Antonine Akumu was married to the late William Orure as per Luo customary law in 1990 and they had four children. Three days after her husband’s death, her in-laws informed her that she was to be inherited by one of her brothers in law to ensure her cleansing. She tried to resist being inherited by reasoning with her in-laws but they were adamant. When she disclosed her HIV status as the main reason for her refusal, the in-laws evicted her from the home, accusing her of causing her husband’s death. They burnt down her house and took away all her property.
Antonine returned to her parents’ home in Seme where she stayed for 8 years and did odd jobs in order to provide for her children. She heard about KELIN from a friend who was a KELIN widow beneficiary, the friend introduced her to the Seme elders who then directed her to the Nyakach elders since the matter was not in their jurisdiction.
On 4 December 2012 the Nyakach elders held the first meditation meeting with her in-laws, however the eldest brother in law and other family members refused to attend the meeting claiming that they were not willing to discuss any issues regarding Antonine because she had not been cleansed, a taboo that would cause tragedy befall their home. Therefore not much was achieved from the meeting.
17 January 2013, after persuasion, the elders managed to get all the family members present, the first agenda was to discuss issues regarding HIV and the misconceptions surrounding the virus, the in laws were also informed about women’s rights to property as provided for in the law. The elders then proceeded with the mediation process.
A successful mediation saw Antonine accepted back to the matrimonial home and all the property returned to her. Since she could not afford to rebuild her house, she therefore lived under a tree for close to three months, she would be rained on and as a result her health was deteriorating, at the time her children were still staying at her parents’ home.
A concerned neighbour offered Antonine temporary shelter in her kitchen she tried to raise funds to rebuild her house. This was not forthcoming because the little money Antonine made was used to provide for her children.
KELIN through the Nyakach elders identified her as a widow beneficiary and built her a house. She is now peacefully living in her new house, she says
“without KELIN I would still be living under a tree and being reined on, I appreciate the work you are doing with the widows and I hope others will also benefit like I have today…”
