Zimbabwean Girl Uses Martial Arts to Warn Against Child Marriage
2021-01-11
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1In Zimbabwe, some girls are forced to marry as young as the age of 10 because of poverty or for traditional or religious reasons.
2One Zimbabwean teenager is using the sport of taekwondo to give girls from a poor community a fighting chance to have a better life.
3Natsiraishe Maritsa has been a fan of taekwondo since she was very young.
4Taekwondo is a Korean martial art.
5Today, the 17-year-old holds taekwondo lessons outside her parents' home in the poor settlement of Epworth.
6The area is about 15 kilometers south of the capital, Harare.
7"Not many people do taekwondo here, so it's fascinating for the girls, both married and single," Maritsa said.
8"I use it to get their attention."
9Children as young as four follow her instructions to stretch, kick, strike and punch.
10After class, the group talks about the risks of child marriage.
11Newly married girls led one recent discussion.
12One by one, they describe extreme abuse they have experienced in their marriages.
13They describe being raped and being hungry.
14"We are not ready for this thing called marriage. We are just too young for it," Maritsa told The Associated Press.
15She described her small group as "a safe space" for the girls to share ideas.
16"I use their voices, their challenges, to discourage those young girls not yet married to stay off early sexual activity and marriage," Maritsa said.
17Zimbabwe law says boys and girls cannot legally marry until they reach the age of 18.
18That law was passed in 2016.
19Child marriage, however, is widespread in the southern African nation.
20For some poor families, the reason is an economic one.
21Marrying off a young daughter means fewer costs.
22The rights group Girls Not Brides says the bride price paid by husbands of these girls is "used by families as a means of survival."
23An estimated 30 percent of girls in Zimbabwe are married before they reach 18, the United Nations Children's Fund says.
24Rising poverty during the COVID-19 pandemic has increased pressures on families around the world to marry off their young daughters.
25Maritsa's group is called Vulnerable Underaged People's Auditorium.
26She started the project in 2018 after seeing her friends leave school for marriage.
27She hopes to increase the confidence of both married and unmarried girls through the martial arts lessons and discussions.
28She accepts 15 students in each lesson, she said.
29"The only support I get is from my parents."
30After class, her parents usually provide fresh juice and sweets.
31Zimbabwe recently announced a ban on public gatherings.
32The measure is meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
33The ban has forced Maritsa to suspend her lessons, but she hopes to restart as soon as the country's lockdown is lifted.
34Maritsa said, "From being hopeless, the young mothers feel empowered...being able to use their stories to dissuade other girls from falling into the same trap."
35I'm Ashley Thompson.
1In Zimbabwe, some girls are forced to marry as young as the age of 10 because of poverty or for traditional or religious reasons. 2One Zimbabwean teenager is using the sport of taekwondo to give girls from a poor community a fighting chance to have a better life. Natsiraishe Maritsa has been a fan of taekwondo since she was very young. Taekwondo is a Korean martial art. 3Today, the 17-year-old holds taekwondo lessons outside her parents' home in the poor settlement of Epworth. The area is about 15 kilometers south of the capital, Harare. 4"Not many people do taekwondo here, so it's fascinating for the girls, both married and single," Maritsa said. "I use it to get their attention." Children as young as four follow her instructions to stretch, kick, strike and punch. After class, the group talks about the risks of child marriage. 5Newly married girls led one recent discussion. One by one, they describe extreme abuse they have experienced in their marriages. They describe being raped and being hungry. 6"We are not ready for this thing called marriage. We are just too young for it," Maritsa told The Associated Press. She described her small group as "a safe space" for the girls to share ideas. 7"I use their voices, their challenges, to discourage those young girls not yet married to stay off early sexual activity and marriage," Maritsa said. 8Zimbabwe law says boys and girls cannot legally marry until they reach the age of 18. That law was passed in 2016. Child marriage, however, is widespread in the southern African nation. 9For some poor families, the reason is an economic one. Marrying off a young daughter means fewer costs. The rights group Girls Not Brides says the bride price paid by husbands of these girls is "used by families as a means of survival." 10An estimated 30 percent of girls in Zimbabwe are married before they reach 18, the United Nations Children's Fund says. Rising poverty during the COVID-19 pandemic has increased pressures on families around the world to marry off their young daughters. 11Maritsa's group is called Vulnerable Underaged People's Auditorium. She started the project in 2018 after seeing her friends leave school for marriage. She hopes to increase the confidence of both married and unmarried girls through the martial arts lessons and discussions. 12She accepts 15 students in each lesson, she said. "The only support I get is from my parents." After class, her parents usually provide fresh juice and sweets. 13Zimbabwe recently announced a ban on public gatherings. The measure is meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The ban has forced Maritsa to suspend her lessons, but she hopes to restart as soon as the country's lockdown is lifted. 14Maritsa said, "From being hopeless, the young mothers feel empowered...being able to use their stories to dissuade other girls from falling into the same trap." 15I'm Ashley Thompson. 16The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 17____________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19martial art -n. one of several forms of fighting and self-defense that are widely practiced as a sport 20lesson -n. something learned from experience 21fascinating -adj. very interesting or appealing 22punch -v. to strike with a closed hand 23challenge -n. a difficult task or problem 24confidence -n. a feeling of belief that you can do something 25lockdown -n. an emergency situation in which people are not permitted to move around freely 26dissuade -v. to persuade someone not to do something 27We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.