Kenya: Villagers ignore the law and go on a girl circumcision frenzy

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Villagers ignore the law and go on a girl circumcision frenzy

By DANIEL OTIENO danotieno@...

Posted Wednesday, December 7 2011 at 22:00

The sound of gun shots pierced the air as seemingly intoxicated youth joined

girls and women in wild celebration.

Tradition had triumphed over law as hundreds of girls, some as young as eight

years old faced the knife in a procedure that is internationally loathed and

outlawed — female genital mutilation.

The setting is Kuria East and West districts. It's is the third year since the

last rite, and so a fresh set of girls are supposed to undergo the FGM among the

Bugambe and the Buiregi clans.

Tuesday was the culmination of three days of activities that saw the villagers

throng footpaths in wild celebration, armed with home made guns, machetes,

spears, knives, clubs and other weapons that would ordinarily have their

wielders jailed.

Hundreds of schoolgirls underwent the traditional rite of passage that now

allows them to get married, raising doubts as to whether they will continue with

their studies in the New Year.

Among the health concerns associated with the practice are complications during

childbirth, heavy bleeding after birth and prolonged hospitalisation, with the

degree of complications increasing depending on the extent and severity of the

mutilation that can also cause infections and death.

The killer virus, HIV, is also readily transmitted this way.

Teachers in the area said that while the practice had been part of culture, it

lead to significant deterioration in the standard of education as girls dropped

out of school soon afterwards.

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Mr Mosese Chahacha, a teacher in a local primary school said: " The rituals the

initiates go through before the material day is like parallel education.

" They learn that they are adults and that they can stand up to anybody besides

starting a home. It is very difficult for the teachers to discipline such

children. "

Defended practice

But Guitembe ward councillor from Kuria constituency Protrus Kohe defended the

practice, arguing that the constitution protected cultural practices of

communities.

" The government allowed us to circumcise the men, which we did, but then we

later wondered: now that we have taken men through the initiation, must we not

create a pool of women from where they can marry? That is why we have decided to

undertake the practice, " argued Mr Kohe.

Early in the week, two women circumcisers were arrested by police while

" cutting " five young girls. The law enforcers laid a trap near the circumcisers'

homes and nabbed them soon after they began the " surgery " .

But the locals, who are predominantly members of the Kuria community, blocked

the police vehicle, demanding immediate and unconditional release of the women.

The officers were then forced to fire in the air several times to scare off the

adamant protesters.

But more drama was to unfold when armed youths joined in the protests and

blocked the busy Kenya-Tanzania highway for several hours.

They then engaged the police in running battles along the highway in a move that

paralysed transport and blocked cargo trailers heading to or coming from the

neighbouring country.

Even attempts by the Kuria West DC Mugwe to calm them down bore no fruit.

The DC however insisted that they would not allow FGM to continue in the region,

saying the practice was illegal.

FGM is practised in at least 26 of 43 African countries and prevalence varies

from 98 per cent in Somalia to 5 per cent in Zaire.

In Kenya, according to the 2003 Kenyan Demographic Survey (KDHS), 32 per cent of

all Kenyan women aged between 15 and 49 years are circumcised.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Villagers+go+on+a+girl+circumcision+frenzy+/-/1056/\

1285678/-/item/1/-/7fruaf/-/index.html

[Guest guest]

Villagers ignore the law and go on a girl circumcision frenzy

By DANIEL OTIENO danotieno@...

Posted Wednesday, December 7 2011 at 22:00

The sound of gun shots pierced the air as seemingly intoxicated youth joined

girls and women in wild celebration.

Tradition had triumphed over law as hundreds of girls, some as young as eight

years old faced the knife in a procedure that is internationally loathed and

outlawed — female genital mutilation.

The setting is Kuria East and West districts. It's is the third year since the

last rite, and so a fresh set of girls are supposed to undergo the FGM among the

Bugambe and the Buiregi clans.

Tuesday was the culmination of three days of activities that saw the villagers

throng footpaths in wild celebration, armed with home made guns, machetes,

spears, knives, clubs and other weapons that would ordinarily have their

wielders jailed.

Hundreds of schoolgirls underwent the traditional rite of passage that now

allows them to get married, raising doubts as to whether they will continue with

their studies in the New Year.

Among the health concerns associated with the practice are complications during

childbirth, heavy bleeding after birth and prolonged hospitalisation, with the

degree of complications increasing depending on the extent and severity of the

mutilation that can also cause infections and death.

The killer virus, HIV, is also readily transmitted this way.

Teachers in the area said that while the practice had been part of culture, it

lead to significant deterioration in the standard of education as girls dropped

out of school soon afterwards.

Share This Story

83Share

Mr Mosese Chahacha, a teacher in a local primary school said: " The rituals the

initiates go through before the material day is like parallel education.

" They learn that they are adults and that they can stand up to anybody besides

starting a home. It is very difficult for the teachers to discipline such

children. "

Defended practice

But Guitembe ward councillor from Kuria constituency Protrus Kohe defended the

practice, arguing that the constitution protected cultural practices of

communities.

" The government allowed us to circumcise the men, which we did, but then we

later wondered: now that we have taken men through the initiation, must we not

create a pool of women from where they can marry? That is why we have decided to

undertake the practice, " argued Mr Kohe.

Early in the week, two women circumcisers were arrested by police while

" cutting " five young girls. The law enforcers laid a trap near the circumcisers'

homes and nabbed them soon after they began the " surgery " .

But the locals, who are predominantly members of the Kuria community, blocked

the police vehicle, demanding immediate and unconditional release of the women.

The officers were then forced to fire in the air several times to scare off the

adamant protesters.

But more drama was to unfold when armed youths joined in the protests and

blocked the busy Kenya-Tanzania highway for several hours.

They then engaged the police in running battles along the highway in a move that

paralysed transport and blocked cargo trailers heading to or coming from the

neighbouring country.

Even attempts by the Kuria West DC Mugwe to calm them down bore no fruit.

The DC however insisted that they would not allow FGM to continue in the region,

saying the practice was illegal.

FGM is practised in at least 26 of 43 African countries and prevalence varies

from 98 per cent in Somalia to 5 per cent in Zaire.

In Kenya, according to the 2003 Kenyan Demographic Survey (KDHS), 32 per cent of

all Kenyan women aged between 15 and 49 years are circumcised.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Villagers+go+on+a+girl+circumcision+frenzy+/-/1056/\

1285678/-/item/1/-/7fruaf/-/index.html