Concern as heightened sexual activity reported in Busia IDP flood shelters
Flooded homes in Mau Mau, Budalang’i, Busia County. Couples displaced by the floods in the area have complained of a lack of privacy.
What you need to know:
- More than 600 families have been displaced by the floods in the county.
- Some couples living in the camps have complained of a lack of privacy.
- Cases of sexual harassment of young girls have also been reported.
Families displaced by the floods in Bunyala, Busia County, have expressed concern about increased cases of promiscuity in the evacuation camps.
At the same time, some couples living in the camps have complained of a lack of privacy in the shelters, denying them time for conjugal rights with their partners.
More than 600 families have been displaced by flooding in the county due to torrential rains.
While cases of sexual harassment of young girls have been reported, some couples claim they are unable to engage in romance because they share rooms with their adult children.
"We are going through a very devastating moment in the camps. Adult men are harassing us with sexual advances. Many of us will come out of these camps with children if nothing is done," said one of the teenage girls in the camps.
Mr James Matheri said bedroom issues have become a major problem for most couples, even threatening to break up marriages.
"While some married couples are facing nightmares as they perform nightly duties with their partners in the overcrowded camps, others are having extra-marital affairs with their neighbours in the camps. Very unpleasant things are happening in these camps," said Mr Matheri.
Families from different backgrounds are living in the same classrooms with their children and neighbours, exposing minors to sexual abuse.
Bunyala sub-county flood committee chairperson Godfrey Hamala said there were fears of the spread of sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis, gonorrhoea and an outbreak of malaria and water-borne infections in the camps.
"Since the victims are mixed up and have no privacy with their spouses, some men are engaging their female neighbours in the nearest thicket and even in toilets to quench their thirst," said Mr Hamala.
Also Read: Floods cause untold suffering in Nyanza
Mr Hamala blames the government for failing to control the perennial flooding in Budalang'i.
"We want permanent dykes and dams to be built along the Nzoia River to control the overflowing water. This is the only solution to our problems, but the government is reluctant to help us," he lamented.
Poor sanitation, lack of bedding, food and clean water were reported in the camps as displaced families appealed to both the county and national governments to come to their aid.
Victims in the camps on school grounds are now worried about their next move when schools reopen for the second term next week.
They say they feel safer in the camps because they don't have homes to return to.
