Directors,
social workers and health professionals all acknowledge the issue, but Mama is
intent of driving it forward to find a solution through the network of
children’s homes spearheaded in our region by our Uncle Billy and Mama.
Each of the
homes has admitted children suffering from hunger ,neglect and , in some cases, abandonment, because their mothers were unable to provide for them.
And in soem cases, once the “burden’’ of
care has been lifted, the mother has just gone on to have more kids.
When she cannot provide for them either, where does she turn?
When she cannot provide for them either, where does she turn?
Back to
us, as though it is her right ,and our duty, for us to take her baby
into our care
In one case we have three siblings whose
mother now has another baby. The mum of a set of twins who are with us has had
yet another set of twins.
They may come to visit their children, but make no attempt to change their lives so they can all be together.
They may come to visit their children, but make no attempt to change their lives so they can all be together.
Contraception is
easily accessible, so why won’t these women use it?
Mama is tackling
this question head on, seeking out the best advice and support to ensure that
women are informed about the availability and ease of government-sponsored
contraception.
We are
calling parents of kids in our care are being called to a meeting where Mama,
Uncle Billy and a family planning health professional, Christine, will talk to
them about their options and their responsibilities.
Of course they
have rights, but they must understand that if they go on having babies they
have a responsibility to feed, clothe and educate them.
There is no
automatic right of access to a children’s home.
Lack of
education and awareness is the major problem. In many
cases, men will not allow women to use contraception believing by taking away
the right to make a child it strips them of their manhood; in some cases men
may have several wives, and children by them all, even though there
is little or no income to support them.
In other
cases, women existing in poverty will have sex, without protection, for a few
shillings to put food on their table, and by the time they pregnant the man is
long gone.
Only by a
mind-shift in thinking, through education, will women be empowered to
make the right choices the way they manage their fertility.
Preventing
unwanted pregnancies would not only alleviate so much child suffering, it would
also reduce the number of maternal deaths.
But women can
only make an informed choice if they know and understand their options. And if
their husbands or partners are educated to understand that every woman is
entitled to a have a say in how many children she will bear.
Mama and our
charity intend to do all we can to ensure that they do