1 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Issue Number 27 • June 2012

Will the Equality Commission live to its name? Women are watching the space as Winnie Lichuma takes office

…By Jane Godia proaches to end discrimination.” Women leaders at a conference to look into their rights in the new Lichuma acknowledges that her constitution. The women are now looking up to Lichuma to ensure that peaking during a cocktail six year mandate could be long or the gains made in the new constitution are not watered down. hosted on her behalf by IPAS short because of the task ahead of Africa, Winnie Lichuma, her. “My mandate is six years and chairperson of the National this can be long or short depending SGender and Equality Commission on how I work. Let us work together. nation during nominations and that Faith Kasiva, a women’s rights noted that the six years of her tenure I am giving an assurance that I will women win in some constituencies. advocate and Director Africa could be very long or very short. This deliver on my mandate.” By the look of things, the 47 gover- Gender and Media Initiative is because of the task that this new nors may end up being an all-male af- (GEM). body will seek to fulfil during this Task fair because all those who have indi- “It is a challenge to the wom- time especially now that the country However, even before she settles cated interest in the positions are men en across the country to engage is trying to engage with its new con- on her seat, Lichuma is already fac- except Wavinya Ndeti who would like with the Commission and chan- stitution. ing as huge task of ensuring that the to vie for Machakos County. nel the issues of the challenges Lichuma who was appointed affirmative action entrenched in the they are facing on gender in- chairperson realises that it will not be constitution works for the benefit of Mandate equality,” reiterates Kasiva. She engaging in policy, the Commission easy unless she gets support from all women who have faced cultural and “The National Gender and Equal- advices: “Women need to own the needs to see how women are going to concerned Kenyans. “The mandate political discrimination. The country ity Commission is the vehicle that has Commission because it is our com- benefit from it at the grassroots level. of the National Gender and Equal- is headed for general elections and been constituted within the constitu- mission. “We hope the Commission will ity Commission is huge and I will be must see to it that not more than two tion to redress gender inequality and place gender issues in national debate calling on Kenyans for consultation thirds of one gender are not elected promote women’s empowerment. Benefits and make gender equality and wom- on how to write a proper strategy,” to all political seats. This means the This is a milestone against the back- According to Kasiva, the Com- en’s empowerment everybody’s busi- says Lichuma. “I will endeavour to Commission will have to work and ground that the Commission has a mission needs to go out and engage ness,” observes Kasiva. work with men and women, boys and negotiate with political parties and broader mandate, higher budget, well with practical issues that affect the girls using human rights based ap- veteran politicians to stop discrimi- financed and better resources,” says woman at the household level. While Continued on page 4 EDITORIAL

hese are surely interesting entertain, Section 14 (1), states that They are Narc Kenya’s Martha Ka- on the eve of the controversial 2007 interpret affirmative action clause in times for Kenyan politi- the Registrar of Political Parties shall rua, a former powerful Minister for General Elections, which left Kenyans the new Constitution as far as the a cians, women and the pub- not register a political party which – Constitutional Affairs, Water minis- split like never before and wounded as third of either gender clause is con- lic in particular. is founded on an ethnic, age, tribal, ter, Charity Ngilu’s Narc, who was the over 1,000 men, women and children cerned on the composition of the next TPolitical parties are mushrooming racial, gender, regional, linguistic, first credible woman presidential can- were killed and over 600,000 were dis- Parliament. up every other day like weeds and they corporatists, professional or religious didate in 1997, Youth and Sports As- placed, maimed, raped and left trau- Indeed, a cross section of women seem not to lack officials and support- basis which seeks to engage in propa- sistant, Wavinya Ndeti’s Chama Cha matized for life. leaders have vowed to defend the Con- ers to join in the carnival at their re- ganda based on any of these matters; Uzalendo and former Assistant min- The 160 of so-called “briefcase stitution to the hilt saying that they will spective launch. (b) uses words, slogans, emblems or ister Dr Julia Ojiambo’s Labour Party parties” translates to about three for not tolerate anyone trying to frustrate But the faces of high profile wom- symbols which could arouse ethnic, of Kenya. each Kenyan ethnic community in- the gains they had made at the Bomas en are still missing from the campaign age, tribal, racial, gender, regional, Other than having the highest cluding the El Molo! constitutional conference, as captured trail of most of the heavyweights in the linguistic, corporatists, professional or number of women led political parties But now there is hope for women in the new Constitution, that will be presidential race. religious divisions.” so far, a former preserve of their male leaders who would like to seek elective two years in the next few months time. The Political Parties Act has Thanks to the stringent rules and rivals, two women are already cam- posts in any of the six posts created There is no turning back, is their trimmed from 160 parties to below 50, liberalization in the political arena, paigning to occupy the most powerful by the new Constitution. They are the clarion call as they face the next polls. at the end of the mandatory registra- more women politicians have come office on the land. women’s representative in each of the As the late Tetu MP, Prof Wangari tion deadline on April 30, 2012. out and registered their respective par- The two are Gichugu MP, Martha 47 counties in addition to the com- Maathai, who served as Environment The pro women Act provides for ties, while a handful are standing tall Karua, and youthful Kingwa Kamen- petitive ward representatives; mayoral Assistant minister, and Nobel Laure- registration, regulation, and funding as their party leaders. chu, 28, alumni of the University of (where applicable), parliamentary, ate, summed it up so well saying: “Af- of political parties and for matters in- So far, the following parties are be- Nairobi, who is yet to announce her governorship, senate and presidency. rican women in general need to know cidental thereto and connected there- ing led by women of substance who party of choice after making the land- Women leaders are watching with that it’s OK for them to be the way with. have made a name for themselves in mark announcement a year ago. baited breadth the long awaited ruling they are - to see the way they are as a But the Act is clear about what the their own right in and outside the au- The country had faced the highest on a case filed by several civil society strength, and to be liberated from fear registrar of political parties will not gust House in the past decade. number of registered political parties groups seeking to have the High Court and from silence.” 2 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Act opens up more opportunities …By Carolyne Oyugi She pointed out that some cultures do not allow women to enyan women stand bet- talk in public forums and in im- ter chances to join political portant meetings. parties than ever before. Her other concern is the reli- The women have re- gious practices that do not allow ceivedK a boost from the Political Par- women to mingle with men. ties’ Act 2011 which among other “How do you expect women to requirements directs that political be involved in leadership if you do parties must uphold gender balance. not give them the chance to try?” The Act that was assented on posed Wambui. August 27th 2011 and became op- However, Paul Muite, leader erational in November the same year of Safina Party noted that as a has clearly indicated that no party party they have been involved shall be registered if it does not meet with women even before the Act this condition. was enacted. He gave examples Though gender does not only re- of powerful leaders like Supreme fer to women, historically the women Court Judge Njoki Ndung’u and of Kenya have been sidelined when it Njeri Kabeberi. comes to politics. “Safina was the first party to According to Dinah Awuor, Vice nominate a disabled woman for a chairperson of Safina Party, politics parliamentary seat. This was at the has for a long time been the main tool time when no party willingly ac- for economic empowerment. cepted a woman leader leave alone Water Minister Charity Ngilu who is the chairperson of the National Party a disabled one,” Muite explained. of Kenya (NPK) submits registration documents to Registrar of Political Empowerment Addressing women aspiring parties Lucy Ndung’u in a bid to comply with the Political Parties Act. She notes that if more women are for various political leadership Below: Lucy Ndung’u. Pictures: KenyanWoman Correspondent involved in politics, then they will not positions at the Bomas of Kenya, only resolve problems surrounding Njeri Kabeberi dared Kenyans to However, women now have re- However, according Wambui them but they will also be empowered give women a chance. course in the Act and party leaders this clause may not apply to women economically. “You cannot say that women are can no longer decide whether or not in the future and instead will be very These sentiments are supported bad leaders by giving bad examples of to include women because failure to useful to men. by Mary Wambui, Executive Direc- a few of them,” noted Kabeberi. comply will mean a violation of the Section 27 of the Act provides the tor Women Political Alliance-Kenya, She reiterated that women are law. right of access to information held by who noted that society has been using usually harshly judged when they The Act requires that not more the Commission. The Act requires the different techniques and ideologies to make a mistake while men have been than two-thirds of the governing commission to publish and publicise deny women a chance to be involved committing a chain of offences. body is of the same gender. all important information within its in politics. mandate affecting the nation. “It is very unfortunate that the According to Lucy Ndung’u, Reg- only way to be involved in politics in “It is imperative that we all support the istrar of Political Parties, Kenyans Kenya is through political parties,” she should take time and go through the said. gender rule as enshrined in the constitution records to expose any errors. Wambui further explained that because there is likely to be a gender shift in “Men should swallow the bitter women in Kenya and many other pill and involve women in the politics countries have been oppressed representation in the near future when more for their parties to be registered since through retrogressive cultural prac- they failed to do it willingly,” noted tices. women clinch political seats” Ndung’u. Commonwealth women MPs root for increased representation …By Faith Muiruri the Convention for Elimina- They called tion of Discrimination Against for the review of ommonwealth Women (CEDAW). education cur- Women Parliamen- The MPs vowed to lobby for ricular both for tarians (CWP) from amendments of laws that con- Primary and Sec- the East African tinue to derail the realisation ondary schools to Cregion plan to push for the in- of gender parity at all levels in sensitise learners clusion of more women in the their respective countries. on the impor- political arena and in decision “We will lobby for Constitu- tance of women Rebecca A. Kadaga Chairperson Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians Africa Region, Princess making positions. tional amendments, other laws leadership and Christine Alaaga from Nigeria and, Vice Chair for Africa Region are joined by Lina Chebi Kilimo The legislators who were and standing orders to help participation in Chairperson KEWOPA. They were at the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians meeting held in attending a meeting in Nairobi realise gender parity in elective the society for Nairobi recently. Picture: Henry Owino said women representation in and appointive positions,” read sustainable devel- the Eastern African region re- the resolutions in part. opment. that the provisions in support bii who is also the chairperson the highest women representa- main sparingly low with little This they said will enable The legislators at the same of women’s increased represen- of Kenya Women Parliamen- tion in the region at 56 percent or no attempts to increase their countries to attain at least one time said that CWP will con- tation and participation in lead- tarians Association (KEWO- while Uganda has 34 percent. numbers. third of gender representation sistently advocate for national ership and positions to decision PA) said that the association Bwiza Sekamana Connie an They cited Kenya where either through amendments or integrative leadership platform making become applicable in was currently engaged in talks MP from Rwanda said the prog- the number of women in par- change of policies of political which is free from any form of the national context. with leaders of political parties ress realised in terms of women liament stand at a mere nine parties,” added the chairperson. discrimination. They agreed to develop to create room for women par- representation in the country percent despite the fact that the The women parliamentari- They also said that CWP guidelines suitable for lobbying ticipation ahead of the General has not come overnight. country is a signatory of the ans at the same time urged gov- will develop a media strategy to in respective countries, to help Elections. “It was through a process Beijing Platform of Action that ernments in the region to nur- raise the number, visibility and spearhead the women agenda She said that political par- that culminated in the adop- stipulates that women must ac- ture and cultivate the culture of effectiveness of women leader- with a view to raising the num- ties must commit themselves tion of policies that propagated count for not less than 30 per- constitutionalism and the rule ship in legislatures to influence ber of women representation in to campaigning for women inclusion of both gender in cent in decision making bodies. of law which should respect the legislations and policies. legislatures, mobilize finances aspirants vying for various po- leadership positions and elimi- Led by the African region rights of women as an integral The MPs called on govern- and identify capacity training litical seats to help meet the two nation of discrimination on the CWP Chairperson and Speaker part of human rights. ments to sign and ratify the programmes within the next thirds threshold outlined in the basis of sex, ethnicity or educa- of Uganda’s parliament Rt. Hon “We urge Governments and African Charter on democracy, one year constitution. tion,” she explained during the Rebecca Kadaga, the MPs said their agents, political parties, elections and governance so Marakwet East MP Lina Je- She said that political par- meeting adding that in Rwanda Kenya requires an immediate CSOs and the media to sensitise ties must now comply with Po- all citizens have equal oppor- strategy to raise the number the public through continuous litical Parties Act which stipu- tunities and women are guar- of women in parliament as the civic education on the need to “We will lobby for Constitutional lates that membership must anteed representation from the country heads for elections. change their attitudes towards reflect regional and ethnic di- village level to the national level. The MPs also resolved to female candidates vying for amendments, existing laws and standing versity, gender balance and rep- She called for tolerance as push governments to conform political positions, female lead- orders to help realize gender parity in resentation of minorities and Kenya heads for elections to to other internationally recog- ership and participation at all marginalized groups. avert ugly scenes witnessed dur- nised conventions among them levels. elective and appointive positions.” Currently, only Rwanda has ing the 2007 General Elections. 3 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Eunice Marima Resilient girl eyes Narok county Women Representative seat

…By Kabia Matega “However, it was not going to be easy as my father became violent and hen a young Maasai demanded that I drop out of school girl defies her parents unconditionally to get married,” she to pursue her interests, explains. she becomes a subject of It was not easy for Marima since Wstigma and is cursed by the community. her biological mother had died when However, the curses directed at Eu- she was in Standard Five and she had nice Marima appear not to have held to rely on her stepmothers for upkeep. sway on her life. She has braved many The stepmothers never saw the odds to emerge victorious and is today value of her attending school and highly regarded for having initiated soon hatched a plot to derail her numerous projects in the community quest for education. They introduced that once considered her an outcast. her to a man who was 20 years older With the journey to pursuing and warned her of dire consequences what she thinks is good for her, Ma- should she defy the planned marriage. Eunice Marina in a past event. She plans to contest for the Narok County Women Representative seat. rima is today aspiring for the Narok Picture: Kabia Matega County women’s representative seat. Flee To reach where she is today has “I managed to flee from home not been an easy journey. Marima and sought refuge at the AIC Pri- the many international and local forums shops and in many other economic ac- ownership and inheritance rights be- went to school at a time when girls mary School where the management she has acquired a wealth of knowledge. tivities. In the past one would only find side mandatory leadership slots,” ob- her age were considered a symbol of came to my rescue and for the next She quit her job at the World Vision in a Maasai woman in the kitchen or in serves Marima as she calls on women wealth and married off early to old three years allowed me to stay at the 1993 and concentrated her energy to cowshed milking cows,” she explains. of Narok county women to elect her suitors against their will. school,” Marima recalls as she breaks rescuing Maasai girls from the cultural She attributes the unfolding sce- as their Parliamentary Representative. into prolonged hearty laughter. practices that contravene their human nario to financial loans availability Marima would have gone for a Defiant Much pressure came her way rights. courtesy of her being in the women’s seat bigger than the women’s repre- She rejected all her father’s suitors again when it emerged that all the regional assembly. sentative but she knows that the com- and finally settled on the man who other nine girls from her village had Achievements In the political arena, Marima has munity would not have agreed to sup- was to be first Narok North Member been married off. During her tenure at the World Vi- played a major role in Narok County port. This is because the community is of Parliament Moses Marima as her She was once again introduced to sion, Marima is credited with having and in the South Rift region. In 2002 yet to open up completely to women choice in marriage. However, this was a primary school head teacher and initiated 35 projects in the South Rift she was the Rift Valley coordina- taking up political leadership posi- only after completing school. warned that curses would befall her if where among other things she ensured tor of the Narc party campaigns that tion, and that is why she is going for a Born in 1952 at Enbogaboli Vil- she failed to comply with community construction of schools, health centres, saw Kibaki elected to the top seat in a seat that has been specifically curved lage along the boundary of Kenya and demands to drop out of school and water pans and dams. She also belongs landslide victory against his close op- out for women. Tanzania in Kajiado District, Marima join her husband. to a network of anti-FGM crusaders ponent then Uhuru Kenyatta. “I am more comfortable in rep- recalls the hardships she had to en- She declined the offer and instead in Maasailand and through her efforts, resenting women interests in parlia- dure as a typical village Maasai girl. opted to remain in school which en- Marima has managed to rescue hun- Civic education ment than being in other general As a young girl, she would herd abled her completed her secondary dreds of girls from the shackles of FGM “It is through aggressive civic edu- political positions like that of an MP, the family livestock with no prospects schooling at Olkejuado High School. as well as forced and early marriages. cation by various non-governmental Governor or Senator.” of ever going to school. However, luck She passed her exams and success- Marima is the Narok coordina- organisations that women were con- Going for the women’s representa- came calling when the colonial gov- fully applied for admission at the Ke- tor for the women’s regional assembly, vinced to participate in the elections tive seat comes with other challenges ernment forced her parents to enrol nya Institute Mass Communication a programme of Kenya Women’s Po- as their democratic right in the vot- because already another three women her in school. (KIMC) to train as a TV programmes litical Caucus. The regional assembly ing exercise and hence the reason for have expressed their interest. “My mother was moved from producer. was started with a central theme was achievement in mobilization of wom- The women representative seat our native Enbogaboli village in Na- The course was, however, rejected enhancing women’s voice in decision- en voters targets,” observes Marima. could be opening another chapter manga area to Bisil Primary School by the community who still viewed making, leadership and development. She was a major player in the cam- of political battle in the Maasailand. where all nomadic children were put her as an outcast because majority Marima has assisted women to ac- paign for the new Constitution and Marima whose popularity is quickly together and taken care of,” remem- of other girls were being trained as cess small scale business loans, a move today she is actively engaged in civic growing confidently says: “I have put bers Marima. teachers. that she says has helped alleviate pov- education on the new document in the in place all political mechanisms ready This was just the beginning. Luck “This time I bowed to the pressure erty in the community. The rationale Narok County. Through her efforts, to counter opposition in the race for struck again when the African Inland and after working for a short while behind this strategy is that effective Marima has seen over 2,000 partici- the women representative seat.” Church (AIC) opened a girls’ prima- in the Ministry of Information and and sustainable support for women’s pants from various cluster areas in the Today, Marima is also a member ry school in Kajiado town. She was Broadcasting, KBC department. I later participation in socio-economic de- Narok County deployed to educate the of the Centre for Multi-Democracy among the first beneficiaries of the left to train as a secretary,” she explains. velopment processes must engage locals on provisions of the new consti- (CMD) as in-charge of human rights education bursary scheme started to Marima vividly remembers that and be led by members of that com- tution particularly on matters touching matters and coordinating the organ- support girls from the community. during the training, the government munity. This is what Marima has been on women and children rights in par- isation’s activities in South Rift area. would offer allowances to the trainees. carrying out for the women in Narok. ticular their rights to land ownership Marima is also a member of the Link “I would use the training allow- “Today Maasai women are com- and inheritance. Minority Rights Group International “I was among the first group of 80 ances to win the support of her father,” peting in business with other commu- “Women have gained a lot in the and a trustee Africa region among girls who joined the school located in she remembers. nities in market places, kiosks, curio new constitution especially on land many others. the heart of Kajiado town, now the “It was during some of my official For Marima, the best weapon to headquarters of the larger Kajiado assignments that I met and courted “It is through aggressive civic education that fight poverty is through education County,” she recalls. a young Maasai politician who later and that is why she will put more em- Soon after she sat for the Ke- married me.” Maasai women will this time round exercise their phasis on children’s education, par- nya Certificate Primary Education Marima changed jobs severally due democratic right in the election. I am banking on ticularly the girl child who has been (KCPE) and managed to score highly to family engagements before she finally a victim of retrogressive cultural prac- and proceeded to secondary school. landed a job at World Vision. Through their support to capture the seat” tices in the Maasai community. 4 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Peace takes centre stage in Women’s agenda …Ryan Mathenge

omen have been described as a vital tool that can propel the na- tion to hold peaceful campaigns and transparent general elec- tions.W They said they have powers to educate public on importance of having peaceful campaign and ensure lives and properties are protected. Central Kenya region although not listed as a hot spot on violence during election time, they said they have a bigger role in ensuring scenarios of 2008 will be a thing of the past in Kenya. Equality Led by Kiharu Maendeleo ya Wanawake chairlady Mrs Jecinta Wangari Ng’ang’a, they women leaders drawn from Murang’a County warned politicians to desist culture of incite- ment. Forum on role of women towards enhancing peace and security facilitated by African Women Child Features Service in Murang’a saw the lead- ers speaking in unity to use their numerical pow- ers to ensure Kenya will remain peaceful in the coming general elections. They said they will use public meeting, churches and their local ‘chamas’ to preach message of peace and hope to all Kenyans. Veteran journalist Ms Jane Godia on her part said women as mothers of the nation have a ma- jor role to play to ensure peace prevails in Kenya. “We have to ensure Kenyans live in harmony whether there is election or not,” said Godia. A group of Murang’a women during a meeting organized by the African Woman Child Feature Service. The women She said for Kenya to ensure peace prevails kinds of conflicts should be noted and find their have vowed to use public meetings, churches and their local ‘chamas’ to preach peace and hope to all Kenyans. solutions. Picture: Ryan Mathenge “The best way to avoid perennial conflicts is to know them and seek ways to solve them,” said Godia. thorn in the flesh. duty to ensure no blood will be shed as a result In health education, they termed scenarios of Women in Murang’a listed some of the They associated some of their men who come of politics as it was witnessed in the last general ignoring their spouses has seen increase of HIV conflicts as their spouses coming home totally home drunk to stealing valuables in the houses election,” said the women leader. infections. drunk ignoring their matrimonial responsi- selling them to illicit brews dealers. On development they listed women groups It was observed that conflict among couples bilities. Ng’ang’a said women are agents of change to have played role in transforming their lives. led to betrayal in marriages thus spreading of They disclosed how some of the colleagues and can play big roles to ensure Kenya remains Educating children and improving their life- HIV virus. especially in rural areas suffer in silent owing to united more than before. style they said have been as result of their unity at They were advised to enhance tolerance with humiliation of their spouses who have turned a “As mothers of this great nation we have a the village levels. their spouses instead of provoking them. Women watching as Lichuma takes office Continued from page 1 of the current electioneering peri- positions such as governors and the Constitution; pace in which Lichuma and her od,” notes Kasiva. senators. These are positions that (b) monitor, facilitate and advise on team will be operating from, women Women issues have been treated The Constitution notes in Ar- can be taken by women who are the integration of the principles want to be engaged at all levels of as an afterthought and currently ticle 81 (b): The electoral system already in politics and have made of equality and freedom from consultation. However, according to there has been debate in the coun- shall comply with the principle that a name for themselves such as the discrimination in all national Dr Samuel Tororei, chairperson Ke- try on whether the article on the af- includes “not more than two thirds current Members of Parliament,” and county policies, laws, and nyan National Human Rights Com- firmative action on representation of the members of elective public observes Nyokabi. She notes: Wom- administrative regulations in all mission, the Gender and Equality needs to be amended. bodies shall be of the same gender”. en such as Sally Kosgei, Margaret public and private institutions; Commission has a task of demys- The challenge of relegating wom- This has already been an issue of Kamar, Hellen Sambili, Martha (c) act as the principal organ of the tifying myths and misconceptions en’s issues as afterthought and espe- debate with some quarters arguing Karua (if she changes her mind on State in ensuring compliance around it. “The Gender Commis- cially in times of elections is some- that there are not enough women to presidency), should be the women with all treaties and conventions sion is a product of human rights thing that the Commission must meet at least one third of the num- faces for governor and senator po- ratified by Kenya relating to is- fraternity and is a Commission that take seriously. It is important that ber that is needed to constitute Par- sitions. sues of equality and freedom is most misunderstood,” notes Toro- the Commission moves women’s is- liament. According to Nyokabi, sitting from discrimination and relat- rei. He observes: “There will be no sues from the margin to the centre. Kasiva reiterates: “The Commis- MPs have the right credentials and ing to special interest groups in- gender if there are no men. Gender As a country that is headed for sion must initiate and bring the de- should be able to convince the elec- cluding minorities and margin- war will only be won if women em- elections, the establishment of the bate back to Parliament. It needs to torate. People are saying they will alized persons, women, persons brace women, men embrace men, Commission could not have come at be vigilant to ensure the law is not vote women if they are on the ballot with disabilities, and children; and women embrace men.” a better time. swept under the carpet or watered p ap e r.” (d) co-ordinate and facilitate main- According to Tororei, as “we According to Kasiva women’s is- down.” And this will form part of the streaming of issues of gender, encourage Lichuma and those who sues must be at the centre of electing Kasiva reiterates that “if the next work that the National Gender and persons with disability and wish Kenya well, this country is the next leadership of this country. Parliament does not meet the quota Equality Commission will have to other marginalised groups in richer if sexes respect each other”. There has been increased women’s as stipulated, it will be unconstitu- undertake to ensure that as many national development and to participation in public and elective tional and the Commission must women as possible are in the ballot advise the Government on all Dominance position in our neighbouring coun- ensure that the rule of law is upheld”. paper so that the two thirds prin- aspects thereof; This means that men, who have tries in post conflict such as Rwan- These sentiments are echoed by ciple is met. (e) monitor, facilitate and advise on dominated the political and decision da, Uganda and South Sudan. Priscilla Nyokabi, Executive Direc- Among its functions the Com- the development of affirmative making positions must embrace the This must be in accordance with tor Kituo cha Sheria who says that mission shall — action implementation policies fact that even women can be leaders the article on equality and freedom quotas will only be met if wom- (a) promote gender equality and as contemplated in the Consti- in their own right. from discrimination as stipulated in en come out to vie for positions. freedom from discrimination tution; Lichuma and the team that will 27 (3) of the Constitution: “Women “Women must wake up and vie for in accordance with Article 27 of Therefore as Kenyans watch the be leading the Commission will have and men have the right to equal to embrace these ideas and include treatment, including the right to both men and women to redress equal opportunities in political, eco- “We still do not have specific legislation on how we are going to gender inequality and especially nomic, cultural and social sphere.” with the election process to enable “We still do not have specific implement the affirmative action as stipulated in the Constitution. This is women be part of political scene. legislation on how we are going to the first critical step that the Commission must take up in the context of The task ahead will not be easy implement the affirmative action as and Lichuma. Women particularly, stipulated in the Constitution. This the current electioneering period.” want to see issues of their empow- is the first critical role that the Com- — Faith Kasiva erment addressed and made every- mission must take up in the context body’s business. 5 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 In graduation speech to women, Obama leaps into gender gap

…By Mark Landler & John H. Obama’s remarks came Cushman Jr. on a hectic day in New York, where he attended two fund- resident Barrack Obama, raisers and offered his first shifting the focus from public response to the mam- his recent endorsement of moth trading losses suffered US President Barrack Obama congratulates grandaunts at Morningside Heights Campus of Columbia University. He same-sex marriage to what by JPMorgan Chase, which challenges female graduates to climb the top of the corporate ladder or run for public office. Phe portrays as a lifelong belief in has renewed demands for the essential role of women, told fe- stricter regulation of Wall male graduates of Barnard College Street. a strong-willed professional woman; Twitter and e-mail about how tough efforts to reach Indian tribes and in- in New York City recently that they “JPMorgan is one of the best man- his high hopes for his two daugh- the job market has been for college clude same-sex couples in programs should go out and “fight for a seat at aged banks there is,” he said while tap- ters; even his cabinet, filled with ac- graduates in the past few years. for domestic violence. the head of the table”. ing an interview on the ABC program complished women, from Secretary Obama cited the travails of Lilly In a speech that promoted his “The View” to be broadcast Tuesday. of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to Democrats Ledbetter, for whom his administra- record on women’s issues and drew “Jamie Dimon, the head of it, is one Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. For the last several months, tion’s equal pay law is named, as well a not-so-subtle distinction with the of the smartest bankers we got, and At one point, after assuring Democrats have tried to leverage as pioneering legislation pushed by views of Republicans, including his they still lost $2 billion and counting. the crowd that “all of you will help women’s issues against Republicans, two senators, Barbara A. Mikulski, presumptive challenger, Mitt Rom- We don’t know all the details. It’s going lead the way,” Obama cheerfully ac- attacking them for targeting Planned Democrat of Maryland, and Olym- ney, Obama urged members of the to be investigated, but this is why we knowledged he was pandering. “I Parenthood, for resisting Obama’s pia J. Snowe, Republican of Maine. class of nearly 600 to climb to the passed Wall Street reform.” recognise that’s a cheap applause line contraception mandate, and over Still, his tone was upbeat and he top of the corporate ladder or run “You could have a bank that isn’t when you’re giving a commence- the Paycheck Fairness Act, which was on familiar ground. Obama’s for public office. as strong, isn’t as profitable managing ment at Barnard,” he said. Senate Republicans have rejected. sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, graduated those same bets and we might have Much of Obama’s address of- In the latest skirmish, the parties from Barnard in 1993. Ten years ear- Challenge had to step in,” Mr. Obama added. fered the bromides common to such are battling over competing versions lier, he graduated from Columbia. The dearth of female lawmak- At Barnard, the president referred speeches. At times, he recited stan- of the Violence Against Women Act, (“I know there can be a little sibling ers in Congress, the president de- only obliquely to Wall Street, saying, dard policy messages on health care, a measure that usually sails through rivalry here,” he said.) clared, was “one reason we’re actu- “Some folks in the financial world education and alternative energy Congress without controversy. ally refighting long-settled battles have not exactly been model corpo- sources. At other times, he mixed The Republican-controlled Upbeat over women’s rights”. The shortage rate citizens.” Instead, he kept the fo- fatherly advice with thoughts of his House this week is set to vote on a Obama later spoke at a fund- of female chief executives at major cus squarely on women’s issues. own daughters and reminiscences of basic extension of the act, which raiser, where one of the hosts, Ricky companies, he said, was “one reason his younger days. aids local law enforcement agen- Martin, the openly gay pop star, said many workplaces still have outdated Squabbles Yet the timing gave it an unmis- cies and finances shelters and other he admired the president for his policies.” Squabbles over federal financing takable political subtext. Hours be- programs for battered women. That courage in endorsing same-sex mar- “It’s up to you to hold the sys- of Planned Parenthood and cover- fore Obama spoke, the Romney cam- has set up a showdown with Sen- riage. tem accountable and sometimes age of contraceptive services have paign and the Republican National ate Democrats, who have already For his part, Obama said: “I want upend it entirely,” Obama said to a emboldened Democrats who be- Committee circulated reminders via passed legislation that would expand everyone treated fairly in this coun- friendly audience on the Morning- lieve they can exploit a gender gap try. We have never gone wrong when side Heights campus of Columbia in the November election. Obama we’ve extended rights and responsi- University. “It’s up to you to stand tried to leap into that gap on Mon- bilities to everybody. That doesn’t up and be heard, to write, and to day, with a speech that drew heavily “The shortage of female chief executives weaken families; that strengthens lobby, to march, to organise, to vote. on his childhood, reared by a single at major companies was one reason many families.” Don’t be content just to sit back and mother and an ambitious but frus- Jennifer Steinhauer contributed re- watch.” trated grandmother; his marriage to workplaces still have outdated policies.” porting. Courtesy of New York Times Political parties abuse the special seats spirit …By Noor Shija CCM, 67 MPs, 25 Chadema and 10 CUF. nominate these representatives. For example, seat in this party, one must be a relative or have The other parties, TLP and UDP did not civil servants are prohibited from benefiting other relationships with one of its top leaders. ne of the major wins for women get five per cent or more of the votes, hence did from special seats, but this is happening. Recently, Uhuru publications ran a story of Tanzania was the inclusion of not benefit from the special seats provision. In CCM there are public servants who have on Chadema family in Parliament which indi- a provision in the Constitution of These special seats are distributed to spe- benefited from special seats. In the 2000 elec- cated how close family members had benefited United Republic of Tanzania that cial categories within the population. The tions, for example, Margaret Sitta came to par- immensely though the special seats. createdO the special seats to increase women’s CCM, for instance, has one position for each liament through the special seat route to rep- Those related to Chadema officials as participation in politics. of the different institutions like NGOs, trade resent the trade unions. However, the workers daughters and sisters among other relatives Article 66 of the constitution defines 30 per unions, disabled people, people with albinism who she said she was representing claimed were the main beneficiaries. cent of the seats in parliament as ‘special seats’. and universities. they do not know her. In CUF, party members complained pub- These seats are allocated to political strength While the provision of special seats has seen There are those who allege that for the five licly about the issue of special seats saying to and only to those which win at least five per the number of women increase in parliament at years Sitta was in parliament, she was only be nominated a person needs to have money cent of the votes in a general election. an impressive rate, questions are being asked if it answerable to CCM and not to the workers, to corrupt their way through. Corruption has is indeed bringing the value that was envisaged. meaning she did not represent the workers’ affected the quality of representation, party Evidence “I think the special seats provision has been interests. members claimed. Evidence shows that indeed, this provision turned into a personal thing where leaders of MPs who have won their special seats has helped to significantly increase the num- political parties use it to reward their friends, Special seats through these means are not representing the ber of women in Tanzania Parliament. families and cronies with little regard as to Other sectors that that have raised storm is interest of the very special groups they are ex- By end of 2011, there were 126 women in whether these people are qualified or under- the special seats representative of the NGOs. It pected to speak for. Instead they have been ac- the parliament, majority of whom had come stand the issues of the special groups they pur- has also been claimed that those who represent cused of pushing their own agenda and that of through the special seats requirement. This port to represent,” observes Juma Mohammed. the civil society have been selected based on their masters. translates to 35 per cent in the house whose factors other than merit. Some of them have As Tanzania rewrites its constitution, there total number of MPs stands at 357. Abuse never been seen to push for social and eco- is need to revisit this issue of special seats and Of the 126 women, 21 were elected in the The reason for this concern is that while nomic issues advocated by the very organisa- put in place mechanisms that will ensure the constituencies, with 19 of them coming from the concept of special seats is good, politi- tions they purport to represent. system is not abused. CCM, one from Chadema and another from cal parties seem to be abusing it by pushing The story is not different in the opposition Stakeholders from civil society and private NCCR-Mageuzi. through candidates not based on merit, but on parties. In Chadema, there is what has come to be sector need to make submissions to the Con- Those who were nominated through the other factors. known as the Chadema family. There have been stitution Review Commission on how best to special seats were 102, distributed as follows: The biggest problem is the process used to complaints that to be nominated through special implement this noble concept. 6 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Women up their game …By Robert Wanjala by election law. Our main concerns and which may omen have fought disadvantage most wom- many battles in their en is the widespread ig- pursuance for equality norance on the new laws,” and respect in society. reiterates the legislator. TheirsW has been a rocky path filled with But despite the elec- tearful tales of brutality, dehumaniza- toral laws ignorance, Moi- tion and even death. ra Chepkok is bubbling not about funding but imparting lead- Women leaders and members of Kenya From the beaches of the Indian with confidence as she strategizes on ership, lobbying and advocacy skills,” Women Parliamentarians Association Ocean to the shores of Lake Victoria, how to test political waters for the first she reiterates. (KEWOPA) attending a meeting in Eldoret. women have risked their lives for the time during in the coming elections. However Ndogoto says COPA can provide linkages with prospective fund- liberation of their gender. The retired banker says she is ready to known village girl who has worked tire- ing organisations to enable women bat- From the legendary Mekatilile Wa tackle the men and all the cultural ob- lessly with various civil societies in the tle out with well resourced male politi- According to Nancy Koech, a pro- Menza to the late Nobel Laureate Wan- stacles on her path. area and has the blessings right from cians. gramme coordinator with Mercy Corp, gari Mathai; from the elderly Phoebe “Women should not tie themselves the church leaders to community elders And while Chepkok bemoans the despite the almost level political play Asiyo to the brave Martha Karua, Ke- down to the one third representation not to mention fellow women. fact that women are reluctant to sup- field, cultural issues continue to under- nyan women have struggled to defeat as stipulated in the Constitution. The “My support will come from port one another, Ndogoto encourages mine women’s resolve to exercise their negative cultural practices that dehu- political window is wide open. Women friends whom I have established as I go women who are unwilling to venture democratic right. manise them. should know there are other seats avail- about my duties mobilising grassroots into politics to champion for female “Social dynamics and community As Kenyans prepare for the next able to compete for,” says Chepkok. women to discuss issues affecting us candidacy. systems have given more say to men general elections, women must strat- She argues that experience in the and our families,” she notes. However, Chepkok is not the only than women,” Koech explains. She notes egise on how to win more elective posi- Rift Valley shows that women have However, Kiptoo’s biggest hurdle woman steaming with political ambi- that most women fear participating in tions since the constitution has expand- what it takes to lead. The region leads remains defeating male chauvinism. tion. Lillian Kiptoo, 43 is an old hand in politics due to intimidation and insecu- ed the space for their gaining power. in women representation in the current “Our community is still caught up in politics and says empowering women rity that characterise campaign periods. High Education Minister Prof. parliament. the retrogressive culture that thinks a on life skills remain her passion. Nevertheless, Koech postulates that Margaret Kamar says women’s empow- Chepkok says that women can of- woman is a child and not fit for instru- When not in politics Kiptoo will be women need to build their financial erment on electoral laws ahead of gen- fer credible, accountable, transparent ments of power,” she bemoans. busy traversing villages talking to her base and expand their grassroots and eral election 2012 remains critical. and integrity based leadership. “Wom- And although this will be her sec- fellow women on matters of new farm- national networks. According to Kamar, the Indepen- en have in most cases remained good ond attempt into politics, Kiptoo is ing technologies, use of natural energy Mercy Corps has been building dent Electoral and Boundary Commis- stewards of family resources in spite of oblivious of the difficulties women can- in home cooking and sowing the seed women’s capacity through grassroots sion, IEBC and other Constitutional the lesser role they play in African fam- didates are likely to face. into their minds on how to challenge ‘women/youth ‘Bunges’. The initiative stakeholders should intensify civic edu- ily set ups,” she claims. Kiptoo, who is the chairlady of stereotype minds. sponsored by USAID is aimed at en- cation on key laws to enable not only Chepkok is reluctant to disclose Kenya National Federation of Agri- The mother of six and district co- gaging and empowering women and women but all Kenyans make informed which seat she has set her eyes on but culture Production (KENFAP) says ordinator, Women Bunge (grassroots youths economically, freeing them from choices in the next polls. says she is warming up for county seats all women should stand up and be women parliament) says education for dependency. “Many Kenyans and especially when the time comes. counted in this year’s election in spite all will top her agenda if elected. “An Engaging youths who form the women are not conversant with the new According to Martha Ndogoto, of the barriers. educated society is an equally empow- large percentage in society, Koech says election and political party laws and this programme coordinator of the Coali- “In 2007 general election I came ered community, socially and econom- this would reduce poverty and idleness may hinder their effective participation tion for Peace in Africa (COPA) re- second in a nine-man civic leadership ically,” she notes. hence snatching them away from hell- in the coming polls,” Kamar observes. source disparities may hinder possible contest. Today women in my backyard Vying for women representative bent-politicians who have been using On the issue of banning politi- female candidates. are a disappointed lot by the incum- in Elgeyo-Marakwet County, Kiptoo them for political expediency in the cians from fundraising Kamar says it Ndogoto says her organisation has bent leadership. They long for mean- observes this year’s political game past. is timely and will increase chances for been on women capacity building mis- ingful change the new constitution has plan may not rely much on one’s ex- Former assistant Minister for women’s participation. sion mainly on peace and political pro- promised to us all and it’s only through perience and finances. “The country Health, Dr Enoch Kibunguchy says that “The election law is good for it stops cesses across the country. a woman — obviously seen, felt and is in deficit of visionary leaders. I am men should create an environment con- some male politicians who often use “Winning in the coming elections tasted the deadly struggles that come ready to provide my rich menu of ducive for women to thrive in politics. their resources through fundraising to may not entirely depend on the re- with destitution,” she asserts. leadership,” she asserts. “Our women are showing us that influence votes,” she observes. source power but sound policies and Although those who are well fi- Coming from humble background, they are able. The focus of what one According to Kamar, political fields networking with likeminded groups,” nanced may derail her political Kiptoo, a Form Two dropout says her has below the belt as opposed to above are white and women should go for the observes Ndogoto. dream, Kiptoo says efforts through political strategy is simple. She is a well the neck is destroying our society,” ob- all seats as enshrined in the constitution “Our partnership with women is USAID sponsored projects – women and not merely to fulfil the one third serves Kibunguchy, adding that vio- and youths economic empowerment lence must be tamed to enable women gender rule. through implementing agent – Mercy “Although they have fewer resourc- “Winning in the coming elections may not entirely actively participate in politics. Corps; election laws awareness is still The Catholic Bishop of Eldoret Di- es that could assemble effective politi- depend on the resource power but sound policies wanting and may not only ruin her cal campaigns, women aspirants have ocese Cornelius Korir, says that peace is chances but also for other women seek- critical to enable all Kenyans participate started raising funds through alterna- and networking with likeminded groups.” ing elective positions. tives despite fundraising being banned — Martha Ndogoto in politics. Bungoma Women vow to support their own in the coming election …By Aggrey Buchunju developed appetite for elective seats for fellow women when elections are countrywide to arm themselves with called in order for them to effectively omen in Bungoma academic qualifications as is required defend the gains. County have made a by the constitution. “The new constitution does not pro- joint stand to vie for She challenged those with academic vide for forced inheritance of widows. all political seats dur- certificates to immediately enroll for As women we can only live to celebrate Wing the next general election. other relevant courses. this gain if many of us are elected in po- They also vowed to elect their fellow “Women aspirants must strive to litical positions,” she said. women in various political positions in get all the requisite documents now so Onunga asked women to be con- the country as opposed to voting for as not to be barred from participating versant with the clauses in the constitu- men. in the election when time comes,” she tion that concern them. Led by Maendeleo ya wanawake cautioned. She reminded the women that the Western province treasurer, Irene Mu- Muronji at the same time asked document gives them equal opportuni- ronji, Bungoma town based lawyer, those who may not acquire all the nec- ties with men and challenged them to Elizabeth chunge and Teso North Dis- essary documents to feel proud and read and understand it. trict Commissioner (DC) Josephine support those who have. “Let the document be a manual to UN Women Country Director Zebib Kavuma(Centre) during Onunga, the women declared that they Chunge urged women to contest live with because it recognises the right are no longer enemies of themselves. for all positions arguing that there are of all Kenyans to education and to own the meeting. Picture: Aggrey Buchunju They used the platform to urge no special seats for them to warrant one property,” she said. women in the other 46 countries to third presentation in all decision mak- Onunga said that it is the responsi- Onunga told Kenyan women to there know how to care and treat their rally behind women candidates in or- ing organs. bility of women to ensure that families emulate their counterparts in Uganda spouses. der to strengthen their voice in advo- She, however, lauded the new con- are stable. in order to build strong family values. “My area of jurisdiction borders cating for gender and women issues stitution saying that it has so many gains “Let us value family structure by She claimed that men in Uganda Uganda and I can confidently tell you countrywide. for women. respecting our husbands and utilizing have no sexual desire out side their that families there are built on strong Muronji asked women who have As a result she asked women to vote farms property,” she said. matrimonial beds because women values and love,” Onunga added. 7 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Njoki and Karaithe Huge gap yawns for women promises justice to rape victims in political leadership …By HENRY OWINO

exual offenders will now be dealt with firmly as police and the judiciary commits themselves into stopping the heinous acts. Njoki Ndungu, Judge in the Supreme Court and ErickS Kiraithe, Police Spokesman took personal pledges in support of the campaign to stop rape and gender violence in conflict. They vowed to provide legal actions in their respec- tive jurisdictions and ensure victims’justice prevails. The duo made the commitments during the Week of Action Campaign Resolution for Kenya at an Internation- al forum organized to Stop Rape and Gender Violence in Conflict in the country held at Freedom Corner of Uhuru Park, Nairobi. The campaign launch was attended by civil societies, survivors, governmental representatives and for- eign dignitaries. Campaign The campaign targeted four countries; Burma, Colom- bia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Kenya where the launch went concurrently. The event was also held in other conflict prone countries around the world including; Liberia, Canada to mention just but a few. The campaign’s advisory committee is comprised of 25 organizations working at the international, regional, and community levels to support survivors and stop rape. According to Njoki Ndungu, rape is the most serious crime in the community. She said rape is similar to robbery …By Henry Kahara Cabinet Minister Dr Sally Kosgey shares a word with nominated MP Millie Odhiambo with violence and should not be taken lightly because it during the Kenya Women Parliamentarians Association (KEWOPA) meeting. leaves a woman with a permanent scar. or long East Africa women have “Rape is actually robbery with violence because once been kept a side in leadership po- you fall a victim, you lose dignity that is hardly restored. sitions despite the fact that they uted by the genocide experience which is until the time when we have gotten at least Rape is a serious offense that should not be taken lightly. have taken active role in the coun- still very fresh in many women’s mind with a large number when the motion sailed In fact the Sexual Offense Act 2003 now redefines rape and try’sF political, economic and social life. gender violence being a tool that was com- through,” notes Masheti. people need to familiarize themselves with Chapter 42 of the Despite this it is estimated that women monly used. She adds: “This is an indication that if Act,” Njoki explained. form over slightly 50 per cent of the total pop- women are given a chance we can record The Supreme Court Judge clarified that any crime is ulation, meaning they are the majority voters Improvement high development rate in our nation.” treated equally though the penalty does differ depending on in both parliamentary and civic elections. Rwandans have made tremendous im- Uganda too has embraced women’s the weight and category of offense. She urged the public to During the pre-independence history provements on the issue of child rights with leadership and today its Parliament has play their part as a community and nation by fighting the of Kenya and the struggle for self-determi- particular reference to child marriages. about 70 women. This came about after the criminal activities. nation against British domination have nu- Forced child marriages are now illegal affirmative action policy in decision mak- To the police force, Njoki urged the Kiraithe the police merous cases of women who supported the with serious penalties for the rape and of ing policy which is closely related to com- spokesman to deploy more police officers to the slum areas cause in many ways. children and babies increased substantially. ing in power of the National Resistance to protect the residents since such places are prone to crimi- However in the 1963 general election Furthermore there have been pro- Government in 1986. nal activities. that saw Kenya into independence not a sin- grammes to educate the general public on Article 32 (1) of the Ugandan constitu- gle woman was elected to parliament. It was the values equal rights of women. tion spells out that the core elements of affir- Empowerment until 1969 when the first woman, Mrs Grace According to Joy Masheti, a programme mative action. The provision entrenches ap- “Today I ask men in Kenya to stop violence, rape and Onyango was elected into. In 1974 general officer with the Caucus for Women Leader- plying affirmative action in favour of groups any criminal activity and instead engage in incoming gen- election the number increased slightly to ship, a country cannot develop when one discriminated against on the basis of gender, erating activities to provide for the families so that we stop four with the election of Dr Julia Ojiambo, gender dominates in leadership. age, disability or any other reason created hearing of more cases of women beating their husbands. Nyiva Mwendwa and Chelgat Mutai with Masheti attributes the progress Rwanda by history or custom. It also indicates that Men you need to be responsible!” asked Njoki. Onyango getting her second term. has made from endorsement of women that the intention of committing affirmative “Remember, No means No, nothing else!” affirmed Njoki. leadership. “Development can only be wit- action is to redress imbalances which exist Kiraithe, the Police Spokesman, warned members of Trend nessed when both genders are given prior- against the marginalised. the public against harboring rapists and other gangsters in The trend never changed much up to ity,” she says. the community and expect the police force to arrest them. 1990s when the multiparty came to be. In Kenya it was until last year when the Study He regretted that in most cases, the members of the public Speaking with journalists at Bomas of Ke- Parliament passed the law that bans female In Tanzania, the introduction of special always shield the criminals making it difficult for police to nya during the launching of Kenya Wom- circumcision. In 1996 a motion seeking to seats for women did not lead to an increased arrest such a person. en Charter Water and Irrigation Minister ban female circumcision was defeated in number of women in parliament. A survey The Police Spokesman expressed his disappointments Charity Ngilu said that this was a turning because there were no women to support it. conducted by the Tanzania Media Women’s saying victims of rape in most cases never find justice since point. “For long our sisters have been under- Association (TAMWA) indicates the possi- cases do take long in courts giving the criminals advantage Ngilu says that before there was only one going FGM, with nobody raising questions bility of many women holding higher office of walking scot free despite police efforts to arrest them. party KANU which was male dominated in parliament as a nightmare. “What surprises me in this country is the duration a case and sometimes they used to give a direct The report further says that in Tanzania takes in court before it is resolved. For instance, someone nomination to the people of their (party’s all the machineries of Parliament are domi- may steal your jacket and the jacket gets torn before the case leader) choice. nated by men. The Speaker, Deputy Speaker, is concluded. Is this not impunity?” Kiraithe posed. “Before we used to have one party Clerk of the National Assembly as well as the Kiraithe said the level of impunity in the country is high (KANU) which was male dominated and Attorney General are all men. Also eight out and must be dealt with collectively not just by the govern- it was a nightmare for a woman to get its of nine Parliamentary Standing Committees ment but by every individual. Community policing he stated ticket,” she observes. are led by men. is the key to crime eradication as police cannot reach every Ngilu expressed optimism that the num- Women joining politics through special corner of the country but the public continue to undermine ber of women in decision making positions seats are not necessarily accountable to the the initiative by providing asylum to the criminals. will increase this time due to the new consti- majority of women, particularly those who “As much as the police force is undergoing reforms, we tutional dispensation. do not belong to political seats. need to reexamine our values as a society because the same Like Kenya, in Tanzania women do not errant police officer is a product of the same society .They Constitution feature very strongly in the country’s cabi- are our brothers, sisters, sons, daughters and thus the need Article 81(b) of the new Constitution net, which is the main body that advises the to support the reforms,” suggested Kiraithe. states that: “Not more than two thirds of the President on all matters of the government He noted that most rapists are always known by the vic- members of elective public bodies shall be of including public policy. tims yet no action is taken against the offenders due to lack the same gender.” During the launch of Kenya National of sufficient evidence. Currently Kenya has only 22 women “Before we used to have Women Charter, women leaders from across “Our Courts function under stipulated laws and exhibit members of parliament, compared with the country exposed the dirty tricks men is mandatory for any case to proceed and for victim’s justice. Uganda which has 70, Tanzania has more one party (KANU) which candidates aspiring for political leadership As much as Police do their work in arresting the criminals, than 30 per cent while 56 per cent of Rwan- positions in the country use to harass them. the victims must also play their role,” urged Police Spokes- da’s parliamentarians are women. was male dominated and This indicated that some men in Ke- man. Rwanda is among the 17 countries in the it was a nightmare for a nya are yet to concur that women too can He therefore called upon the community to be in the fore- world with the highest women representa- be leaders and with the new Constitution front in rejecting criminal groupings in their estates, villages tion in the world surpassing its law in Affir- woman to get its ticket.” women are watching the political space or communities by reporting them to nearest police stations. mative Action of 30 per cent representation. — Charity Ngilu. keenly to see whether Kenyans will honour May be this has been greatly contrib- the new law. 8 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Working to change Women perceptions among people faces HIV living with disability burden …By Henry Neondo …By Faith Muiruri hallmarks that define her work. Zaja has been identifying people in n Africa, women and girls carry a dis- s a young girl she watched need and fulfilling those needs. proportionate burden of the HIV epi- helplessly as persons with “It is the inner satisfaction that demic, constituting 59 percent of all disability suffered from leads me to give more of myself to people living with HIV. The prevailing injustices directed at them the people than thinking of what gender inequalities, including gender-based by society. the world thinks of me,” she ex- I A violence among other factors, increase wom- From public health facilities to plains. en’s and girls’ risk of HIV infection. police stations and learning institu- “The job needs you to have a big This has made it difficult to achieve the tions, persons with disabilities were heart. I have been using my own Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), treated with a lot of disdain. resources to empower the disabled in particular MDGs 3 (gender equality), 4 At the public health facilities, persons. I recently set up a cyber (child health), 5 (maternal health), and 6 Hanisa Zaja watched as young dis- cafe where disabled persons learn (HIV). abled mothers crawled through the new skills on IT free of charge,” The African Union’s Campaign for Ac- murky and filthy wards after deliv- says Zaja. She explains: “The cyber celerated Reduction of Maternal Mortality in ery with no attention accorded to is open to other members of the Africa (CARMMA) is one such initiative in their status. public and the proceeds from the support of the MDGs, specifically address- In police stations, the story bor- enterprise go into uplifting the live- ing the reduction of maternal mortality in dered on hostility and inability by lihoods of the disabled people who Africa. the officers to communicate with use and work in the cyber.” those who were deaf. In schools, Impunity Protection they had to compete equally with “Empowering women and girls to pro- physically able children. Zaja also works with the local tect themselves against HIV infection and Images of emaciated people District Social Development offi- gender-based violence is non-negotiable in with disabilities strewn on the cer to link them with essential re- the AIDS response. Yet, many countries are streets stung fiercely under the sources within the community and not delivering the results needed to achieve calm face of reality. protect vulnerable ones by ensur- the MDGs 3, 4, 5 and 6”, said UNAIDS Ex- “And this solidified my resolve ing that their best interests are not ecutive Director Michel Sidibé. to crusade for the rights of disabled ignored. He said that forms such as the Global- persons,” explains Zaja who herself Her hard work and persever- POWER Women Network mobilise women is also disabled. To get to work well ance has earned her recognition as leaders to hold governments accountable to for the physically challenged, Zaja an ardent defender of the rights of the commitments they made on women and joined the Association of Disabled the disabled persons in Coast Prov- girls. Persons in Coast Province and has ince. She has received numerous Hanisa Zaja speaks out on her plans to contest for the Mombasa Women parliamentarians, leading Afri- never looked back. awards among them the Human can women entrepreneurs, civil society lead- Rights Activist for Persons with County Representative for people with disability. She expresses her Resolve optimism that she will win the seat. ers, and development partners from Africa Disabilities awarded by Muslim for and beyond in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital Picture: Faith Muiruri “At first my peers dismissed Human Rights (MUHURI) and for the Global POWER Women Network the move as ill advised but I re- the Best Woman Achiever by Gulf Africa High Level Meeting. mained focused towards ensuring African Bank in recognition of her denied their right to attain basic According to Zaja most political that justice becomes an overrid- efforts to secure bursaries for needy education through the free and parties are likely to nominate their Strategy ing factor in the society, even for students who are disabled. compulsory education policy initi- cronies to occupy seats set aside for The meeting provided a strategic politi- the disabled,” Zaja observes. Today Her story is one of determina- ated by the government. special groups such as the disabled. cal platform to accelerate game-changing ap- she serves as the chairperson of the tion and at times sheer stubborn- Challenges “We are not certain that we will get proaches to HIV prevention and sexual and Association of Persons living with ness. She has been pushing MPs proper representation since indi- reproductive health and rights responses for Further, she says, most health Disabilities in Coast Province. to support the disabled cause and viduals who may be handpicked women and girls. facilities in the county lack physio- Her passion to empower the they have helped in initiating proj- may end up sitting in the county More than 300 participants attended the therapy clinics that are important disabled persons has enabled her ects that empower the disabled assemblies but fail to address the meeting that discussed ways of eliminating for disabled persons. Majority rely to harness the hidden potential community in Coast Province. aspirations of people living with dis- new HIV infections among children, keep- on the facility at Port Ritz which among persons living with disabili- abilities,” Zaja observes. ing mothers alive and maternal and child Aspiration also serves Kilifi, Kwale and Taita ties and motivate them to achieve She adds: “The nomination health. Taveta counties. Zaja’s plan is to with superior results. Zaja is seeking nomination for should be done at the county level, Participants cited resource mobilisation, push to have all health facilities With the help of development the Mombasa County representa- where people are allowed to choose sustainable financing and accountability as equipped with the clinics to guar- partners, Zaja and members of her tive of the disabled. She is optimis- individuals with the capacity to de- key in the fight against gender imbalances. antee disabled persons easy access. association have set up a workshop tic that she will win the seat to en- liver once nominated to respective The meeting led to the “Harare Call for She notes that the transport that deals in tailoring and carving as able her initiate more projects that positions.” Action” to advance women’s empowerment sector has not been upgraded to a way of generating income to help will help transform the livelihoods and gender equality through HIV and Sex- accommodate the needs of the dis- Nomination uplift their standards of livelihoods. of persons living with disability. ual and Reproductive Health and Rights re- abled persons who use more mon- According to Zaja the new “I work with people in need of Among issues she intends to sponses. ey on public transportation. Constitution provides for ministe- help to manage their daily lives. The address once elected include edu- “To achieve the vision of zero new HIV She says that disabled persons rial appointment for persons with job not only involves helping them cation, health, transport sector and infections, zero discrimination and zero are still being marginalised includ- disability in every ministry. This identify opportunities around them also become the voice of the dis- AIDS-related deaths, it is critical to recog- ing in the political process. She means that more disabled persons but also understand and adapt to dis- abled community. nise women and girls as key agents in mak- cites the ongoing processes across will be included in decision mak- ability and to obtain social services Zaja notes that persons with ing this vision a reality—society has to in- the country to launch political par- ing processes and thereby alleviate like health care, government assis- disability have continued to pay vest in the health of women and girls,” said ties where she notes that the dis- their suffering. tance and legal aid,” she explains. school fees for primary education Thokozani Khupe, Deputy Prime Minister abled have been excluded. She proposes that police re- Zaja cites cases where majority, despite the introduction of the Free of the Republic of Zimbabwe and President She urges that there be civic forms should embrace the sign especially women and girls living Primary Education. of the GlobalPOWER Women Network Af- education for persons living with language and Braille to effectively with disability are raped while the “Majority have been forced to rica. disabilities so they can understand provide services to the physically culprits go unpunished due to their drop out of school as most parents In line with the foregoing, Dr. Jean Ping, the Political Parties Act as well as challenged persons. inability to identify their assailants. can hardly afford to keep their dis- Chairperson of the African Union Commis- the Electoral Act. Zaja, 38, is a mother of two Her entire life has been inspired abled children in school,’ she ob- sion said leadership at country level must “Unless accountability is up- children and married. She went to by a sense of need to reach out to serves. work to deliver the commitment made over held during the nominations by the Port Ritz School for the Physically others in every little way. She says that most of the special the years, which appear more relevant today political parties, persons with dis- Handicapped and Mama Ngina “I have been paying school fees schools are boarding facilities and, than ever before. abilities may not realise any mean- Girls’ Secondary School. She has a for six children with disabilities be- therefore, unless they are fully sup- “Synergies should be created between ingful representation,” notes Zaja. Diploma in Community Develop- cause I know if they are empowered ported, disabled persons are being the several hitherto vertical interventions, ment. they can take charge of their lives especially between HIV programmes and Zaja says that if elected, she will instead of being beggars,” she says. those of Sexual and Reproductive health,” ensure that every County sets up Her indisputable level of cred- he said. “Although most people have dismissed my centres similar to the Bombolulu ibility has helped bring out an The aim of the GlobalPOWER Women Training Centre to meaningfully en- incredibly high level of integ- plans to join politics I intend to remain Network is to establish networks among gage disabled persons and promote rity which has earned her the tag women leaders and parliamentarians to focused to help ensure that justice relationship synergy and consensus “mother-in-law” due to the strong share experiences and approaches to advance between all levels of development to belief in equal opportunities. becomes an overriding factor in society” gender equality and women’s empowerment. Simplicity and humility are the deliver spectacular results. 9 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Barely out of teenage, Kuresha vows to bring change in Tana River

…By Carolyne Oyugi with crocodiles and there are constant “I have to start now, there is no reports of people dying at the river af- better time than this and all those he is a very optimistic woman, ter being attacked by the crocodiles,” who think 23 years is too young are for her nothing is difficult if she explains adding that the river very wrong. This is the time when I only you put your heart and has been receding: the water reduces have the energy, I don’t have to wait strength to it. during the dry seasons and bursts its till I am old and retired for me to get SThese are the thoughts of Kuresha banks during rainy season. into politics,” she reiterates. Mohamed, a young woman from a While it is cultural that women Kuresha, the young mother of a minority tribe who has witnessed and must fetch water, the crocodiles in three-year old son wants to be an ex- experienced injustices in her commu- Tana River leave women most vulner- ample to other women in her commu- nity and mostly to women. able to risk of attacks. nity. She wants to show others that it is What is happening around Kure- “Most women in my area are il- possible to be a woman, wife as well as sha is not right and she will not sit and literate, for that reason they have not mother and still excel in politics. watch another generation of women go read the Constitution on their own so through the same problems her com- as to understand and make informed Inhabitants munity has undergone. She wants to decisions over their lives,” she says. “I want people to judge me by my see change and believes she has to do deeds, what I can do for the commu- something to bring about that change. Ignorance nity and not by my gender,” she says “I want to see change in my com- According to Kuresha, most adding that women have had to over- Kuresha Mohamed, the first woman from the Warthei tribe to vie for an munity, that is just the starting point women in Tana River Constituency come more obstacles than men. “The before I spread my wings and bring are ignorant when it comes to Con- society has for a long time looked at electoral position. Despite her young age, she believes that she is among change to a bigger part of the county stitution matters. They listen and us as women first before looking at the people who will bring change to her community. Picture: Carolyne Oyugi and eventually the whole country in follow what their husbands or male what we can do. People want to know future,” says Kuresha during an inter- figures in their lives say. about your private life, whether you view with the Kenyan Woman. “This is deep rooted to an extent are married, if not then why? And Kuresha is the first woman from “That does not scare me because “I believe that one has to be realis- that they vote for the candidates that this is our time to prove them wrong.” the Warthei tribe to vie for an electoral my husband and my entire family is tic in her ambition in order to achieve their husbands support,” says Kuresha. To Kuresha, it is not just about position and she knows it will not be behind me. I owe my courage and success. You must be willing to do the “In the past, during the ‘mlolongo’ being a leader, it is also about being a a walk over. strength to my mother who has been small things to the few people around way of voting, the men would carry good leader. She has been a leader for “I know there will be challenges very supportive and has always pushed you before going out to a bigger their wives’ national identification and some time now and she knows all the but I will fight through. I also know me whenever I felt weak,” she explains. group,” she explains. voter’s cards so as to force them to vote problems that her community goes that nothing good comes easily, now Kuresha is one of the few women for a particular party,” she notes. through. more than ever I have to prove that I in her community to be educated .She Ambition Kuresha would like to see more civ- “I have been involved in land ad- am equal to the task,” she says. has a Bachelors degree and a diploma Kuresha is aspiring for the ward ic education done so as to have a more vocacy projects because I want to stop Tana River county is inhabited by in human resource. representative seat in Garsen North, informed citizens who will then realise the many land grabbing cases that have three tribes — Pokomo, Orma and the She would also like to see a soci- Tana River County. the full benefits of the new constitution. become normal in Tana River. I want Warthei, the latter being the minority. ety where girls get married at the right “My area has been a victim of ne- She is out to end this and advocate to use the political platform to promote “People of my community are pas- time. “Most girls fall victim of early glect from the Government, we have for girl child education so as to have a equality, I want to create an environ- toralists and this makes it hard to cam- marriage because they do not go to poor infrastructure, the transport sys- more educated generation of women ment where you don’t have to be rich paign because they are not stationed school. The only way to delay mar- tem is a nightmare, the climate is also in future. for you to access your rights,” she says. at one point, worse still the movement riage is by ensuring that girls enjoy not conducive for agriculture and so from one place to another hinders de- their right to education. This way we we always have to buy food,” she says velopment,” she says. will also reduce the problem of Female adding that this has been a major ob- “I want people to judge me by my actions and There is also a lot of tribalism and Genital Mutilation (FGM),” she says. stacle to development. what I can do for the community and not by my this leaves Kuresha with three major The struggle has just began and Tana River has also been in need challenges to fight. One she is a wom- Kuresha believes that she has all that of water supply for a very long time. gender.” an, second she is young and third she it takes to bring change to Garsen “We depend on Tana River which is — Kuresha Mohamed, is from a minority tribe. North ward. very dangerous because it is infested Young women must claim their space in politics …By Sally Nyakanyanga young age of 25 at independence in 1980. In girai (MDC-T) Youth Council. She added that cision making of our nations,” Kademaunga 2000, Flora Bhuka the youngest of government resources and resistance from men also impede concluded. olitics and decision-making in Africa is ministers in Zimbabwe at that time became on young women’s involvement in politics. There are many young women who want largely dominated by men and young the Minister of State in the Vice President’s Despite coming from the opposition party, to be the Johnson-Sirleafs or Joyce Bandas of women are yet to claim their space in office, then Joseph Musika. In the 2008 elec- Kademaunga is of the view that the challenges their countries. Unless deliberate efforts are put this field. In Zimbabwe and indeed in tions, Anastacia Ndhlovu became the youngest young women face in different political parties in place within political parties and also within Africa,P very few young women occupy positions Member of Parliament (MP) at the age of 28 are often similar. political wings of these political parties, the gap in politics and decision-making. What has been under a ZANU-PF ticket. in women’s representation at all levels of gover- lacking is the grooming and nurturing of young However, the current political field shows a Support nance will remain. women to assume political posts within political low representation of younger women in poli- Fanny Chirisa, Director of the Women in In her presentation during the Women in parties. Traditionally, politics has been known to tics as pointed out by Thabitha Khumalo, the Politics Support Unit (WIPSU), explained that Power Conference held in Adelaide in 1994, be a male space. A young man is usually the ap- Senator for Mabutweni and Deputy Chair of the they have a programme called Empowerment Joan Kilmer said that, “there is no such thing parent heir to a throne and as he grows up, he Constitution Select Committee in the country. and Capacity Building, where an MP identifies as being non-political. Just by making a deci- is groomed to occupy that space later on in life. Khumalo said that there has not been much a young women to act as shadow MP and will sion to stay out of politics you are making the Currently, the struggle for women’s representa- effort in any of the country’s political parties be assisting the senior in all matters concerning decision to allow others to shape politics and tion in decision making positions in all sectors to encourage and support young women in the constituency. exert power over you. And if you are alienated has gathered momentum with state parties hav- politics. “We have a handful of women but it is “We encourage all women especially MPs from the current political system, then by just ing committed to an all inclusive system, which always the same women being called upon to to identify young women to groom in their staying out of it you do nothing to change it but fosters equal representation of both women and wear different hats. So what happens when we constituencies. Young women can then tap simply entrench it”. men. This inclusive system comes in the form retire?” posed Khumalo. from the older crop and be groomed for politi- Therefore, young women should also take of the SADC Protocol on Gender and Devel- Vimbai Nhapi, former Child President in cal positions,” Chirisa emphasised. urgency and ensure that they claim their space opment of 2008 which targets 50 per cent rep- Zimbabwe said that there is a huge gap and Kademaunga encourages young women to in the political field. In future, initiatives such resentation of women and men in politics and young women who are already in positions of get organised and make their demands clear by as the Gender Links Gender Justice and Local decision-making by 2015. influence in political parties are not very active. pushing for reforms that recognise the imbal- Government summit should include young Another young woman, Maureen ances young women are facing. At this point, women in politics so that they also use the plat- History Kademaunga highlighted that it took a lot of deliberate steps need to be taken to get young form to share tips on how to change unequal The history of Zimbabwean politics shows courage on her part as very few young women women into positions of power. power relations. that involving young women in politics and contest for political positions. Kademaunga is “We should not allow the system to carry The writer is a freelance writer from Zimba- decision-making is possible. Vice President the secretary for international relations under on excluding us but stand for our rights so that bwe. Joice Mujuru became a Cabinet Minister at the the Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvan- we can be counted and be included in the de- Story courtesy of Gender Links Website 10 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Chief tweets to fight gender based violence …By Steve Mucheru reduce crime rate but also incidents of gender based violence within the chief’s locality. Many bul- hey are often regarded as a reincarna- lies who picked a fight with their spouses with the tion of the colonial relic. Tough to the slightest provocation are having a second thought. bone, some of the chiefs plying trade in Fearing the alerts would reach many, the perpe- the country are loved and loathed with trators of the gender crime have been forced to toe anT equal measure, depending on their perfor- the line of face the wrath of their fellow villagers in mance in the course of duty. case an alarm is raised within a certain radius. Inheriting the mantle from the colonial mas- “We have seen a great reduction on gender ters who used the administrators to collect taxes based violence since the tweeting method came from peasants, many took the cue and perpetuat- into the fore,” explained the season administrator ed the vice in successful regimes, earning a num- who believes information is power. ber of enemies while executing their mandate Many violators fear their behaviour would land But not so for Francis Kariuki the chief of into the chief’s domain, forcing them to reluctantly Lanet-Umoja location who has endeared him- abandon the retrogressive deeds, a chance that has self to the masses and is fondly referred to as the seen families enjoy relative peace. tweeting chief. The 47-year-old administrator has “When I took over the job, it was very com- revolutionalised the role of location heads in tan- mon to hear alarm bells being raised in homes, a dem with fast changing technology. feat attributed to gender based violence,” explains Chiefs, in yesteryears, were regarded as “less Kariuki. schooled” eager to please their masters as they performed duties with zeal putting them into a Measures collision course with the citizenry, a perception The issue of rape has also been addressed as that Chief Kariuki is out to change. the chief continues to consolidate the gains made by the use of tweeter. “My work has become easier Change than I anticipated,” he adds. “Since joining the provincial administra- According to Kariuki, various forms of crimes tion, I have always tried to change the image of including domestic violence, rape and defilement the much maligned job, putting people’s interest cases have drastically reduced since the introduc- first,” he revealed during the interview. tion of tweeting method to relay information. Tasked with the doubting role, in the crime “Although reported cases of defilement and prone Lanet area, the tweeter chief had his work rape were quite rare, it is almost impossible to hear cut out and the main task was to tackle felony of them since the introduction of tweeting,” he con- and win the confidence of the residents who were fides. prone to petty thuggery. Resigned to fate, most of the location resi- Achievement dents had lost faith in security agents as crimi- He says the technology has turned follow- nals continued to torment them almost on daily ers to be “brother’s keeper” effectively reducing basis stealing household items causing fear and domestic violence to almost zero digits. This is despondency. because many women have been forced to learn Having his background as a primary school how to use the social media which in itself is a teacher, Chief Kariuki knew communication was form of empowerment. of essence if he was to slay the crime dragon and “Any form of violence is likely to trigger a re- bring sanity in an area that was notorious with sponse from close door neighbours thus keeping criminal activities. in check those advancing the vice. The victims “After much soul searching and consultation, also tweet alerting that they are in trouble,” he I decided to look for a platform that I would com- explains. municate with the locals in case of a crime,” he Describing the technology as boon in the fight says. against crime, Kariuki said he is able to monitor all the activities in his area of jurisdiction and eas- Communication ily indentify trouble shooters and areas prone to And the idea of tweeting was born which crime. seem to be working magic and many local resi- Apart from crime and gender based violence, dent connected to him through the tech-savvy the chief has been tweeting on health issues, communication mode is able to reach him in a alerting the villagers when health care providers flash. would tour the area to administer various jabs in- “This way, when a crime is committed in an cluding polio. area, all one need to do is write a short text mes- Health care givers are having an easy time sage, (SMS) and I will in turn send out alerts to gaining access to the locals even in the remotest those connected to me ,” he explained the tech- part of the location as the chiefs sends alerts on nology . time with the information reaching more than 90 Via the expertise, the chief is able to reach a per cent of the intended consumers. good number of the villagers who would swing in The technology has transformed the hitherto, to action and help apprehend criminals causing sleepy Lanet-Umoja into a communication hub, mayhem. The most common crime was the theft with those enjoying phone service and connected of poultry and house breaking. to the chief being updated at each passing minute. Within a short time, criminals in the area The technology has seen the location stalwart who, incidentally, were receiving the alerts had to unite for a purpose despite the area being cosmo- devise new tricks to escape the arm of the law as politan. “It’s hard to tell apart people from differ- they would be apprehended easily before sneak- ent ethnic groups,” says Kariuki. ing away from the crime scene. A man of many hats, the former primary “The intensified fight against crime has seen school teacher is a cleric with the United Meth- a number of social outlaws abandon the risky odist Church and preaches the word without fear. undertaking or either flee from the area,” said “The religious background has been a catalyst Kariuki. that I need to further boost my work,” he says. For now, Kariuki is a celebrity of sorts as he Initiative continues to earn accolades for choosing to fight Police and other crime busting departments crime and other vices using a medium rarely wit- have been following the chief on tweeter and re- nessed among people of his rank and file. ceive alerts in time to enable them to sufficiently However, knowing that criminals always deal with criminal elements. “It has been a win-win up their game in a bid to dodge security agents, situation,” explained chief. Kariuki is equal to the task and ready to explore Francis Kariuki the chief of Lanet-Umoja location fondly referred to as the tweeting And the tweeting method has not only helped other innovative ways of keeping criminals at bay. chief. He uses tweeter to solve problems in his Sub-location. Picture: Steve Mucheru 11 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Government partners with industry Meet Mercy, a woman who left her to distribute free sanitary pads lucrative job to look …By Henry Owino

overnment in part- after destitute nership with African …By Henry Kahara Cotton Industries has launched a pro- When Mercy Thuo, 55, built a home, she anticipated grammeG under which free sani- that life will be more comfortable as she will not be tary towels will be provided to hustling for the rent, but this was never the case. In- public primary schools across stead, the burden increased. At that time Mercy, a the country. mother of three was a renowned cereal business wom- The programme is expected an in Nairobi. to benefit 443,858 needy girls of “I used to buy maize in Kitale and then sell them whom 4,114 will be drawn from to the Kenya Cereals and Produce Board and the lo- public primary schools from 82 cal markets,” says Mercy. For now that is history, she targeted districts. is today looking after the orphaned children in a cen- The introduction of the free tre she started 20 years ago. sanitary towels is expected be “After relocating from Eastleigh, where I used to continue in the 2011/2012 fi- live, I settled in Mathare slums where I had built a resi- nancial years and subsequent dential house. But little did I knew that I will change financial years. The government that place to a rehabilitation centre,” she says. will allocate Ksh240 million in Although Mercy does not regret leaving her well the financial year for the sani- Happy pupils in Nairobi after paying business and starting this project, she has tary towels as a start. touched, changed and transformed many people’s lives The Prime Minister, Raila receiving free sanitary pads. and admits that her life has not been easy. Odinga, assured the school girls Prime Minister Raila Odinga and “Since the time I started this project I have been that government was commit- his wife Ida Odinga after gracing forced to approach, who is who in this country beg- ted to providing quality edu- the launch of a programme ging for school fees and other needs for these children,” cation and training for all. He aimed at providing free sanitary she explains. added that gender equality re- Currently, the Good Samaritan Children Home main important bench marks in pads to primary school girls. The programme is funded by and Rehabilitation Centre has more than 400 children, government in quest to educate some of whom are in university while others are less young people. the Government of Kenya in than a month old. According to Mercy, she had not “We are not launching the partnership with African Cotton thought of adopting a child leave a lone starting a chil- sanitary towels programme in a Industries. Pictures: Henry Owino dren’s home. vacuum. We do it as part of the “I wanted to have a good life with my children, but comprehensive Gender Policy God wanted it to be different because immediately I in Education Sector that aims as the provision of in- settled in my new home my third born son and last at reducing existing gender disparities in access, structional materials born started inviting his friends home,” she says. retention, transition and achievement in educa- and other resources tion,” Prime Minister, Raila clarified. in all schools. As a mother, Mercy could not chase them away, The premier echoed that government is The Minister for instead she warmly received them for saying it’s not concerned about girls who continue to drop Education, Mutula Education in 2008, the enrolment has increased advisable to chase a destitute child out of your home all out of school or fail to enroll in greater numbers Kilonzo said the introduction of the towels by the from 800,000 to 1.7 million students in 2012. in the name of living a more luxurious life. compared to boys. He further observed survival government will enable girls to remain in schools “As a result of the transition, the rate from It is during this period when Mercy realised that rates for girls in school are still low compared to until they finish their education. He pointed out primary to secondary has risen from 47 per cent some of his son’s friends seemed to be undergoing hard those of boys which lead to low completion rates this will help address gender disparity experi- in 2003 to 72.5% in 2012. This is above UNESCO times when she decided to enquire from them about among girls at all levels. enced in most schools in the country. benchmark of 70 per cent,” the Minister applaud- their lives. “Lack of appropriate sanitary facilities and “Despite the remarkable increases in access ed. “I was amazed to learn that some of those children access to sanitary towels for girls has been identi- at both primary and secondary school, statistics The Education Minister outlined other pro- were orphans, some were under the care of their old fied as a deterrent to schooling,” Raila cautioned. show that over one million children are out of grammes in the Ministry which includes; Task grandmothers. This touched me very much when The Prime Minister made the remarks dur- school in primary schools. Majority of these are Force on alignment of the Education Sector to it further dawned to me that some even don’t attend ing the official launch of sanitary towels pro- in arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL) areas pockets the new constitution and vision 2030 mandated school,” she narrates. gramme held at Kenya Institute of Education of poverty and urban slums. A big proportion of to review the current education system to ensure “I just decided to adopt three of them as I was in (KIE), Nairobi. that percentage is girls. Studies have shown that it in coincides with current global trends of edu- a position to cater for them, but at the same time the Raila stated studies done in Kenya by various one of the reasons why girls miss classes or drop cation, the Constitution and vision 2030 in order number increased gradually, so the burden continued organizations reveal that approximately 500,000 out altogether is maturation or the onset of pu- to make the Kenyan education system globally being more and I saw it a need of opening a children’s girls miss at four days of schooling every month berty,” Mutula explained. competitive and market driven. home,” says Mama Mercy as she is widely known in because they are unable to afford sanitary pads. Mutula regretted the money allocated for the In addition to these, the Education Minister the slums. This he alluded amounts to 10-25 per cent of good programme is not adequate to meet needs explicated more policy initiatives that Ministry is “At that time I learnt that many children were not pupil-teacher contact time lost. of the 2.6 million girls in primary and second- in the process of reviewing education sector with attending schools due to school fees problem I also re- “It puts our girls at a disadvantage against ary schools. He appealed to Prime Minister, Raila an aim of aligning them with the new constitu- alised that some of the children’s parents were drunk- their male counterparts. It affects the perfor- Odinga to take up the matter personally so that tion to make them implementable frameworks ards. This had raised insecurity in this area as they used mance of girls in examinations. In the past, this the programme can be scaled up to the national with the devolved governments. to violently steal goods from strangers,” she says noting problem has partly been addressed through iso- level. For instance; gender in education policy that now normalcy has returned. lated provision of sanitary towels to girls in some “The girl child is not a second hand citizen. which aims at eliminating gender disparities and From that time up to date Mercy recalls her tribu- schools by some of our partners. The impact of She is entitled to equal treatment as others un- achieving gender equity and equality in relation lations, but all in all she praises God that she has made such an approach has been largely minimal,” the der Article 27(1) and (2) of the Constitution. Her to access, retention, completion and transition in it despite the odds. I was the first person to offer Free Premier mentioned. best interests are of paramount importance in primary and secondary education by 2015. Primary Education 10 years before President Kibaki Raila appealed to more partners to supple- every matter concerning her under Article 53(2); Early Childhood Development Education emerged with FPE in Kenya,” she says. ment the government’s efforts of maintaining she is entitled to free and compulsory basic edu- (ECDE) policy whose intension is to main- Before Kibaki’s era, I had a difficult time as we had girls from disadvantaged backgrounds in school cation under Article 53(1) (b),” Mutula argued. stream ECDE into primary school cycle so that accommodated children whose parents could not af- through programmes like the one launched. The Education Minister urged the State to no child is left out of basic education. HIV and ford the levies charged in public schools,” she adds. Through the programme, Raila said the gov- take affirmative action programmes like the one AIDS policy which recognizes that although the During the period, Mercy says, they used to rely ernment has provided the needy girls with sani- launched to ensure that as a youth, the girl child ministry has domesticated the National HIV on Form Four leavers, who were helping her to teach tary towels to cater for three terms starting term gets access to relevant education and training un- and AIDS continues to be a threat to education those who wanted to go to school. “We used to have two of the 2012 school year. He added in some der Article 55(1). achievements. An impact assessment on HIV three classes from nursery school to class two in the selected districts in arid and semi-arid lands The reform programmes undertaken in the and AIDS has been undertaken and the results same class, three to five and six to eight,” she says add- (ASAL) regions, the girls would get additional education sector by the government since 2003 once disseminated to stakeholders, will inform ing that the trend continued for long. wears to accompany the sanitary towels. by introducing free primary education (FPE), the policy review. Today Mama Mercy says she is happy that she Prime Minister however, observed that due has helped achieve access, equality, relevance and Child friendly schools are significant per- can see the fruits of her work as many of the children to inadequacy of funds, not all needy girls have quality in education. sonal and social environment in the lives of its whom she brought up are working. “Some are gradu- benefited from the programme. “As we speak, “The reforms undertaken in the education students. The ministry has ensured that the ates, while some are outside the country and they are about 2.6 million girls, that is 2.2 million from sector during that period aim at accelerating education environments are safe, healthy and doing fine,” she asserts. primary and 400,000 from secondary schools achievement of the millennium development protective and are endowed with trained teach- According to Mercy, children are a blessing and require support to access sanitary towels. About goals (MDGs) and education for all (EFA) by ers, adequate resources and appropriate physical, that is why she doesn’t hesitate to accommodate one 300,000 of them particularly in ASAL districts 2015. Additionally it focuses on aligning the edu- emotional and social conditions for learning. whenever she comes across such a case. My arms are will require additional wears in addition to sani- cation sector to the new constitution and vision Peace education policy which has been dissemi- always open ready to accommodate them because I tary towels,” regretted the Prime Minister. 2030,” simplified Mutula. nated to the stakeholders is now ready for pub- believe that is accordance to God’s plan,” she reiterates. The cost of achieving the target is estimated at The overall objective is providing education lication. Currently the youngest child in this Centre is bare- Ksh2.6 billion. He therefore appealed for public that is free and compulsory, affordable and acces- Mutula promised that his Ministry, in col- ly a month old and she was left by her mother who is private partnership to support the needy girls to sible especially to families and children from low laboration with other Ministries like Provincial claimed to be insane immediately after she delivered in enable them attend school regularly. Raila asked social-economic strata of society. Administration and National Security, Justice, a hospital in Nairobi. Treasury to increase the budgetary allocation for According Education Minister, the intro- National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs “His mother is said to have a mental problem and the vital initiative in the 2012/2013 financial year duction of FPE in 2003, enrolment in primary and partners like UNICEF is in the process of immediately she delivered she left. Nobody knows so that more girls in Kenya can access the essen- school has risen from 5.9 million to 9.6 million rolling out a National Peace Education Cam- where she is now. Starehe OCPD ordered her to be tial tools. He hoped to see in future when access pupils in 2012. Mutula observed that since the paign with the aim of using education as a means brought here,” says Mercy. to sanitary towels will be given the same status government introduced Free Day Secondary of positively influencing. 12 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Women economic empowerment key to resolving Coastal problems …By Carolyne Oyugi will be made — financial decisions and alloca- tion of funds to different projects — while at illicent Odhiambo is a woman with Deputy Governor’s docket is where changes will a vision, her vision is to see women be implemented and it is important that a wom- from Coast Province and particu- an occupies that seat so as to solve the women’s larly Mombasa County economi- problems,” she says. callyM empowered so that they can be actively in- Odhiambo, a psychologist by profession has volved in the day to day running of the county. been getting support from the local women to “I am saddened by the fact that women are run for Governorship but she believes that her physically strained, they do some of the most mission is to bring change and it can still be strenuous jobs and get very little out of it. I see done from the deputy’s position. women carrying a basket of coconuts, cassavas, “If you want to bring change somewhere mango brooms and walk with them throughout you don’t just go pressing so hard, that way you the day with a baby tied on their backs just to will build acrimony and they will form a wall to make KSh100 or less at the end of the day,” ob- defend themselves. You must, therefore, work Millicent Odhiambo, a political aspirant in Mombasa County. Though she is a minority at serves Odhiambo. from within them; you must humble yourself the Coast by being a woman, a Christian and from Nyanza, she believes that leadership is She further explains that some of these so that when you blow out it is a blast. If I go not based on those three factors. Pictures: Carolyne Oyugi women sell coconut from their husbands’ coco- straight for Governorship then the men will see nut trees and so at the end of the day they have us women as their enemies and yet we want to to give all the money to the men. work together towards one goal,” she says. Odhiambo is from Nyanza which is other- So, how is she going to work this out? You notes adding that good healthcare facilities and your siblings mistakes. This does not change wise known as bara (a common Coastal term must be wondering. First they will have an elect- services means peace of the mind for a woman. when you are married because if your children for anywhere outside Coast Province). She is ed governor, who they will have entered a Mem- Odhiambo sees Mombasa County as one fail then they will always be compared to their a Christian too in a land that is dominated by orandum of Understanding with the locals that that is very rich and can provide cheaper health- mothers and when they succeed all the credit Muslims. he will have to elect a female deputy and she, care if they want to. “Even free healthcare just goes to the father even if he did not play any im- “The two challenges are there but the main must be endorsed by the women of Mombasa. for women and children is possible and that is portant role,” she observes. one is the fact that I am a woman. In Mombasa Odhiambo believes that the position of one thing that I will push for,” she says with an For this reason, Odhiambo explains, women we are in a culture whereby women are under- women’s poverty has been used by politicians to assuring tone. have been oppressed and suppressed and the mined by the indigenous community. They are influence how they vote. Odhiambo believes that if a woman is environment has moulded them that way. She there to be seen and not to be heard, the com- “For a very long time women have been healthy, there is good education for her children is, however, optimistic that things will change munity views us as people who were brought to bribed by simple things like lesos, a packet and she has money in the bank, then the whole for the better once they see the benefits of the this world just to give birth, take care of the chil- of maize flour and worse still salt. You cannot family is covered and that is what she wants to new Constitution. When a woman sees a fellow dren and cook,” she says. blame this woman because she is the one who make a reality. woman coming out strongly and succeeding However, Odhiambo points out that this is carries the burden of the family. A woman can- And it is not only in health where Odhiambo they feel threatened, or they view her as some- one of the reasons why Coast Province has been not eat if her children are hungry, she lives for finds challenges. She also has a problem with the one who is competing with their husband or lagging behind in development. others,” she observes. pre-unit schools that set the foundation for learn- the male figure in her life whom she has been In all this problems, she would like to use the Odhiambo also dreams of a better health- ing. She would like them to up their standards. brought up being submissive to all her life. Deputy Governor’s office to solve these prob- care for women. “Our body (women) has extra Children at the pre-unit school are still very Odhiambo has been working hard in empow- lems. However, she knows that she is engaging organs, we undergo so many processes and hor- close to the mothers, this is a fact she knows very ering young women and has also been working as herself in a tricky business. monal changes. For that reason we frequent the well being a mother of five children herself. a community representative in her Ward. First the seat is not elective and second we hospitals more than men. We also go to hospi- She does not support the cliché that women In her campaigns, majority of the people still do not know who will win the Governor’s tals when our children and husbands are sick. are their own enemies. “We, women have been have been supporting her although some dwell seat so as to be nominated by him or her. Research shows that women spend more time brought up in an environment where you are on her widowhood which should not be used to “The Governor’s office is where decisions in health facilities than any other person,” she judged harshly for your mistakes and even for measure her ability to deliver. Lack of skills hinders women from expanding businesses …By Karani Kelvin and give her business the much needed boost. ntrepreneurship can be exciting, es- From the proceeds of her business, she has pecially when things go according to managed to take care of her children, build a plan. It can be a little frustrating when semi-permanent house, buy five goats and take the challenges as well as pressures from the children to school, though with assistance outsideE the business come in torrents. For Hellen from sponsors and relatives. Akinyi Otwane, 45, a mother of eight and resident Although she has attended one seminar on of Amagoro in Busia County business has been how to manage a business, Otwane says she needs a tricky venture. She has been doing business more information to help grow her grocery. She for about six years and not much seems to have believes that although she left school in class sev- changed. en, she can still learn one or two things about busi- “I still sell the same things, in the same nesses to help realise her dreams. amounts and at the same place,” she says, a smile Other than the lack of business know-how, brightening her face, hiding for a moment the Otwane believes that her parental responsibilities sadness in her voice. have also stopped her from expanding her busi- Otwane has been selling vegetables and fruits ness. “I spend almost all that I earn from this busi- and the wish to see her business grow has re- ness to support my family,” she explains. mained just that — a wish. Doing the same business without expanding However, like most entrepreneurs Otwane for close to six years is such a long time. However, Busy at work . Women tirelessly sale their wares to earn a living. Economic empowerment has hopes there is light at the end of the tunnel. according to Wilhelmina Rodah Atyang’, also a is key to women’s participation in governance issues. “When my husband died in 2004, life started be- grocer in Amagoro, she has been doing the same ing difficult. I had children to feed, clothe, house business for much longer. and take to school,” she says. Atyang’ started her business in the border Atyang’, a single mother of four children — stock significantly or moved to a bigger stall. “In 2006, I ventured into business with a town of Busia, Busia County in 1982. In 1990, she two of whom have cleared high school and two Despite being in business for about 30 years, capital of KSh150,” she says. With this money, she moved to Eldoret town where she set up shop un- who are still in secondary —she is happy with her Atyang’ has not attended any training on busi- bought her stock of tomatoes for KSh100 and on- til she left in 2007. business so far. ness management. She would love to attend such ions for KSh50. “I have been here since 2007, selling vegeta- “Although I still struggle a lot, I have been able trainings but she does not know how. She also joined a merry-go-round with similar bles, fruits and charcoal,” she says. to pay school fees for my children and I continue “I am always here selling my stock. How am minded women. She was the first one to receive Atyang’ has been doing the same business for to do so,” she says. I to find out where to get business information money. “I got KSh1,700 and put it all in the busi- about 30 years. According to her, only the towns Atyang’ cites parental responsibility as well as from?” she asks. With a broad smile on her face ness,” she points out. That was her first expansion and the people have changed, not her business or lack of enough knowledge to grow her business as she adds: “If you hear of any such seminar, please of her business. She managed to increase the stock how much she has been earning from it. the major reasons why she has not increased her come and tell me. I’ll be right here.” 13 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Expectant mothers urged to visit clinics …By Gilbert Ochieng Kenya, Marcel Kanyankore, said ma- toilet facilities in the area, under a yankore, adding that they should in the district. jority of expectant mothers in Africa project known as “Open Defaecation observe high standards of hygiene es- Kanyankore was accompanied xpectant mothers in Busia experience maternal problems while Free (ODF) recently. Kanyankore pecially by washing their hands with with the UNICEF Regional Project County have been urged giving birth in the hands of the tradi- urged area residents to desist from re- water and soap. Officer in charge of Western and to visit ante-natal clinics at tional birth attendants, most of who lieving themselves in the bush. She lauded the area leaders and Nyanza, Margaret Gwada, as well as least four times prior to de- are less experienced. “Ensure that you have dug a pit residents for ensuring that the proj- Busia District Public Health Officer, Elivery in order to ensure that the ba- She was speaking at Segero vil- latrine in your homesteads and utilise ect was succeessful, adding that Ojwang’ Simiyu, and his Nambale bies are in good health. lage, Nambale district, Busia County them fully in order to curb cases of UNICEF in collaboration with the counterpart Stephen Anjeche among A representative of UNICEF in after inspecting the construction of diarrohea in the area,” adviced Kan- government will fund more projects others. Health workers tasked in bid to prevent maternal deaths …By Faith Muiruri

enyans can now seek legal redress for preventable maternal deaths. The Chairman National Nurses Association of Kenya(NNAK), Luke KoDamboK and Project Coordinator at the Re- productive Health Rights Alliance (RHRA) says that aggrieved parties can now seek jus- tice in case they feel that their rights have been violated. “If a mother comes to the hospital with pregnancy related complications and care is delayed, the trained health professional will be held accountable as outlined in the Constitu- tion,’’ he adds. He says that access to maternal health care and reproductive health rights as enshrined in the Constitution must be fully safeguarded. The Chairman notes that the rate of mater- nal deaths in the country are worrying with offi- cial figures indicating that approximately 8,000 women die every year due to complications arising from pregnancy and child bearing. Un- safe abortion accounts for 2,600 of these deaths both in public and private health institutions. Dr Joachim Osur who is the Director of Africa Alliance Programs (Ipas) shares similar sentiments. He says that health workers and the govern- ment must now brace themselves for more pub- lic interest litigations in the future if the current state of maternal health remains the same. Dr.Osur says that health workers can no longer deny people contraceptives for cultural or religious reasons so long as it is within their professional scope of practice as provided by an Health workers attend to a patient in hospital. Most women die every year due to Act of Parliament. complications arising from pregnancy and child bearing. Inset: Lucia Buyanza, a senior Rights official with National Nurses Association of Kenya. “It is no longer a privilege to avail sexual and reproductive health services, citizens can seek care include poor roads, shortage of staff, burn- ment lacking minimal sanitary and medical redress if they feel their right to health has been out, long working hours and deep seated cultur- standards. violated,” he notes during the 17TH Midwives al beliefs surrounding pregnancy and childbirth Dr Osur however notes that although PAC Scientific Conference held in Kakamega town. especially in Coast and Western Kenya. is legal in government hospitals, most health The Constitution (Article 43(2)) is explicit The Nurses Association is currently sup- facilities in the country do not have trained per- and provides that “A person shall not be denied porting, the Nursing Council of Kenya to align sonnel to perform the operation. emergency medical treatment.” its codes and scope of practice within the con- Further Article 26(4) of the Constitution stitutional provisions, like other health regula- Limitations provides that when “in the opinion of a trained tory bodies. “Upto 50 percent of health facilities in the health professional, there is need for emergency Lucia Buyanza who is a senior official with country lack the capacity to provide PAC, thus treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in NNAK at the same time says that the Ministry leaving room for quacks and herbalists to take danger or if permitted by any other written law”. of Health is moving towards embracing the charge,” he laments. Dr Osur says that failure to provide services Comprehensive Abortion Care (CAC) which Dr Osur says that in some instances women that are legal will now attract penalties and calls she lays emphasis on preventive measures such have to walk for long distances before they can on health workers to familiarize themselves as abstinence, family life education and provi- access health facilities. with the law to avoid committing violations. sion of other safety options. “This means that majority of these women Dr Osur says that deaths from unsafe abor- “We are not going to wait for women to die from complications that can effectively be its citizens through adequate financing in line tion are preventable and thus the need to face come to hospitals with pregnancy related com- treated in a health system that has adequate with the Abuja Declaration which requires that the problem and solve it. plications. Instead we will reach out to them at skilled personnel, a functioning referral system government commits 15percent of its revenue “The spirit of the new constitution is that the village level and sensitize them on their re- and can respond to obstetric emergencies when to health to help address staff shortages and the 2600 deaths of women undergoing unsafe productive health rights that include the right they occur,” he affirms. provide equipment and supplies in a safe health abortion need to be averted. Unless this touchy to decide freely and responsibly on the number, The doctor is however optimistic that once environment. issue is addressed, the achievement of MDG 5 spacing and timing of their children and to at- the County Governments become operational, Reproductive Health Rights Alliance and other related goals of maternal health will tain the highest standard of sexual and repro- such services will be managed at county level. (RHRA) and IPAS are among organizations that remain elusive.” ductive health,” he adds. “This will help reduce sexual and reproduc- seek to reduce maternal mortality and morbid- “Citizens must also be empowered and fa- Currently Post Abortion Care (PAC) is le- tive health disparities across the country. We ity in Kenya. The two organizations are engaged cilitated to demand for better health services. gal in government facilities but very expensive. will have no reason any more to say Nairobi and in building nurses and midwives capacity on The article on emergency treatment falls in the It is estimated that the government spends Ksh Central provinces have political privileges,” he Constitutional provisions in the reproductive Bill of Rights and Citizens can take action if 18 million annually, in Post Abortion Care giv- intimates. health care. The RHRA has enabled the service leaders fail to,” he adds. en to women with complications arising from Dr Osur says that the government must providers to uphold the reproductive health of Other factors that can impede the quality of unsafe abortion by quacks or in an environ- guarantee access and quality health care to all women holistically. 14 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Female journalism Men elbow out women in media graduates shun newsrooms …By Goodluck Hongo ven as gender advocates in Tanzania push for the increased representation of women in public decision making positions, little focus is being given to the private sector, where gen- derE issues are getting a raw deal. One of the industries in the private sector that con- tinues to suppress the views of women on topical issues that affect them and the country is the media. Studies on how media covers gender issues indicate that the biggest beneficiary of the space and airtime in the me- dia are men. The many ills that women encounter, including gen- der based violence, rape, property disinheritance, and verbal insults, are rarely covered by the media. The Gen- der and Media Progress Study, 2010 by Gender Links shows a paltry 3 percent of the stories in the media are on gender based violence. Women suffering in conflict situ- ations and disempowerment within the media houses are also not focused on. Yet, the media continues to hear men’s views, even on issues that women are better placed to articulate. The GMPS study found that 79 percent of the news sources in the media were men compared to 21 percent female. One in every four people interviewed in the Tanzanian media is a woman, making them the most voiceless of persons. Their views are not included in the news agenda. The study further found that men are four times more likely, seven times more likely, and almost four times more likely to be used as sources in the Tanzani- an print, radio, and television respectively than women sources. Women voices start to appear in the media as they grow old. More than half of those whose views were ex- Female journalists attend a media workshop in Nairobi Kenya. Some of them feel pressed in the Tanzania media were men aged between …By Aziz Kindamba that the industry was gender insensitive and impedes their prospects of advancing to 50 and 64 years, while women views were visible in the managerial level. Pictures: Carolyne Oyugi news when in the ages 35 to 49 years, the study found. new trend is emerging in the When young, media seems not to consider women Tanzania media fraternity with as having valuable views, only using them as images. more women enrolling in media for women refusing to go into the newsroom she says. Tanzanian women aged 20-34 years and 35-49 years training institutions than their are: low remuneration, poor working condi- She says such attitude will easily turn are more than twice as likely to have their images ap- Amale counterparts. At the moment, the tions, long working hours, low job satisfac- off students in a journalism class. How- pear in the newspapers than images of men in the same number of female students in journalism tion, and lack of professional and career de- ever, it is worth noting that not all female age bracket. schools in Tanzania accounts for more than velopment. students who join journalism and mass This does not mean that there are no women who 60 percent of all the students. Working in newsroom means working communication courses have a passion for can be interviewed by the media. In Parliament, for in- The increase in female enrollment can until late hours and unlike men, female the profession. stance, while the Speaker of Parliament is a woman, Ms. partly be attributed to the increase in media journalists have to balance family commit- Some join the courses because they have Anne Makinda, those who are sourced for views in the training schools in the country. ments and job demands. This is a challenge failed to enroll in other courses, or simply same parliament are men. Currently, there are universities of- which leaves most female journalists with because they do not qualify in other courses. According to Gladness Munuo, the GEMSAT Co- fering under-graduate and post graduate one option that is to go for less demanding Studies have proven this to be right. ordinator, the majority of the journalists source for in- courses in journalism, mass communica- jobs or that do not require to work late. Forty six percent of female journalism stu- formation from men either due to ignorance or stereo- tion, public relation and advertising. These Marriage is another reason most female dents surveyed in Tanzania reported that types, especially when they think that good views only are the schools of journalism and mass journalist are quitting jobs in Tanzanian they joined journalism training institutions come from men. communication of the University of Dar media. After getting married, their spouses because they wanted to acquire some quali- Munuo said the media need to know that they are es Salaam, Tumaini University and Saint cannot allow them to work very late. In one fications for further studies. required by the SADC Protocol on Gender and Devel- Augustine University in Tanzania. of the studies in Tanzania, 43 percent of the While 38 percent said, as much as they opment and Tanzania Media Council Gender Code of Besides the three universities there are a female journalists cited male chauvinism in wished to join other courses, they failed to Ethics to give equal space and airtime to both genders. number of colleges which offer certificates, newsrooms as one of the reasons why they make it because they could not meet entry The sad thing is that many of the media and journal- advanced certificates and diplomas in jour- shun active journalism. requirements. ists have no idea about the contents of these two impor- nalism related disciplines. Others feel that working in an industry Thirty five percent of respondents said tant documents. These include: Time school of journal- dominated by men dims their prospects of some students lost interest in journalism Participants at a recent training meeting for jour- ism, Dar es Salaam school, Dar es Salaam advancing to the top managerial level. when they first went for internship in news- nalists held in Dar es Salaam said there is need to have School of Journalism, Royal College of According to Catherine Chima, a lec- rooms - which included chasing stories on a structured capacity building programme on gender is- Tanzania, Media and value Training insti- turer at the Tumaini University, Dar es Sa- the streets, working late and the way some sues for journalists. They said this will increase the num- tute, Arusha journalism Training College of laam campus, some of the lecturers are to editors treated their stories. It made them ber of women sources in the media. Tanzania and Morogoro School of Journal- blame for fewer numbers of women in the hate journalism. But even as the journalists called for increased ism and others. In almost all these media newsroom. Exploitation by publishers was also training for media personnel, they also asked the civil training institutions the number of female “l remember my first day in mass com- cited as another reason why female jour- society to train and encourage women to be ready for students surpasses by far the number of munication class when l was doing my un- nalists shun newsrooms. About 22 percent the media to interview them. male students. dergraduate course, there was this lecturer of respondents said that journalism is a The majority of women, they said, shy away from the For example, of the entire population of who upon learning that l was a teacher demanding and risky profession that en- media when they are approached to offer their views on first, second and third year students at the wondered how on earth l could quit the tails working late and sometimes handling topical issues and ongoing debate in the country. Tumaini University and Dar es Salaam Uni- teaching profession and join journalism,” dangerous stories, which can endanger “Sometimes these very women will refuse to be in- versity, 50 percent are female. one’s life. terviewed and ask you to talk to their male counterparts. Even with this tremendous increase in Discrimination in terms of remunera- Now what is a journalist expected to do in such a cir- the number of female students in schools of “l remember my first day tion was also cited as another problem. Fe- cumstance,” posed a male journalist. journalism, there are very few in the news- in mass communication male journalists are paid less than their male One of the problems raised on the minimal repre- rooms. There seems to be a serious dis- counterparts under the pretext that they sentation of women in media is the lack of skills among connect between the universities and the class when l was doing cannot handle serious stories. journalists on how to deal with women sources. While newsrooms. Or there is something in the my undergraduate course, All these factors combine to discourage the women sources take time before they are comfort- newsroom that is making female graduates female graduates from schools of journalism able to be interviewed, journalists do not give them that avoid them and instead opt for information there was this lecturer who going into the media. It is important to note, space. officers positions in government or private upon learning that l was however, that the legal framework in Tanza- The speed and lack of assurance to the sources that companies. nia calls for gender balance in all spheres and all shall be well, has made many of them view media as In Tanzania, on average, there are 24 a teacher wondered how organizations. something that will destroy and not built them. male senior reporters per organization com- It is therefore incumbent upon owners of on earth l could quit the Munuo says training of journalists on gender issues pared to only six women in the same posi- media houses and media managers to put in and imparting them with skills on how to handle wom- tion. Globally, the trend is equally worrying: teaching profession and join place a conducive environment that attracts en sources is critical if voices of women are to increase less than 20 percent of all professional jour- female journalists. Also, the female journal- in the media. nalists are females. journalism.” ists need to be mentored on how to survive Some of the reasons that have been cited — Catherine Chima in a newsroom environment. 15 Issue Number 27 • June 2012 Bangladesh scores on girls’ schooling …By Naimul Haq PESP money is deposited directly into individual bank accounts every six angladesh continues to score months. The monthly stipend varies good grades in achieving the from Taka 25 (three cents) for a student Millennium Development of class VI to Taka 60 (seven cents) for a Goal (MDG) of gender parity class X student. Bin education by 2015, with the trend of In addition, every candidate ap- more girls than boys attending primary pearing for secondary school certificate school accelerating this year. final examination is entitled to six dol- Early estimates for the accounting lars to cover examination fees. year that ended March show an en- Wherever state-run institutions rolment ratio of 52:48 favouring girls, could not take up the challenge of en- which is consistent with the trend since rolling and retaining girls in school, 2010 when girls overtook boys in pri- NGOs stepped in to help the children mary school enrolment. in the ‘dropped out, left out or missed “Eliminating gender disparity in out’ categories, especially in the remote, primary education by Bangladesh, hilly or wetland areas. recognised worldwide, is the result of “There is tremendous enthusiasm strong political commitment,” A.K.M. among rural children to attend classes, Abdul Awal Mojumder, secretary, min- some riding boats to attend classes,” says istry of primary and mass education Humayun Kabir Selim, director of Palli (MoPME), told IPS. Bikash Kendra, an NGO that operates Hiring female teachers, involv- 10 primary schools in the vast wetland ing non-government organisations areas of Mithamoin in Kishoreganj dis- A girl in Bangladesh displays a placard to affirm ongoing efforts to increase enrolment rates (NGOs), and paying out cash subsidies trict. for the girl child. The campaign is already bearing fruit and more girls have enrolled in are among interventions that helped With NGOs roped in, the net enrol- turn around the situation of a decade ment rate increased from 73.3 percent school this year than boys. Picture: IPS ago when schooling for girls was un- in 1992 to 94 per cent by 2011. Dropout thinkable in parts of Bangladesh be- rates, one of the main concerns, also pur district, 370 km from Dhaka. Shafiqul Islam, head of BRAC’s edu- 2 and MDG 3 by implementing qual- cause of social and religious barriers. declined from 38 per cent in 1994 to Ten-year-old Aireen Akhtar was cation programme, told IPS: “A lot of ity education through advocacy and Since 2000, the MoPME has been about 30 per cent in 2011. ‘left out’ until two years ago when de- children come from poor rural families capacity building. These are part of the implementing a policy of hiring wom- NGO-run schools have good in- termined advocacy persuaded her and are into income-generating activi- eight goals defined by the United Na- en as primary school teachers, and cur- structional material, trained and mo- parents to send her to a nearby NGO- ties. The rigidity and inflexibility of the tions to be met by 2015. rently 90 per cent of the 182,000 teach- tivated teachers and, most importantly, run school in the Charpara village of formal education system had put edu- While MDG 2 demands that all ers in Bangladesh’s 37,500 primary the flexibility to conform to the needs Mithamoin sub-district, about 130 km cation beyond the reach of these chil- children complete a full course of pri- schools are female. Also, 95 percent of and capacities of the community. from Dhaka. dren… flexible school timings are key mary schooling by that year, MDG 3 school management committees are NGO-run primary schools often oper- Says Aireen, a shy but confident pu- to our success.” calls for the elimination of gender dis- headed by women. ate out of one-room houses made avail- pil in a class of 12 girls and seven boys: Since 1985, BRAC has set up parity in primary, secondary and ter- “Classrooms run by female teach- able by grateful local communities. “Every day we learn something new. 38,000 non-formal schools in 470 sub- tiary education. ers created an environment for girls to “The flexibility makes for better at- It’s fun. There is no fixed timetable for districts. Over 1.2 million children (70 There are now 16,539,363 students attend schools,” said Aziz-ur-Rashid, tendance as children do not have to walk classes and there is no homework.” per cent of them girls) attend BRAC studying in 81,000 primary schools in headmaster of a primary school in distances as is the case with many state- There are several non-formal pri- schools, forming the largest private Bangladesh, including those run by Niphamari district. “The retention rate run primary schools,” said Waheeda mary education (NFPE) systems in school chain in the world. NGOs, communities and madrassas increased remarkably as a result.” Mahmud, a primary school teacher with Bangladesh but the one devised by Rasheda K. Choudhury, executive (religious schools). Stefan Priesner, The primary education stipend a local NGO in the Nachol sub-district the Bangladesh Rural Advancement director of the Campaign for Popular country director of United Nations De- project (PESP), funded by the World in Chaipainawabganj district. Committee (BRAC), reputed to be the Education (CAMPE), told IPS: “Ban- velopment Programme in Bangladesh, Bank, the Asian Development Bank “Parents feel safer when the school world’s biggest NGO, is popular with gladesh’s achievements in promoting told IPS: “In general, progress has been and the Norwegian government, was is located around the corner. They also people involved in primary education. gender equality are largely due to initia- sound. Indeed, on many MDGs, in- aimed at increasing enrolment, atten- consider female teachers to have more BRAC began implementing NFPE tives launched by NGOs which believe cluding expanding education, Bangla- dance, retention and performance of patience,” said Samsun Nahar Lina, in 1985 with its one-classroom schools in flexible academic calendars.” desh has either exceeded or is well on primary school-aged children from who heads ‘Shakkor’ an NGO that runs and selecting and training female CAMPE, a coalition of more than track to achieve the goal by 2015.” poor families. several free primary schools in Rang- teachers from the local community. 1,300 NGOs, works to achieve MDG Courtesy of IPS Sexual abuse keeps girls out of school …By Catherine Wilson There were 7,127 male and 5,872 fe- based in the capital of Port Moresby, male students in primary level grade were already mothers. exual harassment of school-go- three in 2009. In grade 12, the number Cultural and social barriers to ing girls is one factor that may of female students, 180, was less than education include the burden placed prevent Papua New Guinea half the male enrolment of 494. In the on girls of family care, domestic re- from achieving the Millennium highlands, where most people practice sponsibilities and customary mar- SDevelopment Goal (MDG) of elimi- subsistence agriculture and the average riage, which can occur from 12 years. nating gender disparity in education cash income is low, girls can be partic- The International Centre for Research by 2015. ularly disadvantaged, especially if there on Women (ICRW) estimates that a Papua New Guinea’s new free are no local schools. “The (poor) state third of girls in the developing world education policy has dramatically in- of school infrastructure, particularly in are married before 18 years and begin creased school enrolment, and a gross rural areas, is a significant hindrance child-bearing before 20 years. enrolment rate of 80 per cent is within to the achievement of equitable edu- The education department’s gen- reach by 2015. However, the third of cation outcomes,” said Arnold Kukari, der equity strategic plan (2009-2014) the United Nations’ eight MDGs that leader of the universal basic education stresses the need to develop gender pertains to girls’ education remains research programme at the National mainstreaming activities in schools and elusive. While Papua New Guinea’s Research Institute. train all staff in gender sensitisation constitution promotes equal participa- According to Betty Hinamunimo, and sexual violence awareness. Philip tion by men and women in national field officer with Care International, a Afuti, president of the Papua New also come back.” boy turn up at the school to beat up development, political, cultural, social non-government organisation (NGO) Guinea teachers’ association, Eastern But there is a limit to the expansion the students who have been harassing and infrastructural factors inhibit re- which works in partnership with the Highlands, and head teacher of North of the education system. their child,” Wainetti said. tention of girls within the school sys- education department, factors imped- Goroka Primary School, is commit- “The government has taken a bold The ICRW advocates that educated tem, reflecting a wider lack of women ing girls’ education included “distance ted to gender equality. Eighty per cent step to abolish school fees at the basic girls ‘who become healthy, productive in the formal workforce, governance and cultural and social barriers, such of teachers are female, while the school education level, thus addressing a criti- and empowered adults are a force for and decision-making roles. as the fear families have in sending has 630 male and 523 female students. cal access barrier, enabling more chil- positive social, economic and political The United Nations Development girls to urban centres where their safe- “We want to see the girls have an dren to be enrolled and complete a full change. Programme rates the nation at 153 ty is not guaranteed”. equal opportunity as boys in the edu- cycle of education,” Kukari explained. Betty Hinamunimo agrees that, in out of 187 countries, with a gender in- Girls in Papua New Guinea are at cation system,” Afuti declared. “They He added: “However at this juncture, rural communities, women working as equality index of 0.674. The education high risk of domestic and sexual vio- should be able to build this nation in the education system does not have the literacy teachers are being valued more department reports the average edu- lence, sexual harassment in schools, partnership. We want to see that. PNG absorptive capacity to accommodate in the community and respected, and cational attainment of girls is grade 10 commercial exploitation and HIV, will only develop when both males and all children wanting to enrol and to as role models they are contributing to and, for boys, grade 12, the final year of which pose serious threats to their females are educated.” provide a sufficient number of teachers changes in community attitudes and secondary school. health and education. This year, the national government to ensure that children are provided greater support for educating daugh- However, the nation’s cultural and Ume Wainetti at the Family Sexual rolled out a free and subsidised edu- with a quality education as well.” ters. “There is no doubt that Papua social diversity means there is geo- Violence Action Centre (FSVAC) said: cation policy, which has impacted on There are also inadequate mecha- New Guinea’s health, economic and graphical variance. “When FSVAC conducted the study female enrolment. Students attending nisms of support for school-going girls social indicators will improve if there In the Autonomous Region of on violence against children in 2005, elementary prep to grade 10 at second- suffering from sexual abuse. “If there are more educated and professionally Bougainville, where matrilineal societ- young girls in rural schools said they ary school do not have to pay tuition are avenues for redress to such offenc- qualified women,” Kukari concurred. ies are prevalent, there are 16,821 male get harassed by teachers and by male fees while those in grades 11 and 12 es, these are not made known to stu- “They would make a very big differ- and 16,120 female students in schools. students, especially when they are go- pay only 25 percent of fees. dents and parents,” Wainetti said. ence in government, business, the pri- In the Eastern Highlands Province, the ing to school or going home.” “We have increased the numbers “It is unfortunate that many teach- vate sector, public service and many literacy rate for males is 51 per cent Wainetti said many of the young of females enrolling,” Afuti verified. ers will not do anything about these other areas.” compared to 36.5 per cent for females. girls interviewed by FSVAC, an NGO “Some who left a few years ago have abuses until the parents of the girl or Courtesy of IPS 16 Issue Number 23 • November 2011 Tuvuke Initiative commits to unite communities ahead of polls …By HENRY OWINO

he post elections violence of 2007-2008 caught many Kenyans unawares. While competing factions ex- pressedT interest for their political party, no one was prepared for the violence that saw hundreds killed and thousands displaced from their homes. As the country prepares for the next general elections, many Kenyans would not like to see a repeat of 2007. This is why civil society organizations have come together to advocate for peace through the Tuvuke –Initiative. The Tuvuke –Initiative has com- mitted itself to cultivate a culture of unity and tranquillity during these political campaigns and after the forth- coming general elections in Kenya. The Initiative’s major concern is based on peace and fair electoral pro- cess in Kenya. This is a country-wide project with a special focus on areas prone to violence and with poor wom- en’s participation in electoral process. Tuvuke Initiative is being spear- headed by 17 civil society organisations and works with other key stakeholders that include the public, women, voters, Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, political parties, law en- forcement agencies and county gover- nance structures. The objective is to enhance peace- Attentive: participants keenly following the speakers during the launch ful elections and the culture of tolerance of the Tuvuke Initiative in Nairobi. Below: Chief Justice Willy Mutunga through the strengthening and capacity during the launch. Pictures: KenyanWoman Correspondent building of networks at community, re- gional national and the global level. With the slogan K-PEACE, the overall objective is to promote peace- Commission (IEBC) and other consti- tional values. ful, fair and democratic electoral pro- tutional Commissions in the process. The current Constitution provides cess in Kenya by fostering a culture “We will not leave out international an important opportunity for women of peace, entrenching broad political partners, civil society organisations, to be actively engage in leadership at participation and advocating for ac- faith based organisations and the pri- the county and national levels. Women ceptance and diversity. vate sector in the realisation of the Ini- are key to social transformation and Speaking during the official launch tiative’s mission,” she noted. Tuvuke has promised to encourage of the Tuvuke- Initiative at a hotel in Riria anticipated obstacles ahead of women to join political parties of their Nairobi, Chief Justice Dr Willy Mutun- the Initiative’s programmes but hoped choice, register as voters and vote for ga asked Kenyans to take individual and to challenge patriarchy and its linkages leaders who will protect their rights. collectively responsibility in promoting to elections and leadership through Discrimination against women peace before and after the elections. civic education and male involvement stems from practices in the communi- “The campaign is an alternative in support of women. ties and not necessarily the State. It is, strategy of preaching peace in hot-spot “Tuvuke is a call on Kenyans to take therefore, fundamental that everyone areas and should not be taken for grant- individual and collective responsibil- respects women’s rights and the State ed,” noted Mutunga. ity in ensuring that the nation makes ensures that the constitutional rights of The Chief Justice regretted the past, a peaceful transition during the forth- women are not violated. active participants in the process. This “NIMEJIANDIKISHA . . . because especially the sad moments of Kenya’s coming elections,” Riria emphasised. It is against this backdrop that Tu- is not an empty slogan, it is a conscious we cannot afford to miss the opportu- history when courts failed to uphold She elaborated that Tuvuke-Initia- vuke undertakes public education on and deep-rooted statement of commit- nity of making a democratic transition the rule of law to defend the rights of tive will address land rights and past in- the rights of women to every county to ment to the transformation of our na- and regaining our dignity as guaranteed Kenyans. justices by challenging the link between create awareness. Because of the patri- tion,’’ observed Riria. by the Constitution,” explained Riria. “This is the main reason we fought land and electoral process, increase archal nature of the society, it is impera- The Initiative is out to equip Ke- Her sentiments were echoed by for a new Constitution and now we are knowledge among Kenyans about their tive that men are also involved in the nyans with skills so that they can be- Prof Kimani Njogu, a member of the reforming the Judiciary and we must rights as voters and encourage youth to articulation of the women’s rights. come agents of social change by enhanc- Tuvuke-Initiative Secretariat who said; succeed in creating an institution of jus- register and vote, create platforms for Tuvuke are now engaging men ing justice and peace and increasing “We want to ensure that the campaign tice that can secure our democracy and positive transformation of youth by en- countrywide in dialogue so that they inter-ethnic and inter-religious toler- sustains progress with constitutional fulfil its rich promise,” noted Mutunga. couraging youth to harness new strate- become advocates for the rights of ance. By challenging clanism, ethnicism reforms and promotes new democracy The Chief Justice urged Kenyans gies, tools and platforms in the promo- women to participate fully in the forth- and religious bigotry, it contributes in in Kenya.” to stop bribing judges as he acknowl- tion of national values. coming electoral process. the development of an inclusive nation. Kimani declared that the Initiative edged the practice was rife within the In addition, Riria pointed out that “Our message is simple, Tuvuke! A Riria reiterated that by making a in a few months would have a warning Judiciary. the initiative will ensure that women’s better Kenya for all. Through inclusive peaceful transition in the next general system for those who go against peace According to Jennifer Riria, chair- gains are safeguarded within the Con- politics and active engagement of citi- elections, Kenya will become a better for the country. “Once the campaign person Tuvuke-Initiative in attempting stitution by promoting participation zens, we can all contribute in creating nation for all citizens irrespective of hits the ground, warning posters will be to achieve the objectives, the Initiative and involvement of women as voters a nation where all Kenyans participate their ethnic base, geographical loca- placed in various places,” said Kimani. will not work in isolation. and leaders, engage faith-based organ- fully in determining the nation’s des- tion or socio-economic status. He noted that this will reinforce Riria promised to engage the gov- isations to mobilize constituencies for tiny,” stated Riria. However, she cautioned that a bet- proactive activities to freeze any pre- ernment, the Constitution Implemen- overall active participation in the elec- “We are calling on Kenyans to ar- ter Kenya for all will only become pos- planned or spontaneous violence as a tation Commission (CIC), the National toral process and address stereotypes, ticulate the slogan NIMEJIANDIKI- sible if every individual and the citi- reaction to the electoral process or the Cohesion and Integration (NCIC), change perceptions about communi- SHA….philosophy towards free, fair zens collectively take responsibility for elections results. the Independent Electoral Boundaries ties as well as entrench peace and na- and peaceful elections by becoming the country

Executive Director: Rosemary Okello Editorial Director: Arthur Okwemba Managing Editor: Jane Godia Sub-Editors: Duncan Mboyah and Faith Muiruri Contributors: Carolyne Oyugi, Faith Muiruri, Kabia Matega, Ryan Mathenge, Mark Landler , John H.Cushman Jr., Noor Shija, Robert Wanjala, The Kenyan Woman is a publication of African Aggrey Buchunju, Henry Owino, Henry Kahara, Henry Neondo, Sally Woman and Child Feature Service Nyakanyanga, Steve Mucheru, Karani Kelvin, GILBERT OCHIENG, Aziz This paper is produced with support from HIVOS Kindamba, Naimul Haq, Catherine Wilson. E-mail: [email protected] www.awcfs.org Design & layout: Noel Lumbama (Noel Creative Media Ltd)