Over my dead body: Bold Isiolo girls take on parents against FGM
Margret Abenyo, a teacher at Oldonyiro Primary School in Isiolo North, with girl's who escaped female genital mutilation from their homes, on May 30, 2024. Ms Abenyo is in charge of the Anti-FGM Club and Girls Forum in the school. The club is spearheading campaigns against FGM.
What you need to know:
- Girls in Isiolo are defying their parents and running away to escape FGM.
- School anti-FGM clubs are empowering these girls to know their rights, the dangers of FGM, and how to seek help.
- Despite the practice being illegal since 2011, it persists in some Kenyan communities, requiring education to change deep-rooted beliefs.
In the 22 Kenyan counties considered hotspots for female genital mutilation (FGM), parents wield significant power. The prevalence of this outlawed cultural practice remains high in these areas.
For decades, fathers and mothers have had the final say in subjecting their daughters to FGM. Their word has been treated as law, with daughters religiously following directives to undergo female circumcision without question.
However, this scenario is now changing, with girls, particularly in Isiolo County, boldly standing up to their parents or guardians to evade the practice.
Girls at risk of FGM are defiantly telling off their parents and firmly opposing mutilation. They have mastered the art of running away and seeking refuge in numerous rescue centres across the vast county.
They are also reporting their parents to the police and local authorities, leading to many arrests - an act previously unheard of.
One such girl who escaped a year ago after defying her parents is Mercy Leluata*. She vividly recalls how one evening in March the previous year, her mother instructed her to prepare for the commencement of FGM rituals. Mercy recounts the news as traumatising, knowing the inevitable confrontation with the knife that awaited her.
"I told her that FGM would happen to me over my dead body. I indicated that the outlawed practice had many negative effects on girls and women. I threatened to report her to the police. She got scared and told me not to report her," Mercy explains.
The following day, after the heated argument, Mercy witnessed several groups of women arriving at their home in the evening. When supper was served, she was summoned to a hut where an elderly woman smeared mud on her head before shaving it clean - a ritual signifying her impending genital mutilation early the next morning.
"I had to think and act fast to evade the knife. Around 9 PM, as women sang circumcision songs, I excused myself to use the toilet and seized the chance to escape. On the road, I met a friend who accompanied me to a rescue centre run by the Catholic Church in Oldonyiro, where I sought refuge," Mercy narrates.
Mercy is currently a Grade Seven pupil at Oldonyiro Primary School. Every evening after class, she returns to the rescue centre housing many other girls. During school holidays, she avoids going home for fear of being mutilated and married off, as her father threatened to kill her if she returned.
Esther Lorere*'s story echoes Mercy's experience of defying her parents. In January 2017, her mother relayed a chilling message from her father.
Esther was required to prepare for the cut after which she would be married off. As someone aspiring to become a doctor, Esther was shaken, knowing her dreams hung in the balance.
Boldness
"I knew if I failed to act, I would soon be cut and quickly married off, probably to an old man. I gathered courage and told my mother to inform my father that I could only be cut over my dead body. She was shocked by my boldness in defying them," Esther, now a Grade Eight student, recounts.
Esther hatched an escape plan, vanishing from home at 4am while her parents slept and running to the rescue centre. Since 2017, she has never returned home, even after learning of her father's passing during the Covid-19 crisis, as the fear of relatives subjecting her to FGM persists.
The stories of Mercy and Esther represent a growing trend of girls in Isiolo firmly opposing genital mutilation. This boldness stems from empowerment initiatives like the Anti-FGM clubs launched in schools three years ago by Amref Health Africa, in conjunction with Girl Generation and Action Aid. These clubs operate in 21 other schools across the county.
Both primary and secondary school clubs enlighten students about FGM's implications and advise on actions to take when at risk. The girls learn their rights, the legal stance against FGM, and its medical repercussions. Crucially, they are empowered to fight attempts at subjecting them to the cut and report perpetrators to authorities.
The clubs engage male pupils too, aiming to change beliefs that only circumcised girls are eligible for marriage. Teachers and parents are also targeted as potential allies in the anti-FGM fight.
"The club has assisted us in knowing our rights, the law's position on FGM, and its medical implications. It has really opened our eyes and those of many other girls and boys - many of us were unaware FGM is illegal," Mercy affirms.
Margaret Abenyo, the Anti-FGM Club and Girl's Forum coordinator at Oldonyiro Primary School, highlights the initiative's importance.
"FGM is rampant here. Many girls have dropped out, undergone cutting, and been married off. The club has enlightened girls about their rights and FGM's negative effects, teaching them to firmly oppose the vice," she explains.
The teacher notes the club's over 200 girl and boy members have significantly raised FGM awareness, emboldening more girls to openly defy their parents - a remarkable shift from 2010-2015 when girls were underrepresented in classes.
"We now have more girls than boys, which wasn't the case before. The awareness is going a long way in changing the cultural belief about FGM among locals," Abenyo affirms.
The initiative also targets boys to reshape perceptions about the necessity of marrying circumcised girls - a belief rooted in cultures practicing FGM.
"We want to transform boys into agents of change. As students, they can return home and alter their parents' mindsets," says Viola Ruto, the GBV/Child Protection Lead at Amref Health Africa, revealing plans to expand the program to more schools and counties.
According to Unicef, about four million Kenyan girls and women have undergone FGM, with 21 per cent aged 15-49 affected. If current trends persist, UNFPA estimates 86 million girls born between 2010-2015 will be at risk by 2030.
Globally, more than 200 million girls and women have been mutilated, mostly before age 15, exposing them to severe pain, bleeding, infections, urination difficulties, and long-term sexual, reproductive, and mental health complications, per WHO.
Kenya outlawed FGM in 2011 through the Female Genital Mutilation Act, imposing a minimum three-year jail term and Sh200,000 fine. However, the cultural practice persists, necessitating multi-pronged interventions to protect girls' rights and well-being.
*The names have been changed to protect the identities of the victims.
