The planned visit
by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to Nairobi to launch a
global media campaign against female genital mutilation (FGM) is
timely.
Mr Ban, who is due in Kenya this week, has been persistent in calling for an end to outdated cultural practices.
One of his priorities is to help to empower women and girls by promoting their health and defending their rights.
The
media, teachers, and provincial administrators have a vital role to
play in helping educate parents on the dangers of FGM, a practice that
demeans, dehumanises, and injures in the name of tradition.
We should strive to preserve the best in our cultures and abandon practices that are harmful.
It
is surprising that even after campaigns over the years, young girls and
even women are still being subjected to the rite in some parts of the
country even though the practice is illegal.
It is
unfortunate that some chiefs, who are mandated to enforce the law, are
reported to be colluding with parents to allow the rite.
Female circumcision was made illegal in 2001 after the government outlawed FGM among girls under the age of 18.
However, despite these efforts, FGM is still common in many parts of the country and there are relatively few prosecutions.
The law criminalises female genital mutilation and tough action should be taken against those who still practise it.
GOVERNMENT'S COMMITMENT
The establishment of the Anti-FGM Board, chaired by former assistant minister Linah Jebii Kilimo, demonstrates the government’s commitment to the war against the practice.
Mrs
Kilimo’s work has been fundamental in the fight against FGM. She has
been instrumental in heightening political will to address the issue,
serving as an outstanding model for women, girls, and activists both in
Kenya and internationally.
The former minister now has
an unprecedented opportunity to devote her talents and experiences to
the elimination of this violation of the rights of women and girls.
To
contain the menace, the Anti-FGM Board should launch campaigns that
involve men to create awareness in all people of the dangers the rite
poses.
This is because one of the reasons girls are
subjected to FGM is to make them “suitable” for marriage, therefore
men’s support is necessary to enforce the law against the harmful
practice.
A change in the attitude of men is vital in
helping to fight the practice. Men and boys should be encouraged to
publicly support and take part in ceremonies for alternative rites of
passage, which are designed to replace the need for FGM.
Politicians are doing little to actively combat FGM.
Despite the anti-FGM law, most parliamentarians have been reluctant to discuss FGM.
It
appears that the leaders fear losing political support and risking
isolation by their peers if they openly speak against the practice.
CONCERTED EFFORT
Unlike
other gender issues such as access to education, FGM is viewed as one
cultural practice which, if threatened, endangers the cohesion of a
community.
Although laws alone are not enough to end
the practice, there is a need for concerted effort by political leaders,
churches, NGOs to fight it.
The government cannot single-handedly monitor adherence to anti-FGM laws. It needs the support of other stakeholders.
A
negative cultural activity such as FGM can be changed without
disrupting the positive underlying social value that it represents.
The
World Vision’s alternative rite of passage, in collaboration with
church organisations, has greatly reduced cases of FGM in Kerio Valley.
The initiative, has promoted new ways for girls to be initiated into adulthood without undergoing circumcision.
Public
awareness programmes are gradually changing people’s attitude about
female circumcision and many people are now coming forward to reject the
vice.
Changing an age-old tradition that is embedded
in a people’s culture is not simple. Communities that advocate FGM
resist change because they fear that their customs are threatened.
The
UN Secretary-General’s decision to involve the media in the war against
FGM is timely and a move in the right direction. After all, education
is the key to eliminating FGM.
Mr Kaino works for the Deputy President’s Press Service. (kainobethwel@yahoo.com)
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