News

Men and women with disabilities face many challenges in Southern Africa, especially related to discrimination and access to services. For many women, this also means that they face challenges when accessing health care services at one of the times when it is most important À“ when they are pregnant.

As we commemorate 16 Days of Activism, along with highlighting how extensive the problem still is, we also need to pause a moment to thank the people who work tirelessly 365 days a year to help and support survivors. Iriss Phiri, whose home in Lusaka’s Chilulu residential area is a haven for women fleeing violence, is one such person.

Marriage brings happiness to some, but for me it was a nightmare for twenty-five years. I stayed in an abusive marriage, enduring it, always hoping that what did not work out today, would tomorrow. It was my son’s sickness that ended it: a son who had been a breadwinner for my husband and me. Because it ended, I found happiness. Let me explain.

My name is Mubayandi Kwiima.* I am 39-years-old and a mother of five. I’m the second wife in the polygamous marriage of three wives. I work as a clerk at one of the government ministries in Zambia.