NAIROBI, KENYA — Naomi Kolian recounts the ordeal at her parents' house at the age of 13. Kolian, now a mother of five, said her parents arranged for her genital mutilation during a school break. She had just taken her national examination.
''They stripped off my clothes, poured cold water on me. I passed out," she said. "When I recovered, I realized that a certain woman was already cutting me, out of pain I tried to jump so they tied both of my legs with ropes.''
As of 2021, at least 14.8% of Kenyan women like Kolian had undergone female genital mutilation, or FGM, according to the Britain-based FGM/C Research Initiative; 45.6% are cut between 5 and 9 years of age. It is seen as a rite of passage for girls and considered a compulsory step before marriage.
Now men are stepping up to end the practice. Through a movement called "MenEndFGM," they are educating others on the dangers of FGM and sensitizing communities where cultural norms and traditions such as FGM run deep.
The movement's executive director, Tony Mwebia, said most men in the communities that support FGM are ignorant of what the cut entails and are always providing resources and guarding the FGM ceremonies.
''As MenEndFGM, what we do is we go and have conversations with men," said Mwebia. "We show the visual materials, we use a lot of chats, we use videos, photos of complications in labor wards.''
At least 600 men like Noah Sampeke, a senior chief in Kenya's Kajiado County, have joined the movement that started as an online campaign. Sampeke said he regrets keeping the tradition of marrying only women that have undergone the cut.
Sampeke said he comes from a community where "it was compulsory for women to get the cut and if she got pregnant without the cut, she was considered an outcast. But now I will not force my girls to get the cut.''
In November, Kenyan women's rights activists began 16 days of activism against Gender Based Violence, among which female genital mutilation is the most egregious violation, according to advocates. They said a collective movement for change is crucial.
Ajra Mohamed is country representative for Nguvu Collective, a women's advocacy group.
''They might [say] that because we have very strict regulations, people will avoid FGM, while on the ground, people are actually hiding it and community leaders are supporting that," said Mohamed. "So, if you have connected them with grassroots activists, they will be able to inform them to be the whistleblowers.''
Kenya ratified the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act in 2011 and established an anti-FGM board, an agency that spearheads campaigns to eradicate FGM. The agency's CEO, Bernadette Loloju, told VOA that the board is promoting alternative rites of passage such as training girls into adulthood without a cut.
FGM rates slightly declined from 21% to 15% in a 2022 demographic health survey. Officials believe that the approach of incorporating men will help eradicate FGM.
