NO KIDS FOR FEMALE SOLDIERS
By Elias Biryabarema

April 8, 2004 – (The Monitor) Female soldiers who get pregnant within four years of joining the force will have to quit, MPs on the defence committee argued yesterday.Discussing the UPDF 2003 Bill, the committee rejected a proposal by female MPs to strike down the anti-pregnancy clause in the bill.

Under their umbrella body, the Uganda Women Parliamentarians Organisation, the female MPs said it was unfair to deny female soldiers from their right to reproduce.

The association's chairperson, Kaberamaido Woman MP, Amajo Mary, said the clause discriminates against women.

However, MPs on the committee differed.

Kassanda MP Nyombi Tembo said: "Even if one has a constitutional right to work, still one has got to be subjected to the requirements of a specific job by any organisation," he said.

Amuria MP Ben Etonu stunned his colleagues when he described pregnancy as a disease that impairs women and makes them unsuitable for military activities.

He stunned his colleagues further when he blamed the unending war in the north on the presence of women in the army.

"These women! That's why this Kony man is still a problem," he said.

His comments drew derision from MPs, both male and female in the house.

Besides restricting pregnancy in the first four years of service, the bill proposes a four-year gap between pregnancies, and dismissals for those who conceive before then.

"Forcing girls to observe such time is inconsiderate," Nebbi Woman MP Betty Udong said.

"With rampant sexual harassment in the army, a woman might not be able to prevent such occurrences," she added.

After failing to convince the committee members, the women MPs were told to conceive a better argument and deliver it to the MPs on April 20.

From: http://allafrica.com/stories/200404080057.html