Memory Banda: A Warrior’s Cry Against Child Marriage | TED

Translator: Louise Joanne Reviewer: Joachim Mangilima

I'll begin today

Nitaanza leo

by sharing a poem

kwa kuigawana shairi

written by my friend from Malawi,

iliyoandikiwa na rafiki yangu mmalawi,

Eileen Piri.

Eileen Piri.

Eileen is only 13 years old,

Eileen ana miaka 13 tu,

but when we were going through the collection of poetry that we wrote,

lakini tulipoangalia diwani ya ushairi tuliyoandika,

I found her poem so interesting,

Niliona shairi yake ilinivuta sana,

so motivating.

ilitia motisha sana.

So I'll read it to you.

Basi nitakusomeeni.

She entitled her poem "I'll Marry When I Want."

Ameiita shairi yake "Nitaolewa ninapotaka"

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

"I'll marry when I want.

"Nitaolewa ninapotaka.

My mother can't force me to marry.

Mama yangu hatonilazimisha kuolewa.

My father cannot force me to marry.

Baba yangu hatonilazimisha kuolewa.

My uncle, my aunt,

Mjomba, Shangazi,

my brother or sister,

Kaka au dada,

cannot force me to marry.

Hawawezi kunilazimisha.

No one in the world

Hakuna mtu duniani

can force me to marry.

awezaye kunilazimisha kuolewa.

I'll marry when I want.

Nitaolewa ninapotaka.

Even if you beat me,

Hata ukinipiga,

even if you chase me away,

hata ukinifukuza

even if you do anything bad to me,

hata ukinifanya vibaya,

I'll marry when I want.

Nitaolewa ninapotaka.

I'll marry when I want,

Nitaolewa ninapotaka,

but not before I am well educated,

lakini sio kabla sijapata elimu nzuri

and not before I am all grown up.

na sio kabla sijakua mtu mzima

I'll marry when I want."

Nitaolewa ninapotaka."

This poem might seem odd,

Shairi inaonekana isiyo ya kawaida

written by a 13-year-old girl,

kuandikwa na msichana wa miaka 13,

but where I and Eileen come from,

lakini tunapotoka mimi na Eileen,

this poem, which I have just read to you,

shairi hiyo, niliyoikusomeeni,

is a warrior's cry.

ni sauti ya shujaa.

I am from Malawi.

Ninatoka Malawi.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries,

Malawi ni nchi ya maskini,

very poor,

maskini sana,

where gender equality is questionable.

ambapo usawa wa kijinsi sio hakika.

Growing up in that country,

Kukua katika nchi ile,

I couldn't make my own choices in life.

Sikuweza kujichagulia katika maisha.

I couldn't even explore

Sikuweza hata kuzichungua

personal opportunities in life.

nafasi za kibinafsi katika maisha yangu.

I will tell you a story

Nitakuambieni hadithi

of two different girls,

ya wasichana wawili tofauti,

two beautiful girls.

wasichana wawili warembo.

These girls grew up

Hawa wasichana walikua

under the same roof.

chini ya paa moja.

They were eating the same food.

Walikula chakula sawa sawa.

Sometimes, they would share clothes,

Wakati wengine, wangezigawana nguo,

and even shoes.

na hata viatu.

But their lives ended up differently,

Lakini maisha zao ziliishia tofauti,

in two different paths.

kwa njia mbili tofauti.

The other girl is my little sister.

Yule msichana mwengine ni dada yangu mdogo.

My little sister was only 11 years old

Dada yangu alikuwa na miaka 11

when she got pregnant.

alipopata mimba.

It's a hurtful thing.

Ni jambo la kuumiza.

Not only did it hurt her, even me.

Si kama ilimwumiza pekee, lakini mimi pia.

I was going through a hard time as well.

Nilikuwa na wakati wa tafrani pia.

As it is in my culture,

Kwa sasa katika utamaduni wangu,

once you reach puberty stage,

ukifika ubalehe,

you are supposed to go to initiation camps.

inabidi uende makambi ya kuanzisha.

In these initiation camps,

Katika makambi haya,

you are taught how to sexually please a man.

unafundishwa vipi umfurahishe mwanamume kwa kijinsia.

There is this special day,

Kuna siku maalum,

which they call "Very Special Day"

wanayoiita "Siku maalum sana"

where a man who is hired by the community

ambapo mwanamume anaajiriwa na jamii

comes to the camp

anakuja kambini

and sleeps with the little girls.

na anafanya mapenzi na watoto wadogo.

Imagine the trauma that these young girls

Wazeni kiwewe wasichana hawa

go through every day.

wanachokisikia kila siku.

Most girls end up pregnant.

Wasichana wengi wanapata mimba.

They even contract HIV and AIDS

Na hata wanashikwa na ukimwi

and other sexually transmitted diseases.

na magonjwa mengine ya zinaa.

For my little sister, she ended up being pregnant.

Kwa dadangu mdogo, alipata mimba.

Today, she's only 16 years old

Leo, ana miaka 16

and she has three children.

na ana watoto watatu.

Her first marriage did not survive,

Ndoa yake ya kwanza haijaishi,

nor did her second marriage.

wala ndoa yake ya pili.

On the other side, there is this girl.

Kwa upande wengine, kuna msichana huyo.

She's amazing.

Anashangaza.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

(Applause)

(Makofi)

I call her amazing because she is.

Nasema anashangaza kwa sababu ni kweli.

She's very fabulous.

Ni zaidi ya mzuri.

That girl is me. (Laughter)

Msichana yule ni mimi. (Kicheko)

When I was 13 years old,

Nilipokuwa na miaka 13,

I was told, you are grown up,

Niliambiwa, umekua mzima,

you have now reached of age,

sasa umebalehe,

you're supposed to go to the initiation camp.

inadhaniwa uende kambi la kuanzisha.

I was like, "What?

Nilisema, "Nini?

I'm not going to go to the initiation camps."

Siendi kwa yale makambi ya kuanzisha."

You know what the women said to me?

Unajua nini mwanamke yule aliniambia?

"You are a stupid girl. Stubborn.

"Wewe ni mpumbavu. Mkaidi.

You do not respect the traditions of our society, of our community."

Huziheshimu desturi za jamii yetu, za jumuia yetu."

I said no because I knew where I was going.

Nilikataa kwa sababu nilijua wapi nilipokwenda.

I knew what I wanted in life.

Nilijua nilivyotaka katika maisha yangu.

I had a lot of dreams as a young girl.

Nilikuwa na matumaini mengi nilipokuwa mtoto.

I wanted to get well educated,

Nilitaka kupata elimu nzuri

to find a decent job in the future.

Kutafuta kazi nzuri wakati wa badae.

I was imagining myself as a lawyer,

Nilikuwa najifikiria kama mwanasheria,

seated on that big chair.

kukaa katika kiti kile kikubwa.

Those were the imaginations that

Yale yalikuwa mawazo

were going through my mind every day.

yaliokuwa katika akili yangu kila siku.

And I knew that one day,

Na nilijua kwamba siku moja

I would contribute something, a little something to my community.

Ningesaidia kupa kitu, kitu kidogo kwa jumuia yangu.

But every day after refusing,

Lakini kila siku baada ya kukataa,

women would tell me,

wanawake wangeniambia,

"Look at you, you're all grown up. Your little sister has a baby.

"Jitazama, umekua mtu mzima. Dadako mdogo amepata mtoto.

What about you?"

Vipi wewe?"

That was the music that I was hearing every day,

Ile ilikuwa muziki niliyoisikia kila siku,

and that is the music that girls hear every day

na ile ni muziki wasichana wanayoisikia kila siku

when they don't do something that the community needs them to do.

wasipolifanya jambo ambalo jumuia inawatakia wafanye.

When I compared the two stories between me and my sister,

Nilipozilinganisha hadithi hizo mbili kati ya mimi na dadangu,

I said, "Why can't I do something?

Nilisema, "Mbona nisiweze kufanya kitu?"

Why can't I change something that has happened for a long time

Kwa nini nisiweze kubadilisha jambo lililotokea kwa muda mrefu

in our community?"

katika jamii yetu?"

That was when I called other girls

Wakati ule niliwaita wasichana wengine

just like my sister, who have children,

kama dadangu, ambao wamepata watoto,

who have been in class but they have forgotten how to read and write.

waliokwenda darasani lakini wamesahau kusoma na kuandika.

I said, "Come on, we can remind each other

Nilisema "Njoo, tukumbushane

how to read and write again,

je kusoma na kuandika tena,

how to hold the pen, how to read, to hold the book."

kuikamata kalamu vipi, kusomaje, kuzuia kitabu."

It was a great time I had with them.

Ilikuwa wakati nzuri sana nao.

Nor did I just learn a little about them,

Sio kwamba nilifundishwa kidogo kuhusu wale,

but they were able to tell me their personal stories,

lakini pia waliweza kuniambia hadithi zao za kibinafsi,

what they were facing every day

waliyokabiliana kila siku

as young mothers.

kama mama wadogo.

That was when I was like,

Wakati ule nilidhani,

'Why can't we take all these things that are happening to us

"Kwa nini tusiweze kuangalia mambo hayo yanayotuathiri

and present them and tell our mothers, our traditional leaders,

na kuyaonesha na kuwaambia mama zao, viongozi wetu wa jadi,

that these are the wrong things?"

kwamba mambo hayo ni maovu?"

It was a scary thing to do,

Ilikuwa jambo la hofu,

because these traditional leaders,

kwa sababu viongozi hawa wa jadi,

they are already accustomed to the things

wameshayazoea mambo

that have been there for ages.

yaliyokuwepo kwa muda mrefu.

A hard thing to change,

Ni jambo ambalo ni ngumu kubadilisha,

but a good thing to try.

lakini nzuri kujitahidi.

So we tried.

Kwa hiyo tulijitahidi.

It was very hard, but we pushed.

Ilikuwa ngumu sana, lakini tulivumulia.

And I'm here to say that in my community,

Na mimi nipo kwa kusema kwamba katika jumuia yangu,

it was the first community after girls

ilikuwa jumuia ya kwanza baada ya wasichana

pushed so hard to our traditional leader,

walijitahidi sana kumthibitishia kiongozi wa jadi wetu,

and our leader stood up for us and said no girl has to be married

na kiongozi wetu alitutetea na akasema hakuna msichana alazimishwaye kuolewa

before the age of 18.

kabla hajafika miaka 18.

(Applause)

(Makofi)

In my community,

Katika jumuia yangu

that was the first time a community,

Ilikuwa mara ya kwanza kwa jumuia,

they had to call the bylaws,

ilibidi watazame sheria ndogo,

the first bylaw that protected girls

ya kwanza iliyowalinda wasichana

in our community.

katika jumuia yetu.

We did not stop there.

Hatukumaliza na hivyo.

We forged ahead.

Tuliendelea.

We were determined to fight for girls not just in my community,

Tulikusudia kuwapigania wasichana sio katika jamii yangu tu

but even in other communities.

lakini kwenye jamii nyingine.

When the child marriage bill was being presented in February,

Wakati muswada wa ndoa za watoto iliwasilishwa mwezi wa pili

we were there at the Parliament house.

tulikuwepo kwenye mahakama ya bunge.

Every day, when the members of Parliament were entering,

Kila siku, wakati wabunge walipoingia,

we were telling them, "Would you please support the bill?"

tulikuwa tukiwaambia, "Tafadhali uitegemee muswada hii?"

And we don't have much technology like here,

Na hatuna teknolojia nyingi kama huku,

but we have our small phones.

lakini tunazo simu zetu ndogo.

So we said, "Why can't we get their numbers and text them?"

Kwa hiyo tulisema, "Mbona tusiweze kupata namba zao na kuwatumia text?"

So we did that. It was a good thing.

Kwa hiyo tulifanya hivyo. Na ilikuwa jambo zuri

(Applause)

(Makofi)

So when the bill passed, we texted them back,

Kwa hiyo muswada ilipokubalika, tuliwajibia na text,

"Thank you for supporting the bill."

"Asante kwa kutegemea muswada."

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

And when the bill was signed by the president,

Na muswada iliposajilika na Rais,

making it into law, it was a plus.

kwa kuifanya kuwa sheria, ilikuwa ziada.

Now, in Malawi, 18 is the legal marriage age, from 15 to 18.

Sasa, katika Malawi, miaka 18 ni umri wa kisheria kuolewa, kutoka 15 hadi 18.

(Applause)

(Makofi)

It's a good thing to know that the bill passed,

Ni jambo zuri kulijua kwamba muswada imakubalika,

but let me tell you this:

lakini nikuambieni:

There are countries where 18 is the legal marriage age,

Kuna nchi ambako miaka 18 ni umri wa kisheria kuolewa,

but don't we hear cries of women and girls every day?

lakini sio tunasikia kilio za wanawake na wasichana kila siku?

Every day, girls' lives are being wasted away.

Kila siku, maisha ya wasichana yanashuka thamani.

This is high time for leaders to honor their commitment.

Ni wakati muhimu kwa viongozi waiheshimu ahadi yao.

In honoring this commitment,

Kwa kuiheshimu ahadi hiyo,

it means keeping girls' issues at heart every time.

inamaanisha kuyaweka maswala ya wasichana moyoni kila mara.

We don't have to be subjected as second,

Tusitiishiwe kama duni,

but they have to know that women, as we are in this room,

lakini wajue kwamba wanawake, kama sisi chumbani humu,

we are not just women, we are not just girls,

sisi sio wanawake tu, sisi sio wasichana tu,

we are extraordinary.

sisi ni wa ajabu.

We can do more.

Tunaweza kufanya zaidi.

And another thing for Malawi,

Na kitu chengine kwa Malawi,

and not just Malawi but other countries:

na si kwa Malawi pekee lakini nchi nyingine pia:

The laws which are there,

Sheria zinazowepo,

you know how a law is not a law until it is enforced?

mnajua sheria sio sheria mpaka inatekeleza?

The law which has just recently passed

Sheria iliyokubalika juzi

and the laws that in other countries have been there,

na sheria ambazo katika nchi nyingine zimekuwepo,

they need to be publicized at the local level,

zinahitajika kutangazwa kwa njia za kienyeji,

at the community level,

katika jamii,

where girls' issues are very striking.

ambako maswala ya wasichana yako wazi.

Girls face issues, difficult issues, at the community level every day.

Wasichana wanakabiliana na maswala, maswala magumu, katika jamii zao kila siku.

So if these young girls know that there are laws that protect them,

Kwa hiyo ikiwa wajue kwamba kuna sheria ziwalindazo,

they will be able to stand up and defend themselves

wataweza kusimama na kujilinda

because they will know that there is a law that protects them.

kwa sababu watajua kwamba kuna sheria ziwalindazo.

And another thing I would say is that

Na kitu chengine nisemacho ni kwamba

girls' voices and women's voices

sauti za wasichana na wanawake

are beautiful, they are there,

ni nzuri sana, na zipo,

but we cannot do this alone.

lakini hatuwezi kufanya peke yetu.

Male advocates, they have to jump in,

watetezi wa kiume, washirikiana,

to step in and work together.

wajihusishe na tufanye kazi pamoja.

It's a collective work.

ni kazi ya umoja.

What we need is what girls elsewhere need:

Tunavyohitaji ni vile vihitajikavyo na wasichana wa sehemu zote:

good education, and above all, not to marry whilst 11.

elimu nzuri, na juu ya yote, ni kutoolewa wakiwa na miaka 11.

And furthermore,

Na zaidi ya hayo,

I know that together,

Najua kwamba pamoja,

we can transform the legal,

tunaweza kubadilisha mifumo ya kisheria,

the cultural and political framework

kiutamaduni na kisiasa

that denies girls of their rights.

inayozikanusha haki za wasichana.

I am standing here today

Nasimama hapa leo

and declaring that we can end child marriage in a generation.

na kutangaza kwamba tunaweza kuisha ndoa za watoto katika kizazi kimoja.

This is the moment

Sasa ni wakati

where a girl and a girl, and millions of girls worldwide,

ambapo msichana na msichana, na millioni za wasichana duniani,

will be able to say,

wataweza kusema,

"I will marry when I want."

"Nitolewa ninapotaka."

(Applause)

(Makofi)

Thank you. (Applause)

Asante. (Makofi)