Torn Between Two Ugly Worlds : A Case of Balandiwo, a Housemaid

An Essay By Ethel Chifulemba.

At the time of submiting this essay, the Author was Form One Student At Our Lady Of Wisdom Secondary School – Supervised By Mr. Banda, English Class Teacher.

Child Labour can be defined as the engagement of young persons at the tender ages below sixteen years in employment. Children are mostly employed in tobacco, tea estates and as domestic workers. Children are engaged in such employment because they are either willing or are persuaded by their parents. They are preferred to adults because they are ready to accept low wages from their masters. They cannot bargain for better wages.

In this essay, I will recount the experience of a young girl called Balandiwo. Balandiwo was persuaded by her parents to go to town to work as a maid so that she could assist the family with some money. As it turned out, Balandiwo stopped going to school at the age of ten while in standard three.

Balandiwo had to wake up at half past three of every morning to start the day’s chores. Madam would scream at Balandiwo if she ever failed to wake up at that time. To the Madam that meant deliberate laziness. For a long time she got used to routine rounds of abuses from her and the young members of the household. These included children, nephews, nieces and other dependents from both Madam’s side and the side of the man of the household.

Balandiwo’s day started with heating water, volumes of water to bathe the young members of the household. Madam and the man of the household had to bathe too. The young members could start taking turns into the bathroom where she could bathe those who could not do it themselves. They were all school going.

Breakfast, which usually comprised cassava, potatoes or zimimina and tea meant that quite a great deal of cooking also had to be done by Balandiwo. Splitting and chopping wood normally came in between most of these chores just to make sure that there was enough firewood for the afternoon and evening cooking. Beans and pigeon peas were favourites regardless of the long periods of cooking they demand.

Soon after the young members, Madam and the man of the household departed for their respective schools and workplaces, she had to do a lot of washing, washing clothes for everybody. The children, most of whom were older than herself appeared to enjoy playing in their school clothes just to ensure Balandiwo had enough work to struggle with. The house was not too big but the carelessness of the occupants made Balandiwo work without rest mopping the floor, cleaning the kitchen, and wiping the windows. After that Balandiwo had to ensure that the Madam’s bedroom was well made including rearranging misplaced items lying on the floor. When Balandiwo attempted to reason with the Madam one day that she should consider sparing her from washing under wears, she screamed at her and threatened to stop paying her the MK400.00 ($4) she was getting per month. Most of the times, Balandiwo could not even get this meager wage. She ended up getting payments in forms of old shoes and dresses discarded by some of the favourite young members of the household.

Balandiwo spent the afternoons preparing food for the school-goers after ensuring that both the sitting and dining rooms were well made.

Madam and the man of the household usually arrived home from work at around six o’clock in the evening. They enjoyed going straight to take baths in turns; and Balandiwo had to ensure that hot water was placed in the bathroom for both of them. They could take a cup of tea each before relaxing in their sofa to watch television waiting for supper. Balandiwo remembers that the Madam could only cook when the man of the house had visitors. Washing plates and scraping pots could take her up to nine o’clock in the night. They could go to sleep leaving the young members of the household watching television. Balandiwo normally went to bed at around eleven o’clock in the night. She only had three hours of sleep every night.

Balandiwo started working for that household when she was only ten years old. When she left them after four years she had no money to take home. She had no good clothes to show at home. She left the household because her uncle had been sending messages for her to go back home and get married to one of the men in the village. Her father and mother allowed her to return because marriage of their daughter meant available assistance to them, too.

Balandiwo is now at home, married with two children. She is poorer than before. She cannot go back to school because as a mother at sixteen, her main responsibility now is to fetch for food and shelter for her children.

There is a tendency to point fingers at employers as deliberately exploiting children. However, going by the account of Balandiwo above, which is a fair representation of the ordeals most child labourers go through, both the employers and the community where these children come from should share equal blame. Poverty is widespread in Malawi’s rural societies and children are used as labourers either in the gardens or are sent to town to look for work. To start reversing the trend, there is need to restore self-sufficiency in food and shelter in the rural societies; while at the same time policies and laws are made and enforced to punish child employers and facilitators.

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PROFILE
Name: Ethel Chifulemba.
Date Of Birth: 29 January 1992.
Home Address: Sitima Village, Traditional Authority Kadewere, Chiradzulu, Malawi.
Hobbies: Reading, Participating in games and Watching Television.
School Address: Our Lady Of Wisdom, P.O. Box 5696, Limbe (BT), Malawi.