By Gilbert Akampa Kakurugu,
MBARARA
“When I was 15 years old, I got pregnant through defilement. I faced a lot of challenges in continuing with my academic pursuits but I rose above it to obtain a Bachelors Degree in law from Cavendish University” Asiimwe narrates.
Like many others, Angela shares her touching story of achievement through trials in the hope of encouraging others not to give up.
“No matter the challenges life throws unto you, never let them keep you down, always know that you can rise above any situation. Every position is temporary, always be prepared for upward mobility,” Angela said during an interview with Parrots Media.
Currently, Angela is pursuing a Masters Degree in International Human Rights at University of Leeds, a founder and CEO UG Love Movement an annual charity campaign aimed at supporting teenage mothers and orphans on accessing sexual reproductive health rights, legal aid and psychosocial support in Uganda.
Asiimwe became double orphan at an early age of 6 years when her mother who was at the time taking care of her together with her brother lost her life to HIV- AIDS. Their father had died years back when she was only nine months old.
Asiimwe together with his brother were later adopted by a kind relative who supported them with school requirements after being tossed several times by other close relatives who even grabbed all their parent’s properties.
Asiimwe says she was lucky she started schooling when she was still very young since her mother was a primary teacher. At the age of 15, during her Senior Four vacation while she hustled in Mbarara town to earn a living, a merciless man forced her into sex and became pregnant.
“My friend’s cousin brother added some subtances into my drink and I blacked out, when I gained consciousness, I found myself lying in a pool of blood,” Angela said.
She added that it was even hard for her to know what had happened since she didn’t have enough knowledge about sexual reproductive health, she mistook the evilish act to her first menstrual periods
“A few months later, I started feeling weak, took some medicines but there was no relief, a friend advised me to go to the pharmacy where I went and bought the pregnancy test kit and the pharmacy nurse told me how to use it and this turned out positive. This was the genesis of my suffering because everyone started avoiding me as the tummy continued to barrage,” she said.
Growing Up On The Streets Of Mbarara
Due to disdain looks of her friends and family members, and the mistreatment of the perpetrator’s family, Asiimwe found homage on the streets of Mbarara for a couple of months as everyone that volunteered to stay with her always tossed whenever they realized she was pregnant.
“Slept on Mbarara streets for some months, slept in film show rooms after losing the shop attendant job where I used to get money to contribute to my house rent in a room that I shared with other friends who later threw me out,” she said.
When she experienced labor pains, Asiimwe was rushed to Mbarara referral hospital by his brother’s friend after he had found her being thrown out of the hospital for lack of basic delivery consumables like mama kit. She gave birth to a healthy baby-boy and it’s here that she later decided to head to the village.
Notwithstanding her own family also feeling disappointed, she was not welcomed at home because she was looked at as a curse to society. It was night at noon for her when she tried the baby father’s home who also banished her from their home.
Asiimwe would later find a job as a student teacher at Kyaapa primary school one of the rural primary schools and started earning a little money to cater for her little one.
Ray of Hopes
Full to the brim with hope, love and joy, Asiimwe started seeing a ray of light in the darkness after her brother Dr. Geoffrey Ayebazibwe, Lecturer Kabale university, Head of Pharmacology department offered to send her back to school for her A’level studies after which she joined Cavendish University to pursue her career in Bachelor’s of Law.
Mental Health and SRHR Advocacy
While at a University, Asiimwe developed the idea of helping and advocating for teenage mothers and orphans because she understood that teen mothers can flourish too and become important persons in society.
UG Love Movement a non-profit organisation advocating for rights of victims of teenage pregnancy and giving Sexual Reproductive Health Rights to teenagers was given birth.
This Easter season, UG Love Movement managed to cater for 122 teenage mothers and babies from TMCSF teenage mothers home in Bweyogerere in Kira Municipality and Chadashah teenage mothers home in Mukono municipality. In total they reached out to 122 teen mothers and 40 newborn babies through fund rising from friends and other well-wishers.
Practicing Positive Parenting
A lawyer, women and girls’ rights activist says she has built character, resilience deliberately for her son by guiding him on making wise decisions in life.
“We always Set limits, agree to set boundaries and rules that both agree on. The rules are based on shared values about staying safe and keeping harmony in the family so most of them are Writen down by him so that the guidelines and boundaries are clear to everyone” she said
She advises parents to speak to their children (both girls and boys) on their Sexual Reproductive Health Rights and support teenage mothers noting that they are important persons in society.
Asiimwe also urges teen mothers to avoid the negative energy, to always have time to teach their children sex education, share with them part of their stories so that they avoid doing the same in future.
