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Friday, 23 June 2006 Kenya shock at mutilation death
Kenyan villagers have been shocked by the death of girl who bled to death after trying to perform female genital mutilation (FGM) on herself.
Pamela Kathambi did the procedure on her own because she was being teased by her friends for not being circumcised in the remote village of Irindi.
Her mother told the BBC that she had refused to allow her 15-year-old to be circumcised last year.
FGM is banned in Kenya, but remains common in some areas.
In some communities it is believed that circumcision will maintain a girl's honour and is part of a girl's initiation into womanhood.
Julia Kanuu said she found her daughter lying in her bed on Sunday, complaining of a stomach-ache and she had asked for some tea.
It was only after the tea had been made that Pamela admitted what she had done to herself.
"She used to be called names by her age mates and friends - 'mukenye' - the name given to uncircumcised ladies," Mrs Kanuu said.
"I realised that girls who are not circumcised have gone ahead with education and are doing well in life so I didn't want her to be circumcised."
'Hard-working'
The BBC's Wanyama Chebusiri says scores of villagers were milling around the family's homestead discussing the issue in low tones a day after her burial on Wednesday.
"Pamela's death is a loss to the village because she was a very hard-working lady who would have studied and become someone in the future," one woman said.
A local chief in Meru district, central Kenya, said this was the first instance of self circumcision he had heard about and the government had stepped its anti-FGM campaign.
The FGM operation involves the partial or total removal of the external genital organs.
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i feel numb.... i wish there was something i could do.
i know the west has its problems, but this kind of stuff breaks my heart.
Sonomod_me Member # 10522
posted
quote:Originally posted by Reconstrucdead: Friday, 23 June 2006 Kenya shock at mutilation death
Kenyan villagers have been shocked by the death of girl who bled to death after trying to perform female genital mutilation (FGM) on herself.
Pamela Kathambi did the procedure on her own because she was being teased by her friends for not being circumcised in the remote village of Irindi.
Her mother told the BBC that she had refused to allow her 15-year-old to be circumcised last year.
FGM is banned in Kenya, but remains common in some areas.
In some communities it is believed that circumcision will maintain a girl's honour and is part of a girl's initiation into womanhood.
Julia Kanuu said she found her daughter lying in her bed on Sunday, complaining of a stomach-ache and she had asked for some tea.
It was only after the tea had been made that Pamela admitted what she had done to herself.
"She used to be called names by her age mates and friends - 'mukenye' - the name given to uncircumcised ladies," Mrs Kanuu said.
"I realised that girls who are not circumcised have gone ahead with education and are doing well in life so I didn't want her to be circumcised."
'Hard-working'
The BBC's Wanyama Chebusiri says scores of villagers were milling around the family's homestead discussing the issue in low tones a day after her burial on Wednesday.
"Pamela's death is a loss to the village because she was a very hard-working lady who would have studied and become someone in the future," one woman said.
A local chief in Meru district, central Kenya, said this was the first instance of self circumcision he had heard about and the government had stepped its anti-FGM campaign.
The FGM operation involves the partial or total removal of the external genital organs.
As I said before its an extremely common practics among continental Africans.
Yet I have a classmate from Kenya, a nice guy married to a Norweigen American, a Lutheran Minnesotan like myself.
This guy is always trying to besmear my husband's nationality and cultural customs, I manage to talk him into accepting that Kenya isn't any better.
So he brings up FGM and am I worried about my daughter, I sneer over at him and let him know that I am well aware that the practice is near universal in Kenya. He sheepishly admits that his Grandma's generation looked forward to their circumscion as much as their wedding day.
Usually when an African starts on my husband's culture their culture does the same sh*t and worse. I have gotten really good and cornering them verbally with all the dirty little secrets of each nation, culture, tribe and so forth. And I must come up with a large heap of positives too, which isn't that hard African society is really a marvel when it comes to humanity.
But I can't believe how much African Christians and Muslims have in common and yet they will tar and feather each other to no avail.
It gets really fricking irritating.
Charm El Feikh? Member # 10243
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i feel pretty dumb... either that or its not that common or its really well covered up... cause...
1. my step father who brought me up is kenyan... and 2.my ex is ugandan... with kids involved youd think id know this stuff.. ive spent my life with people from these countries, and i knew NOTHING about this?!
Sonomod_me Member # 10522
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Possibly because they are guys and really don't care because its women's business, but at the same time they expect this practice to continue for their sake.
I have done loads of reading, I understand that I am a complete bore and all, but when someone doesn't want to have the truth in their face they disregard your personal experiences with the issue, and when its a scholarly or academic or a NGO study then its a conspiracy against their ethnicity.
So discussing the not so pleasant aspects always makes you the bad guy. Yet they will rail on the west and its disvirtures, but you can't do the same to their culture.
I need to know these things, I have a retention rate of over 80% so I am the "Norm" of Cheers in that respect. And its not like I don't catch on that its irritating. I know its irritating,I irritate myself.
But if I am going to interact with another culture I need to understand it up and down so nothing catches me off guard. And people do lie fullstop about their cultural drawbacks, and assume you'll believe them.
KERDA(chimps:) Member # 11116
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its discusting that in this day and age things are still happening and probably twice has worse ,coming from a islamic and jewish family back ground most of my friends think and ask me if im going to circumsize my daughter WTF i tell them this is not islamic at all its stated no girl shall be touched there its gundha to think this its cutural thing and mostly from the darkest roots of AFRICA but not saying it can happen here in UNITED KINGDOM and it has !!! so sad to hear of this my heartgoes out to her may she find peace and so her mother too .w/s aallah hafeez
lemonspice Member # 5667
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What a horrifying and heart breaking tragedy. Peer pressure once again proves to be a serious factor that could push teenager to suicide attempts. One wonders when will the day comes when things like this actually stop taking place in REAL LIFE, apart from being banned, which obviously stops no one from doing what they 'believe in'.
I am certain that this nightmarish act is performed by many many parents here in Egypt every single day, especially in the countryside and lower-class areas in Cairo such as Boulaq, Imbaba, Sayyeda, Mokattam, Giza, etc. The residents in these areas are living in another world. These should be the people to target when making the anti-FGM law. Full blame goes to the parents & their ignorance and stupidity, along with their false idea of how beneficial it would be for their daughter!! It is not just illegal, but also taboo/haram in Islam. What else do they need to stop them?!
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