Couple arrested after subjecting their six-month-old daughter to FGM
Police have arrested a couple that circumcised their six-month old daughter in Isiolo North.
Police in Isiolo have arrested a couple for subjecting their six-month-old daughter to female genital mutilation (FGM) in Leparua, Isiolo North constituency.
The two were seized hours after the child was rescued and rushed to Isiolo Referral Hospital and admitted.
The child’s father was detained at the Isiolo Police Station while the mother was allowed to take care of the child but under the watch of police officers, said Isiolo Sub-County Police Commander Collins Sainna.
“We are interrogating the father to know who carried out the cut and if there were accomplices so that we [can] arrest them and arraign them for the offence,” Mr Sainna said, adding that the woman will be prosecuted after the child recovers.
A health official at the hospital told the Nation that the child was taken there with a large wound but had since been stabilised.
Human rights activist Grace Lolim and Isiolo Interfaith Network chairperson Ahmed Sett condemned the act and asked the government to bring to book all those involved.
Mr Sett said the outlawed practice was not linked to any religion and asked parents to shun it as it did more harm than good to girls and women.
FGM is the partial or total removal of external genitalia and can cause severe bleeding and expose girls to infections and complications in childbirth and increased risk of newborn deaths.
Ms Lolim, the Isiolo Gender Watch executive director, said the girl might have been booked for marriage to an old man later in life.
“This is unheard of. Most of the communities that subject their girls to the harmful practice do so [when the girls are] between nine and 12 years, but half a year old is absurd,” she said.
She said increased awareness among elders and parents and empowering circumcisers are among the ways of eradicating the practice.
She asked the government to ensure no gender-based violence case is settled out of court, saying it would deny victims justice.
“We want all GBV cases taken to court and the Judiciary to expedite them for speedy justice to the victims,” she said.
r Sainna, the police boss, urged girls pushed by their parents or guardians to go through the cut to report to authorities.
“I appeal to the public to also share information with us on areas where the vice is being practised so that we can arrest the suspects. We are keen on citizen participation in security issues,” he said.
More than 200 million girls and women have undergone FGM in 30 African countries, the Middle East and Asia, the World Health Organisation says.
