DRC / EARLY MARRIAGE

Conflicts between the Twa, the Luba and other ethnic groups have displaced thousands of children in Tanganyika Province, Democratic Republic of The Congo (DRC). Faced with extreme poverty, hunger and disease an entire generation of Congolese girls and boys is being forced into early marriages. UNHCR

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:01:35
• Production Date: 26 July 2018
• Asset Language: Kiswahili
• Corporate Name: UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES - UNHCR
• Subject Topical: CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICTS; INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS
• Geographic Subject: DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
• MAMS Id: 2208547
• Parent Id: 2208547
• Alternate Title: unifeed180726b

Description

STORY: DRC / EARLY MARRIAGE
TRT: 1:35
OURCE: UNHCR
RESTRICTION: PLEASE CREDIT UNHCR ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: SWAHILI / NATS

DATELINE: 17 AND 18 JANUARY 2018, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO / 20 JANUARY 2018, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

Shotlist

17 & 20 JANUARY 2018, KASEKE IDP SITE, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

1. Various shots, Anuarite and Boniface’s backs sitting under a tree in Kaseke
2. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“Life has stolen my childhood. I shouldn’t be married now.”
3. Close up, Anuarite
4. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“We’re sad because life would have been so much better if they hadn’t forced us to marry.”
5. Wide shot, Anuarite and Boniface’s backs sitting under a tree in Kaseke

18 JANUARY 2018, KATANIKA IDP SITE, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

6. Various shots, Katanika IDP site

17 & 20 JANUARY 2018, KASEKE IDP SITE, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

7. Wide shot, refugee woman cooking outside her shelter in Kaseke idp site
8. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“Life here is an ordeal, especially finding food.”
9. Med shot, Anuarite and Boniface sitting under a tree
10. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“I cut straw. We sell both and we save our money together. That’s how we survive. I feel like an adult now. I’m someone’s husband. Now my mind is focused on providing. I can’t just sit and play like a kid. I’m only thinking about money.”
11. Wide shot, Anuarite and Boniface walking through Kaseke IDP site
12. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“I miss school. I would have like to be a teacher.”
13. Close up, Anuarite
14. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“I would have loved to be a doctor. But, life keeps taking my dreams away from me.”
15. SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“I don’t support early marriages. If I can, I’ll make sure my children don’t have to get married early.”
16. Wide shot, Anuarite and Boniface sitting under a tree in Kaseke IDP site

22 JANUARY 2018, MWEKA IDP SITE, KALEMIE, TANGANYIKA PROVINCE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

17. Med shot, displaced boy standing in the door of his house in the rain
18. Wide shot, baby standing in the rain in the IDP site

Storyline

Conflicts between the Twa, the Luba and other ethnic groups have displaced thousands of children in Tanganyika Province, Democratic Republic of The Congo (DRC). Faced with extreme poverty, hunger and disease an entire generation of Congolese girls and boys is being forced into early marriages.

The situation is especially dire in Tanganyika Province, in the southeastern part of the country where hundreds of thousands of people, the majority of whom are children, have been forced to abandon their homes.

Anuarite and Boniface are a newlyweds young couple, however, they did not marry for love.

They married for survival.

Anuarite is 16 years old and Boniface is two years older.

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“Life has stolen my childhood. I shouldn’t be married now.”

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“We’re sad because life would have been so much better if they hadn’t forced us to marry.”

Faced with extreme poverty, hunger and disease, displaced children are being forced into early marriages, their families believing these unions can relieve immediate financial burdens. These marriages, often viewed as short-term solutions, can perpetuate the cycle of poverty for future generations.

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“Life here is an ordeal, especially finding food.”

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“I cut straw. We sell both and we save our money together. That’s how we survive. I feel like an adult now. I’m someone’s husband. My mind is focused on providing. I can’t just sit and play like a kid. I’m only thinking about money.”

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“I miss school. I would have like to be a teacher.”

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Boniface Kakuji Magazine, Displaced Congolese:
“I would have loved to be a doctor. But, life keeps taking my dreams away from me.”

SOUNDBITE (Swahili) Anuarite Mamère, Displaced Congolese:
“I don’t support early marriages. If I can, I’ll make sure my children don’t have to get married early.”

UNHCR is sensitizing against early marriages and the associated risks, including early, unwanted and often dangerous pregnancies among minors, as well as limited educational opportunities for young people, especially girls.