Tanzania: women say husbands hide their voter cards.

A number of wives in Tanga region, have complained that their husbands hide their voter's identity cards to prevent them from voting in the forthcoming general election. This, indeed, is unthinkable as husbands are not expected to be this foolhardy.

The situation, we are told, is so bad that Tree of Hope, an organisation of paralegals, has deployed operatives who move from house to house advising women to hide their voter's cards from their husbands or other members of the family.

It is imperative to mention at the outset that stealing anyone's voter's card is illegal and is punishable by law. We all know that women make the greater portion of the population at about 56 per cent and hence hold greater voting power in terms of numbers. In this case, we expect to see more women than men at voting centres.

And this has often been the case in recent years. So, the husband who prevents his wife from voting, denying her democratic right, commits a felony. We shudder to imagine what else happens to these humble wives who are denied even their basic right to vote.

Husbands who commit such misdemeanors are also notorious in bashing their wives. Let these husbands know that wife bashing is a greater felony. Some wives have experienced severe domestic violence (being hit with a fist or something else, kicked, dragged, beaten up, choked, burnt on purpose, threatened with a weapon or had a weapon used against them. This is unacceptable and horrendous.