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afrol.com, 11 December - Through its development programme, the Norwegian Lutheran Mission in Pokot, Kenya, has worked to curb genital mutilation of girls for several years. "Now, we can see that it of use," says missionary Ingrid Nęss, leading one of the many successful initiatives against female genital mutilation in Kenya. Missionary Ingrid Nęss has experienced mourning and despair over small girls growing up in her neighbourhood having to go through the rite for years. "Through the circumcision they don't only lose a vital part of their female genital, but it is also a theft of their self esteem and their feeling of equity," says the missionary. - This is a tradition to which also the Kenyan Government opposes strongly, but it still is widespread on the countryside, says Mrs. Nęss. "For years we have been teaching about the complications that follow such an intervention. Now we can see that it is of use, and we want to carry on with our information services." The programme is implemented by women from Pokot, educating other women. Loice Chepkieny, a trained teacher, coordinates the Pokot programme, based on women's education groups. Mrs. Chepkieny teaches everything from reading, agriculture, business to accounting. She has found Pokot women hungering for education and information, and being receptive to information about health complications following female genital mutilation (FGM). More and more mothers spare their daughters of going through the rite, the programme has noted. Kenya has been one of the most progressive African nations when it comes to fighting FGM. President Moi has issued two presidential decrees banning FGM, and the Government prohibits government-controlled hospitals and clinics from practicing it. However, no law bans FGM. Still, this month two teenage Kenyan girls obtained a court injunction restraining their father from forcing them to go for the mutilation. Although Government interference has helped significantly to spur a public debate over the traditional practice, the presidential decrees have still had little effect. The most successful in the fight against FGM have been small-scale community programmes, mostly lead by women. FGM is deeply based in traditions and local culture, and tends to go underground if only prohibited. Successful projects against FGM therefore mostly have engaged women in direct communication over time. This has been done through information on health risks, such as the Pokot educational programme, or through the search for alternative rites, as the "circumcision" rite often is attached to purity and womanhood. Non-cut girls thus often experienced social isolation and difficulties in finding a local husband. The invention of alternative rites, based on information work and communication, often has been the most successful initiatives curbing FGM. An alternative rite which is gaining ground among the Tharaka people, where up to 90% of girls used to be mutilated, is based on the festivity of the original rite. Five days isolation and education in primary health care and family life leaves the girls graduate as women. Community programmes are mostly organised by women's initiatives or religious groups, such as the Lutheran Mission, but are especially successful when supported by local authorities and schools. In Tharaka, this has happened, and leaders in Tharaka Division claim that the practice has been reduced by 40 percent. FGM is widely practiced in some parts of rural Kenya, especially in the eastern parts of the country. Health officials estimate that as many as 50 percent of Kenyan women have suffered FGM, which is usually performed at an early age.
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