In Sudan, Sitting in One Prison to Escape Another

Many educated Sudanese coming home to rebuild their country have very different ideas than their grandparents. Ajuoi is also working on a measure that would make it illegal for parents to keep children out of school, even to work with crops or cattle.

But she said laws involving women may be hardest to change, largely because of money. Payment of dowry cattle is at the heart of the region's economy.

"It may be easier to get rights for children than to get women's rights. Children are viewed as gifts, whereas women are seen as having a monetary worth because of the dowry," she said.

Conservative lawyers working on the new constitution argue that putting a woman in jail for adultery is practical and that many customary laws were built upon popular opinions of what is morally correct for society.

"To be very frank, it's an important preventive measure to protect a woman from getting killed," said one of those lawyers, William Ajal Deng. "Not all of our customary laws are bad. Divorce, in my opinion, should rarely be permitted at all. It's a bad thing for children."

Maker's husband is a gruff regional chief named Manganat Deng (and not related to William Deng). He said that even though Maker "misbehaves" and gets into fights with his first wife, he is opposed to divorcing her or returning her dowry.

"Why is this woman doing this to me? It's not done," he said with a scowl. "We Dinkas don't believe in divorce, even if there are problems. I do not want that as a solution." The Dinkas are the major tribe in southern Sudan.

But others see the traditional system as biased against women. Under customary laws, a woman or man who commits adultery must pay a fine, usually seven cows or about $800. Those who cannot pay serve six months in jail.

But there are no cases of any men being put in Rumbek prison for adultery, because they own cows and land and can afford the fines, said Cmdr. Benjamin Jok, who runs the facility. Women are not allowed to own property and so cannot bail themselves out.

"Men also are allowed to take as many wives as they can support," Jok pointed out.

He said he hardly considers the women in his custody criminals. Because the prison system has few funds , he lets them grow sorghum and ground nuts on a nearby farm and sell their produce in the market.

In certain cases, Jok agreed that jailing a woman was unfair. An elderly woman named Ayen Malual was sent to Rumbek prison because her son, an army soldier, failed to pay the dowry for his bride. Her family demanded cows, but the soldier had been sent away on duty and Malual had no animals to offer them.

"She loved my son, and we were happy with the marriage," said Malual, who sat with her spindly legs folded on the concrete cell floor. "It's just the dowry that was not there. These traditions can make things too hard. I miss my mattress and mosquito net at home."

Maker, already a mother of six, spends her nights with only a straw mat covering the cold cement. There are no toilets, so the women go to the bathroom outside. Most said they were depressed and angry, but willing to stay.

Last month Maker's 15-year-old daughter died of rabies. Four prison guards escorted Maker to the funeral. But at the ceremony, she said, her husband began shouting that he wanted to kill her.

"He started hurling sticks at me," she said. "I never want to be with that man again. My life is terrible with him. I will stay here until things change."