NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 6- A five-year-old girl has been hailed for her bravery, which saw her escape the illegal cut-Female Genital Mutilation- in a village in Mukurwe-Ini, Nyeri County.
The girl is said to have stood up to the tormentors, just when they were about to administer the crude act on her.
As fate would have it, police came just on time, to rescue her. With the swift action by the police, who were acting on a tip-off, the girl was spared the ordeal.
Police headquarters said 7 other girls were rescued during an operation that saw crude weapons used to administer the illegal cut recovered.
All 7 girls, police said, are receiving medical attention.
During the operation that was conducted within Nginga village in Muthuthuni Sub-location, police nabbed 7 suspects.
All the suspects are in police custody, awaiting a ruling on their bail application.
“They were linked to the violation of the rights of minors by administering Female Genital Mutilation (FGM),” police said.
The operation was jointly conducted by County and National Government officers.
Of the arrested suspects, five are women while two are men.
Police identified them as Christine Nthenya, Alice Wanfia, Cecilian Nyaguthii, Rose Mumbi, Esther Ng’endo, Aloise Waweru and Wahome Muriuki.
The National Police Service has urged Kenyans to remain vigilant, and more so now when school-going children are on holiday, to ensure they do not undergo the illegal cut, which has far-reaching health implications.
“FGM is not only outdated but also outlawed, hence criminal,” NPS said. “The practice puts women, especially young girls under grave physical and psychological health risk. It should therefore be condemned by all.”
An investigative piece by Shahidi News late last year, revealed that the practice was slowly returning in Central Kenya, in a discreet manner.
The focus on the war against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Kenya has largely been in areas where the Maasai community, Kuria, or Kisii reside, however, this is changing and Central Kenya where there was little or no such incidents, an increase in the number of women who are undergoing the cut is on the rise, albeit in secrecy.
The winds of FGM have been blowing in the region since early 2019, hundreds of girls and married women have undergone the cut, according to multiple sources drawn from traditionalists, authorities, and elders.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 200 million girls are at the risk of undergoing the harmful practice globally, many of them being under the age of 15 years.
In Kenya, around 4 million, or one in five, women and girls have been subjected to FGM according to the study conducted by UNICEF, while 574,000 additional girls are at risk of undergoing the practice by 2030. The UN agency released the statistics in August 2021.
According to the Prohibition of the Female Genital Mutilation Act, 2011, “A person who commits an offence under this Act is liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a term of not less than three years, or to a fine of not less than two hundred thousand shillings, or both.”
FGM has many health effects including recurrent urinary and vaginal infections, chronic pain, infertility, hemorrhaging, epidermoid cysts, and difficult labor.
It also has a psychological impact and abnormalities in the female sexual function.
Under the Presidential Costed Action Plan, President Uhuru Kenyatta hopes to eradicate FGM in Kenya by 2022.
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