By Betty Luke
Isiolo County, Kenya: Ms. Janice Kauria was 20 years old when she got married, about two years after she got her firstborn child.
She had wished to proceed to college but the wanting situation at her home forced her into getting married, while seemingly young, hoping to assist in educating her younger siblings.
“I had just completed form four and had no job. My mother was struggling to take care of us and so, I figured out how I could help her educate my younger siblings,” she says, adding that getting married was the only option she had at the time.
Unknown to her, she would four years later be forced to single-handedly raise her two children following the death of her husband.
The woman recalls how the husband developed a strange condition that led to the swelling of his legs, and feet and also affected his hearing in May 2020, just two months after the country recorded its first Coronavirus case.
Worried that he could have contracted the virus while on business trips outside the county, the entire family was immediately subjected to Covid-19 tests that turned out negative.
“It was the beginning of a tough journey that not only drained us emotionally but also financially,” she says amid tears.
The family would take him to several renowned health specialists but none discovered what he was ailing from.
Their only remaining option, Ms. Kauria says, was to seek divine intervention hoping that the condition would be diagnosed and treatment prescribed.
His health condition however kept deteriorating by the day even as the family got drained financially and started surviving on debts.
“I would cry to God reminding Him that I had no reliable source of income but all went south,” she says revealing that the husband succumbed later in the year leaving them at the mercies of well-wishers.
Even before she recovered from the shock and as if to add salt to injury, her in-laws kicked her out of her matrimonial home accusing her of not being genuine to their son and bewitching him to allegedly inherit a piece of land he had received from his parents.
She says that was the lowest moment of her life.
“I moved out with nothing after they threatened to kill me and my children claiming they did not belong to their son. I did not even carry any clothes,” she says adding that the in-laws did not even allow her to bury the love of her life.
Hers is a typical case of the struggle widows goes through in property ownership with the majority of them forced to bear the brunt of literary fighting for what is rightfully theirs.
Those from patriarchal communities, where women are not allowed to own properties, face the biggest challenge despite the Constitution granting them equal rights as men as far as asset ownership and inheritance are concerned.
For nearly five months after the demise and the burial that neither Kauria nor the children attended, the young family entirely survived on well-wishers’ aid and would on many occasions sleep on empty stomachs though with hopes high that one-day things would be better.
She recalls instances when she was forced to seek asylum in the streets with the children as could not raise money for rent and none of her friends were willing to accommodate them at their homes.
“Whenever we found someone to keep us for a night, we would appreciate but at times we had to sleep in the cold,” she reveals.
Her efforts to seek assistance from the local administration were unsuccessful as the officers allegedly kept telling her to ‘come back tomorrow in what she suspected was collusion between the officers and the late husband’s family to ensure she was never reinstated to her marital home.
It hurt her seeing the children always in torn clothes and for frequently asking her to take them to their dad, she says, adding that she spent most of the time crying.
She says they (children) would, unaware that their Dad was no more, also demand that she calls him so that they would inform him of the challenges she had subjected them to and request him to go pick them up.
“They have since then been accusing me of taking them out of their ‘home’ and subjecting them to poverty,” she says.
Ms. Kauria, would months later contemplate starting a small business but it was overshadowed by the thought of renting a house for her family.
With no single coin, she decided to take a step of faith and visit the county government’s special programs department hoping she would get help to support her children.
On several occasions, she was turned away at the gate and whenever she was allowed in, the officers kept giving false promises.
“I visited the offices on many occasions and whenever I was allowed access, they would promise to call me back once they had resources but never honored the promises,” she notes.
She finally resolved to borrow money from a friend promising to pay in installments ostensibly after the business had picked.
A female friend who had on many occasions previously hosted the family was the first person she thought of and with a well-laid plan, she borrowed a kSh4000 debt.
“I immediately looked for a single room rental house and paid kSh1000 rent promising to settle the remaining Sh1500 at the end of the month. Luckily, the land-lady understood my situation and even promised to lend me utensils,” she recalls.
She would then start a small kiosk selling kales, spinach, tomatoes, and cabbages hoping to earn profit enough to provide for her children and also sustain the business.
What started as a means of survival for the widow and her children, has since turned lucrative and become her source of livelihood.
On a normal day, she makes Sh500 sales earning a kSh200 profit which totals kSh6000 a month enough to sort her bills.
During a recent interview, she revealed that she had started a saving plan with the hope of purchasing a piece of land where she would build her home.
Asked whether she intends to get married again, she laughs off saying she has decided to ‘stay away from men’ and take care of her children out of fear of facing similar tribulations.
About 6.5 million people succumbed to the virus globally with at least 65,000 more men than women succumbing to the virus with researchers attributing the difference to biological factors according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Ms. Caroline Loyian, a counselor, says six out of 10 women who lost their husbands during the pandemic are yet to bounce back.
She adds that the hard economic times occasioned by the pandemic had turned many families that relied on women as sole caregivers into beggars.
“Majority of women who lost their jobs and some who are lucky to have invested only make enough for food,” Ms. Loyian said during a phone interview.
The God Love’s church worshipper, who draws inspiration from her pastor, urged women going through similar ordeals not to lose hope saying with hard work and determination they can earn a living.
“It is painful to accept the demise of a loved one, especially a close family member but we should not allow the sad situation to deter us from seeing light at the end of the tunnel,” said Ms. Kauria.
This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Betty Luke and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.
