Global Women's Voices: Share Personal Stories

Chameli, Nepal

Submitted by: Indira Rana Magar

Chameli was around her 17s when she fell in love with a boy. Their love became very much intense and they started having physical relations also. Then one day Chameli realized that she was pregnant.

She scared of the existing social circumstances of the community and went to a local medicine shop (a very small pharmacy) to find a way out to the problem. She took one medicine which resulted in continuous bleeding. Her family members did not take her to the hospital which was just 3 hours from her house. The reason for not taking her to the hospital even after the three days of continuous bleeding was nothing more than the fear of being socially outcaste because Chameli was pregnant before marriage.

Finally, the lack of medical assistance led to the death of Chameli who had a lot of dreams for her future. Has she been taken for checkup and conducted abortion in a proper manner she would have survived.

updated: 7/2/2004