Concern in Meru as male circumcision parties spur on FGM
Some of the girls arrested after undergoing FGM at Giika, Igembe South in Meru County on August 12, 2024.
What you need to know:
- Only circumcised girls and men are allowed to join the traditional circumciser and his entourage in the circumcision dance locally known as muugi.
- Mr Ezra Muchai, a teacher and resident of the Ugoti area, said male circumcision ceremonies were glorifying FGM.
A new wave of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Igembe South, Meru County, has been linked to male circumcision that is widespread during the school holiday.
On Monday, 10 girls were arrested in Giika village after they were found to have undergone FGM over several days last week, reviving a vice that had died down for the last 10 years.
According to locals privy to the incidents, the reemergence of FGM is linked to male circumcision dance parties that have been happening in the area.
Only circumcised girls and men are allowed to join the traditional circumciser and his entourage in the circumcision dance locally known as muugi.
Mr Ezra Muchai, a teacher and resident of the Ugoti area, said male circumcision ceremonies were glorifying FGM.
“When the traditional circumciser arrives in the village, he is joined by young people who take part in song and dance. Girls who have not faced the cut are stigmatised and chased away."
"This has been rampant since schools closed for the August holiday. We believe the ceremonies have incited a fresh wave of FGM.”
Ms Jenifer Kathure, an anti-FGM activist, earlier said stigma around male circumcision ceremonies was being used to inspire girls and women to undergo the cut.
“During the male circumcision season, it is women who prepare porridge for the young men taking part in ceremonies. However, the traditions only allow circumcised women to prepare the food.
"Some girls and women bow to peer pressure so that they can take part in communal activities,” Ms Kathure said.
Giika senior chief Gervase Mucheke said the traditional male circumciser was also on the police radar for fuelling FGM in the area.
“We have arrested one woman who was involved in mutilating the 10 girls. We are still investigating to get to the bottom of the trigger factors for this new craze,” he said.
Besides the seasonal ceremonies, the new cases of FGM have also been linked to a quack nurse who has been running a clinic in the area.
“We have identified a quack medic by the name Carol Gakuya who has been mutilating girls and keeping them in her clinic. The suspect is on the run, but the police are on his trail,” Mr Mucheke said.
The chief said 17 girls were rounded up in the raid on FGM dens, but seven were not found to have undergone cut.
“We got information from members of the public on Sunday and staged a raid at night. A medical assessment has established that 10 girls have fresh cuts. It appears that seven others were awaiting to undergo the cut,” Mr Mucheke said.
Two of the circumcised girls were found hidden at the home of an assistant chief who attempted to block their arrest.
“The government and non-government organisations have done a lot of advocacy against FGM in this region. The vice had died for years until this holiday. We have yet to establish what has triggered this new wave,” the chief said.
Meru is among counties that have been cited for high cases of sexual and gender-based violence, including teenage pregnancies.
