Examing the Cultural Practice of Ukuthwala and Its Impact on the Rights of the Child

E.E Evans-Pritchard once said, “I have often been asked whether, when I was among the Azande, I got to accept their ideas about witchcraft. I suppose you can say I accepted them. I had no choice. In my own culture, I rejected Azande notions of witchcraft. In their culture, I accepted them. In a kind of way, I believed them.” In the documentary Sir Edward Evans-Pritchard: Strange Beliefs, the research of British social anthropologist E.E. Evans-Pritchard on the Zande tribe of central Africa and the Nuer tribe of Sudan is highlighted. As a good anthropologist should, Evans-Pritchard immersed himself in his fieldwork and attempted to look at foreign cultural values from the perspective of the culture he was observing.

The treatment of women and children has changed over time all across the world. In the Ibo tribe of Nigeria, the changes have been drastic. Although women and children were mistreated in the traditional Igbo culture, they have gained many rights and better treatment with the spread western cultures and advancement of technology.

Gender inequality has maintained the suppression of women worldwide and unfortunately has impacted third world countries with the greatest magnitude. Everyday in these countries there are countless occurrences of physical, emotional, and psychological abuse that must be acknowledged as a primary concern for the world to help overcome. It is however important to recognize specific cultural and religious practices of gender hierarchy that are accepted by women in these countries. While keeping this in mind it is of paramount importance to keep sight of the consequences of abusing these cultural practices at the expense of women’s liberation and development.

“Remotely Global: Village Modernity in West Africa” by Charles Piot is a book based on the lives of the people of the remote village called Kabre located in Northern Togo. The author discusses the “vernacular modernity” of the people of Kabre village that has been influenced by a long tradition of encounters with outsiders that included the colonialists. The author provides an in-depth analysis with ethnographic details about the Kabre people as the author discusses a wide range of their culture and history that included houses and the structure of homestead, gender ideology, ritual like initiations, exchange system, and social relations (Piot 178).

Mahabouba was affected by gender discrimination because she was female. Females are not treated as equals in these types of countries. Mahabouba is from Western Ethiopia, a country that is poor and has been ravaged time again by famine, genocide, and war. “Only a fourth of all children regularly go to school. School is free, but schoolbooks, school supplies and school clothes are not.”(Abagond, 2009)Mahabouba’s aunt did not educate her and instead treated her like a servant. “In the Ethiopian countryside, if a young man has an eye on a girl but doesn’t have a bride price, or if he doubts the girl’s family will accept him, then he and several friends kidnap, the girl, and he rapes her.” (Kristof, Nicholas D and WuDunn, Sheryl, 2009)This improves his bargaining position because he has ruined her and she will find it difficult to marry anyone else.

Even though, Kristof realizes the complexity of the problems, the authors still develop on practical ways to aid women. The authors stress the involvement of individuals in human rights matters. To emphasize their point, Kristof interviews a light-skinned black girl from Ethiopia, Woineshet. Woineshet tells the authors that she lived in a rural area where if a young man wants to marry certain girl, but does not have the “bride price” at hand, or the family won’t accept him, he could just kidnap the girl, and then rape her – it is the tradition, says Woineshet. Because women are raped, they will have difficulty marrying anyone else. To make matters worse, Ethiopian law

“Government statistics in South Sudan show half the girls there aged 15 to 19 are married, with some brides as young as 12 years old.” Many girls in countries such as South Sudan and Trinidad are married off at a young age and later face abuse from their husbands. Many of these cases go unnoticed, unpunished and numerous girls die because of birth complications. Zora Neale Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, emphasizes the issue of marriage rights and household equality that affect real people in countries such as the United States, South Sudan and Trinidad.

The perception that men in undeveloped parts of Africa have with regards to birth control and the female anatomy is also a reason for how come female genital mutilation occurs (Schmöker Annika, Kyungu Nkulu Kalengayi Faustine). Not only is there a stigma attached to women using different pharmaceutical methods of birth control, there is also a preconceived notion attached to partners using latex protective barriers. According to a study conducted by the Journal of Southern African Studies, an anonymous male who lives in a rural part of Africa, stated that “I trust my wife and she trusts me therefore I will not use a condom with her. Condoms indicate that we do not trust each other” (Maharaj, Pranitha, 254). Another example of how male dominance and definitive gender roles work against women in many parts of Africa is that it is often the mans jurisdiction when it comes to deciding what topics are to be conversed, and what is not acceptable to talk about. This can be the cause for very little communication between the husband and wife with regards to intercourse and family planning (Maharaj, Pranitha, 254). If a woman decides to speak up and discuss the topic with her husband, she may risk being physically abused for failing to comply with him. In order to correct this misconception, women must be empowered in order to feel confident enough

In many urban daaras in Senegal, it's the children who support for the marabout. While talibés reside in complete deprivation, marabouts in most daaras demand sizeable daily sums from dozens of children in their care, through which some marabouts get pleasure from relative wealth. In thousands of cases where the marabout transports or receives talibés for the goal of exploitation, the

Honour Killing’ is a cultural crime or a cultural tradition prevalent amongst non-Caucasian Societies which perceive women as bearers of family honour. 'Honour Killing ' of women can be defined as acts of murder in which 'a woman is killed for her actual or perceived immoral behavior. Indian cultures are very deep rooted. An honour killing (also called a customary killing) is the murder of a (typically female) family or clan member by one or more fellow (mostly male) family members, in which the perpetrators (and potentially the wider community) believe the victim to have brought dishonour upon the family, clan, or community. Many young people in India have been done to death every year owing to ‘Honour Killings.’ It is because so called honour killings are based on the belief, deeply rooted in Indian cultures, which consider the women as objects and commodities, and not as human beings endowed with dignity and rights. Most honour killings occur in countries like India where the concept of women is considered as a vessel of the family reputation. This paper is an attempt to tackle the very important issue of a cultural crime that is magnifying day by day like a monster untamed. The Khap

The following imitation biography spotlights a young woman in North Kivu, Congo and her harrowing journey during the late 1990’s. Her trials start with her sexual assault and continue through to the birth of her child, concentrating on her mental and emotional health through the process. This story gives insight to the harsh realities of rape victims through social isolation, lack of medical resources, and overall deterioration of health. While this story has elements of fiction, her details are sourced from studies and true stories that delineate the adversities of young women in Congo.

Mukwege wants the men and women of his country to participate in ending the struggle of gender-based abused in his country, in every hour 48 women are then raped in Congo, Dr. Mukwege's home country. He is doing his best for his country’s safety; this is why Dr Mukwege wants the men and women of his country to contribute in his own community for this sexual violence to end. He is not just referring to his country but everywhere else in the world, he wants and we want this sexual violence act to end immediately for the country’s

Andanda, Pamela; ‘‘Vulnerability: Sex Workers in Nairobi’s Mangengo Slum Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, 04/2009, Volume 18

Female infanticide has been accepted for centuries in many countries, and is more prominent in India and China than in any other countries around the world. It is illegal in India, however it is reported by Unicef that up to 50 million girls and women are “missing” in India as a result of systemic sex discrimination.

to beg and made offers to her that at last she granted him her love and swore