Teen housewife batters mother-in-law

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COURT

A TEENAGE housewife of Kabwe’s Kasavasa area battered her mother-in-law when she censured her male friend against visiting her because she was a married woman.
This was heard in the Kabwe Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday before magistrate Mary Simpungwe in a case in which Ireen Mwaba, 33, also of Kasavasa area sued her 16-year-old daughter-in-law Debora Musonda for assault accessioning actual bodily harm.
The offence which was committed on January 30, 2013, is contrary to Section 248 of the Penal Code 87 of the Laws of Zambia.
Ms Mwaba told the court that differences started on a day that a man visited Musonda while her husband was not at home.
Ms Mwaba said she was not happy with what the visitor said to Musonda and she warned her daughter-in-law that when her husband returned she would tell him what she heard.
Ms Mwaba said when the man visited Musonda again, she informed some relatives who were around what he said during his previous visit and Musonda’s younger sister overheard her and reported to her in the presence of the male friend in question.
Ms Mwaba said the male visitor later called her saying he wanted to talk to her and she obliged.
“I told him that I was waiting for her husband (Musonda’s) to return so that I could explain what he said because he was married and she[Musonda] was also married. He asked me to forgive him because he was Tonga and he did not know the meaning of what he said in Bemba,”Ms Mwaba testified.
She said Musonda was not happy she talked to her visitor and she started exchanging words with her.
Ms Mwaba, however, got annoyed with Musonda because she accused her of being jealous of her and that she was flirting with married men but people who were around separated them.
“My daughter-in-law come back and continued saying bad things. She thought I was going to beat her and she came and bit me on the shoulder and I slapped her and she started pulling my wigs before people came to separate us,” she said.
Ms Mwaba, however, made an application to withdraw the case on grounds that the two families sat and the differences were resolved.
And making her ruling, Ms Simpungwe expressed displeasure with Musonda for having fought with Ms Mwaba, saying she was her mother-in-law and needed to be respected.
“It is against the Zambian tradition; a daughter-in-law does not fight with her mother-in-law for whatever reasons. You don’t even quarrel, you should know that,” she rebuked Musonda.
Ms Simpungwe then ordered Musonda to apologize to Ms Mwaba in court before granting the application to withdraw the case.
Ms Simpungwe observed that Musonda was insolent and also ignorant about marriage because she was married at the age of 14 and she only turned 16 this year.
Ms Simpungwe told Musonda that it was wrong for her to start having sex at the age of 14 as she was a minor.
She wondered why Musonda got married at the age of 14 but her father Abel Musonda, 43, who was present in court, said it was not his intention to marry off his daughter because he wanted her to continue with education.
Mr Musonda said her daughter was first impregnated when she was in grade nine at the age of 14 and the same man again made her pregnant for a second time and this is why he was asked to marry her.
She told Musonda who was shedding tears to ask Ms Mwaba for forgiveness and advised her to stop being insolent.

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