Stranded Zambian Women in West Africa

In the early 1980s and 1990s Zambia saw a lot of foreigners’ particularly West Africans who settled in the Copperbelt.

At the time the Emerald business was booming and many of them came in as Illegal immigrants.

They were popularly known as Ama sene sene because many believed they were senagalese.

EMERALDS SURE DID CAUSE SOME TROUBLE

According to Greenwell Lyempe, Senior Legal Officer at the Ministry of Foreign Affaires, the  men started dating Zambian women for a variety of reasons.

“The men who came here alone dated or married these women for the sake of shelter and protection from local authorities.” Mr Lyempe reveals adding that;

"Some married these women and sired children with them and when they decided to leave Zambia either through deportation or when the emerald business went down they took the women with them."

Most West Africans traditions stipulate that children should be taken to their fathers lands to learn their traditions.

So some women left with these men and at times took their children with them but as Mr Lyempe says a rude shock awaited these women.

In these countries the women would find a variety of issues; some of these men were already married even as they came to Zambia 

Many women got a rude shock when they arrived with the husband in tow expecting to meet in-laws but finding other wives and children waiting.

“Of course many West African nations are predominately Islamic thus polygamy is allowed thus it was hard to adapt to as the cultures and traditions were different.” He says

Other situations involved death; the women would get widowed and thus would begin a downward spiral into servitude.

The situation for the children was similar, some children were taken to West Africa after their father died as young as ten (apparently to learn their culture).

But some of these children (especially girls) found themselves in terrible situations such as forced marriages and severe cases of child labour.

The other unforeseen circumstance that Zambian women found themselves in was the fact that many of these men were from rural areas in their nations.

  

So expecting to settle in cities they women would find themselves in rural areas (with strict traditional values)  a situation different from the ‘romance’ they men showered on them while here.

Finding yourself in a polygamous union in a foreign land were you have no inkling of the language and were you face hostility is difficult.

This is how some of the women have found themselves abused and relegated into virtual slavery.

Derrick Chabu a Zambian citizen narrates how a cousin of his fell in love with a Kenyan man eventually marrying him.

“When she went to Kenya she discovered he had three wives already, she was made to work on the farm and she was mistreated because as a foreigner she was enslaved with no way out.” Mr Chabu narrates

She got ill and there was some negligence worsened by the fact she was in a remote area.

Some people tried to alert the Zambian High Commissioner in Nairobi but it was too late.

She died in Kenya and was buried there.

Her family tried to pursue the matter, one relative even traveled to Kenya but she was already buried and the family could not pursue the matter further legally.

Mr Chabu says that it was hard in those days to keep track of relatives because technology was not as advanced (no mobile phones).

Some women eloped without the consent of their families and some families were paid huge amounts of lobola, they kept away from intruding.

However some prudent relatives who ensured they kept in touch with the stranded women would alert the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when things became seriously amiss.

However as is the case now the Zambian Government has no facilities to repatriate citizens back.

  Thats where the IOM  comes in.

The International Organisation for Migration has helped Zambia bring back many of the women who were stranded in foreign countries.

The IOM has a global fund to help stranded people globally

Annie Lang who is the Migration management Programme Officer says that the IOM has a global fund to assist stranded migrants return to Countries of origin.

“We receive requests to assist stranded women and children who want to come back through the Ministry of Foreign Affaires and sometimes our missions identify women who are stranded.”  She explains

Ms Lang adds that when families report their relatives missing IOM liaises with the Ministry of Foreign Affaires and Embassies to see how the women can be brought back.”

The fact is that there are several laws at play here, in the case of reparations local, International and foreign laws have to be considered.

She points to the West Africa as the main region where these women are repatriated but Zambia’s neighbours like South Africa, Tanzania and Congo feature on the list.

Andrew Choga ; the Country Director for IOM Zambia, says that one of the hindering factors lies in the fact that the country does not have empirical evidence of the magnitude of the issue.

“It is important for us together with Ministry of Foreign Affaires to establish where these women are, where they came from. It is also important for families to provide us with profiles of women who left and the countries went to.” Dr Choga says

The Country Director says that it would be easier for the IOM to trace the women through their foreign missions and other Embassies.

Ms Lang says that this is why the Organisation is planning to have Community outreach and sensitisation programmes on these issues.

It is important for citizens to realise that they have a role to play in this situation because it is also a form of human trafficking as Mr Lyempe puts it these women are taken from here under false pretences.

Some are abused both physically and psychologically with nowhere to run to.

The numbers of women leaving the country have reduced because the emerald business crumbled so what is happening now is merely a fruition of the past.

When all is said it is vital to work on preventing further cases because repatriating victims is costly and when it comes to matters of the heart you cannot tell people who to fall in love with.

Ms Lang outlined a few tips to help stay safe chiefly the need for migrants to stay in touch with their families and friends back home.

She and Mr Lyempe advise Zambians to contact the Embassy in the country they are moving to.

This is for their own safety and also so it easier to trace them.

“It is vital for Zambian Embassies to also be ready to provide assistance to Zambians, if they cannot find an embassy Zambians should at least register their presence with our IOM missions.” Ms Lang advises

She says that IOM will then help them find a Zambian mission in a neighboring country, which can be a useful link.

Timely advice which many victims wish they had heard before relocating or getting caught up in the fantasy of greener grass on the other side.

As the victims can attest it isn’t always green on the other side.