Look beyond the maid’s conduct

Baby Arnella with her mother. photo by Michael Kakumirizi.

What you need to know:

WAKEUP CALL. The matter deserving of our concern now is the well-being of children in Africa and in this case Uganda, writes Chris Obore.

Repugnant! Wicked! Animalistic or even some animals are better. That is how ordinarily anyone with a human heart would react after watching the action in the video that depicted 22-year-old Jolly Tumuhirwe allegedly torturing baby Arnella Kamanzi.

All that description befits house-help (I prefer to call her that way because the use of word maid is belittling) who appeared demon-possessed.

Within 12 hours after the video circulated, it received 12 million views worldwide with international media publishing stories about it. That is how touchy matters of children are—they resonate with people regardless of social class, political colour or race.

A new twist, has, however, emerged with some voices questioning the authenticity of the video and the motive, if any, of its circulation. That strand of analysis, I digress from because the matter deserving of our concern now is the well-being of children in Africa and in this case Uganda.

Our children are dumped in pit- latrines, crashed by cars, cut with razor blades, starved in houses by biological parents, denied education, raped, tortured in schools, etc. The suffering of an African child is an old tale. It is the analysis of the problem and the solutions on offer that beg further inquiry. Baby Arnella’s case brings to the fore the unforgivable brutality of maids.

But what instigates brutality of that magnitude on the vulnerable child? The significance of sociologists, psychologists and anthropologists in explaining matters of this nature does not need my emphasis. One wonders whether such experts exist or plans exist to integrate them in our governance structures.

Parents’ role
The next question is: Where is the role of a parent in today’s child’s upbringing? Where does that role start and end in the fast moving capitalist world in which putting food on the table appears to take priority over transmission of good values to children?

This is a question the nation should collectively answer. Individual decisions can be made depending on individual circumstances but there must be a national code in regard to how parents balance work and family. The nation should discuss how much time a parent needs with a child depending on the age of the child.

Currently, a working mother is given three months to be with a new born child while a father is given four days.

In some cases, mothers are forced to cut down on the maternity days because of pressure from work places. That means there is a problem of job security. Is three months adequate for a mother to be with a child anyway? Some countries give more than that. We need to find out why they do that. Working and having children should complement each other. Parents should not be made to choose either.

Lastly, the problem is wider but not far from the resource distribution in the country. In countries such as Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Germany, among others, molestation of one child is big news because it’s never a usual occurrence. In the same countries, social welfare is robust. In fact, the highest paid public servant in Norway is a nursery school teacher.

What I am saying is that lack of equitable distribution of resources usually has far-reaching consequences especially on the vulnerable, including but not limited to children. Equitable distribution of resources has a higher chance of reducing personal frustrations because the basics of life exist.

JUST SAYING
Baby Arnella’s ordeal evokes emotions because Jolly Tumuhirwe used the most barbaric way to vent her frustrations. But also think about that man or woman stealing money meant for public goods or that leader rigging an election.

The consequences of their actions are far reaching and include forcing others to become maids even when they were, possibly, not meant to be. And the one who ultimately suffer are the most vulnerable such as Baby Arnella.

The likely effects of such abuse

Dr Vincent Karuhanga, a physician at Friends’ Poly Clinic, says children who are subjected to such treatment normally manifest the effects when they grow up as it in prints on their brain.

“This will most likely infringe in her mind and make her feel like torture is normal hence affecting her normal interactions,” he says. If not dealt with at an early age through seeing a child counsellor, Dr Karuhanga says such a child will easily feel depressed, moody, suspicious and unloved.

With the view that this child is still too young to remember the mistreatment, Dr Karuhanga says by six months a child will behave in a certain way by reading from the way you treat them and behave.

He, therefore, says such a child can be counseled through their parents and siblings. He advises the parents to get counselling on how to treat the affected child.

Stephen Langa, a counsellor with Family Life Network, says such trauma is normally subconsciously registered on a child’s mind.

He says the effects may differ with diferent victims, but most likely, such a child will have emotional effects such as low self-esteem, lack of self confidence and might become a people-pleaser, subconsciously fearing to be victimised again.

Langa, however, notes that this child could also be abusive in future because human beings tend to do to others what is done unto them.

In such a case, Dr Karuhanga recommends a thorough medical examination.

“Do a Computerised Tomography (CT) scan of the whole body and look out for bleeding in the brain, scan the chest for broken ribs, legs and arms for broken legs and physical bruises,” he says.

by Lydia Ainomugisha