Circumcision amongst the girls from Western Kenya is observed as a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood.
In the past, girls were circumcised at the age of 17-18 years when a girl was considered ready for marriage. Today, girls are circumcised when they are between the ages 8-15 years.
The decision to cut is usually made by the parents although in some cases girls can decide to go for it because of peer pressure. Parents consider only the physical size of the girl to decide whether she is of age or not.
Due to the high campaigns around to country aimed at stopping this rite of passage, more than 200 girls aged eight to 16 years from Kisii, Nyamira and Migori counties have fled their homes to escape female genital mutilation (FGM) which is rampant during the festive season.
The girls have taken refuge at Nyanchwa Girls high school where they are being trained by Kenya national commission on national rights and Nyanza region young women democrats
Regional Women democrats’ director Esnahs Nyaramba said that the girls will be educated for a week on the effects of the harmful practice, undergo an alternative rite of passage and then they will be allowed to return home where they will be monitored by the organisations official to ensure they are not “cut”.
“The girls will sensitize other not to succumb to pressure from their peers, parents and relatives to undergo the retrogressive practice. The ridicule and insults from their peers can prove to be impossible to bear and most of the girls succumb to pressure and opt to go for the cut even at an early age,” she said.