses and pain?

The precocious child as I am, I raise the alarm. I say let do something about the knowledge gap, let information on choices flow easily and readily to every teenager in the village. Let the girls own their own bodies and make their choices!