FLORENCE MACHIO

I met Besh Machio one morning of June 2016 during her trips to Senegal to meet women who are active in development work. Looking at her there is no way you can miss her eyes sparkling with active intelligence and a certain readiness and determination to grab life or any of her objectives at full flesh. Her easiness and profound knowledge of the African women's condition, and human rights demands, immediately struck me. This is why I wasn't surprised at all when she passionately told me her story and dedication as a women's rights fighter.

Florence Machio

Florence Machio was born forty years ago on a Coastal city of Kenya called Mombassa. After her primary studies she went to college to become a journalist and, as she promised her mother before she passed away, she would get a doctorate. "On this trip, I am out there looking for African women who can be the voices of the other women," Florence said, looking at me, slightly jolting as the van we were traveling in hit one of the many bumps on the roads of Senegal. We were headed to Thies where she was going to meet some women who run a female association busy working in a farm. Florence Machio, Besh for her friends, deeply believes in the necessity for African women to know their basic rights as human beings. For her this is the only way that Africa can be developed, for the African woman is an integral part of the development process and one of the most important agents of the African economy growth, and this is why she's ready to travel the whole continent to meet these women and talk to them.

The life of Besh Machio as a women's rights fighter started when her father died and the members of her community told her that she could not inherit her late father's land because she is a woman. Which, of course, was a terrible injustice. As a result all the land her father used to own and which was rightfully theirs (hers and her siblings') got taken away by her uncles. Therefore, as a young girl, she not only lost her father but she also became poorer and she, her mother and two siblings had to start anew. Even though she says: "I don't think I can pinpoint a day that I can say I started fighting for women's rights but I can say it was as early as I realized the absurdities that are in our society. From simple traditions like women should not eat certain foods that men eat..my mom helped me realize by her actions that certain things, though they are happening, they shouldn't be allowed to happen."

Florence Machio and her son (courtesy of Florence Machio ())

Some years later, her mother passed away leaving her the responsibility to take care of her two siblings and to make sure they went to school to get educated. I would say that's a lot for a young girl of that age. But she had a great ally on her side named COURAGE. Remembering those painful days, with eyes looking sadly back into her past, Besh said, "As a young girl, nobody talked to me. I learned." She learned so well that she was able to take care of her two siblings and ensure their own education before hers. Besh Machio's courage and determination to fight for her rights came from her mother who inspired her when she was still very young. She was the kind of mother that would grab her young daughter's hand and drag her to school when Besh's teacher wronged her by making her kneel on gravel till her knees bled. Her mother took her immediately to school and sued the teacher and obtained justice. For that act of valor she became popular and respected as a woman who won't let people wrong her family without taking a stand for reparation. Another time she obtained justice against an uncle who slapped Besh in the face. These were examples of courage of a woman who was always ready to fight but they also showed the plight of the African women who are still running behind in basic rights. Naturally, Besh had to defend her siblings from male aggression and just like her mother she found herself defending other women. When she grew up and went to college to become a journalist, after making sure that her siblings went to school, Besh became aware of the necessity for women and girls to know their rights.That when she started going to girls' schools to talk to them about women's rights, to sensitize them about the plight of the African women and the perception of the Kenian male dominated society of the woman. For Besh women needed to fight against injustice, to make their voices heard and to find their ways to the decision-making places.

On the Facebook page of Florence Machio (Florence Machio ())

It is her vision that "one day all girls on the continent, irrespective of where they are born, will be able to achieve their dreams because they have not been denied what they rightfully deserve. I see a future with no child brides, where girls are going to school, where women do not die while giving birth and they are taking part in decision making at national level in their countries" Besh believes that "Africa will not develop until all women know their rights and are able to occupy the place that is rightfully their in the society." For Besh the only way girls will know their rights is through education. All African girls must be educated; and this is happening now, for education has become compulsory for the children of Kenya. Hopefully the fight for the African women's rights starts to bear fruit, even though the process is still very slow. As Besh says, little by little, "I can see a difference... More women are coming up in decision making positions, we are seeing governments, albeit grudgingly, recognizing that they can't develop without women or girls also being at the table."