A recent study showing how adolescent girls are
routinely subjected to compulsory pregnancy testing, has put Tanzania in
the spotlight again.
This practice has led to more than 55,000 pregnant students expelled or forced to drop out of school in the last decade.
The new findings by the Centre for Reproductive Rights titled Forced out: Mandatory Pregnancy Testing and the Expulsion of Pregnant Students in Tanzanian Schools brought to light this degrading policy.
Many institutions are yet to realise that forced pregnancy tests and expulsion of pregnant girls is a serious issue.
The practice violates international human rights
law and denying them the right to be in school is a gross violation of
their freedoms.
They are also stigmatised since their names are
usually publicised, and expulsion is done in the assemblies to shame
them and serve as a warning to others.
Schools are understandably trying to put an end to
premarital sex and pregnancies, which is a plus for them. However,
waiting for it to happen then acting without due consideration of human
rights is wrong.
Learning institutions need to put more emphasis on
reproductive health education to ensure the pregnancies do not occur in
the first place. Dealing with the root cause would save both the
institutions and the girls more agony. Most African governments are yet
to introduce reproductive health in the curriculum since gender
stereotypes still abound in the choice of subjects.
However, Tanzania is not the only country where
forced pregnancy tests take place. Uganda and many others like Swaziland
have education rules calling for suspension of pregnant girls. This
takes place against the backdrop of policy reforms in most countries
seeking to retain girls in school.
Reports indicate only 10.7 per cent of sexually
active women in Tanzania aged 15-19 use any birth control method to save
them from early child bearing. The SADC Gender Protocol Barometer 2012
shows that an average of 3,600 schoolgirls drop out of school annually
due to pregnancies in Tanzania. In the last five years, 18,000 girls
have left school due to pregnancy.
More vulnerable
Other times, these girls especially those from
rural areas and marginalised communities fall pregnant through rape or
early marriages. This makes them more vulnerable to forced sexual
encounters, placing them at an even greater risk of unplanned
pregnancies, which calls on governments to spring into action and
address this.
One way is by implementing policies to protect girls from sexual violence and forced marriages.
Interestingly, their teachers or those in
positions of authority sexually abuse them. In July, news broke in Kenya
that questioned the moral fabric of the society after it emerged that
security officials allegedly impregnated 18 girls from one primary
school in Mount Elgon Constituency.
The task of ensuring that more girls stay in
school should not be left for the government alone but needs concerted
effort by all stakeholders including parents and the larger society.
Treating pregnant girls like outcasts is not right
but parents and may be the church could also play greater roles by
opening communication around sexuality so that youth can act
responsibly.
Policy reforms in many countries should make it
possible for learners who become pregnant to stay in school and receive
psychological support to enable them complete their studies.
Most African governments also need to raise marriage age for women to 18 years in line with international human rights law.
The forced pregnancy testing of girls is illegal.
African governments must bring to an end this shameful, painful and
degrading practice.
Email: ajotieno@ke.nationmedia.com Twitter: JanetOtieno
SOURCE: AFRICA REVIEW
SOURCE: AFRICA REVIEW
