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by Mohamed Mukhtar
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
One afternoon in late March my friend Ahmed and I were sitting relaxing in a restaurant in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. Ahmed, who lives in Kampala, was drinking a cup of tea while telling me amusing stories of the city. As I was a visitor, I was listening attentively. Suddenly a young Somali woman approached and interrupted our conversation. She was slim and attractive but there was something about her appearance that made us realize that life was not easy for her. She spoke to us directly in a low, gentle voice,
“Could you help me? I want to start my life all over again.”
It is not unusual to see women and young girls begging but the second part of her remark caught my attention and I asked myself, “What can she mean when she says she wants to start her life all over again?” She couldn’t have been more than 20 years old and surely most of her life was in front of her.
“How old are you?” I asked.
“17 years,” said the woman.
“What do you mean you want to restart your life all over again, if you are just 17 years old?” I enquired.
“I am just 17 years but I have already lived through what many women live through in a lifetime. I have been married then divorced and married again; I am a mother and now a widow.” She said calmly.
“What happened,” I remarked inquisitively.
“I got married when I was fifteen but my family did not approve of my husband. After few months of struggle, my marriage fell apart. I got married again and soon became pregnant. Unfortunately, my husband was recently killed in Mogadishu and I left Mogadishu and ended up here. I cannot read and write as I have never been to school. I cannot work as I have a young baby to look after. But somehow, somewhere, I have to restart my life all over again.” She replied making an effort to sound calm and determined.
I felt a sense of despair.
“What is your name?” asked Ahmed.
“Amina” came back the reply.
Amina tried to keep the weariness and emotion out of her voice but her poignant story reflects Somalia’s prolonged crisis. Over the last eighteen years, Somalia has been producing children who have no chance of any schooling; boys who earn their bread through the barrel of their guns, girls who see early marriage as a way to relieve their economic and social burdens. Parents living in poverty and insecurity have to face difficult choices for their children.
Amina was courageously searching for a way to a new life. How many more Aminas are there in Somalia and how many more will join Amina as this conflict continues mercilessly?
Mohamed Mukhtar
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