大象传媒

Sally was terrified when she learnt that she had become pregnant. Back then, she was an 18-year-old high school student and a baby was out of the question.

Her peers advised her that the only way out of the sticky situation was to terminate the pregnancy. There was one problem though; she needed 15,000 Cameroonian Francs to procure an abortion, which she did not have.
The man responsible for the pregnancy didn鈥檛 have the money either.

鈥淚 was left with no option other than to sleep around in order to raise the cash,鈥� explains the mother of four. The man who assisted her procure the abortion tricked her into having sex with him in the guise that sex before the abortion would make it less painful.

The abortion was not without complications. Sally developed an infection that almost claimed her life.
鈥淚 could not leave the house for seven days,鈥� she recalls. It took the intervention of her father who took her to hospital for treatment.

After much soul searching, she decided to share the secret with her 15-year-old daughter Lizzy, whom they鈥檝e grown quite close. 鈥淚 had to get married quickly if only to find out whether I could have children. And that is how I got married to your father,鈥� she told the now bewildered daughter. 鈥淵es, it was your dad who was the author of that pregnancy.鈥�

You can be angry with me, because it changes your view of me but my daughter, I am deeply sorry,鈥� Sally said to break the uncomfortable silence that engulfed them. 鈥淚 just had to let it out.鈥�

鈥淭he news was shocking at first. My mother went through hell,鈥� said Lizzy upon recovering from her mother鈥檚 revelation. 鈥淭he friends she thought she had put her in a ditch but she still managed to get through. That is why I am proud of her. It makes her strong; I pray I have her bravery and courage.鈥�

Sally鈥檚 pain gave her the courage to advocate for women and girl鈥檚 reproductive health in Cameroon. She says, she does not regret sharing her secret with her daughter. 鈥淐arrying secrets is not an easy thing to do. Sometimes you need to share them with someone special to you,鈥� she explains. 鈥淎 secret shared might hurt but the lesson behind it can save generations.

Abortion is illegal in many African countries but it hasn鈥檛 stopped women from doing it.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, Africa has among the highest abortion rates in the world with more than 8 million women having abortions every year. Between 1990 and 1994, 4.6 million women procured abortion. The figure in-creased to 8.2 million, between the years 2010 to 2014. Experts say that the numbers keep rising because of an increase of women in the reproductive age of 15 to 44 years. 93 per cent of women of reproductive age live in countries with restrictive abortion laws.

Only three countries in Africa have legalized abortion, Cape Verde, South Africa and Tunisia. The Guttmacher Institute adds that 16,000 women in Africa die from unsafe abortions each year. In 2014, nine per cent of maternal deaths in Africa were as a result of unsafe abortions.

Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng, a Sexual Health Expert from South Africa says that abortions will continue to happen. The question we should be asking is; how safe are they?鈥� She adds that stigmatization from health authorities and the society makes it unlikely for pregnant women to go to health facilities to seek abortion.

She explains that women continue to die for a lack of accessible safe abortion procedures. 鈥淩eligion, culture and morality are burdened on young women who require the service while not enough questions are asked about their access to contraceptive services,鈥� says Dr Mofokeng.

The stigma, she adds, is brought about by the perception that abortion services are sought by reckless young women.

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