I have decided to occasionally publish my behind the scenes conversations trying to convince Female Genital Mutilation sympathizers’. This is done only with full consent of the person involved and their identities are concealed. Here is my raw WhatsApp conversation with a male Kikuyu youth who believes Female Genital Mutilation should be continued. This conversation was started after he trolled me on Twitter and I gave him my number. I hope one day I can convince him to join #MenENDFGM and start advocating for the end of this harmful cultural practice.
[07:09, 10/10/2018] Youth: Hey Tony its (name withheld) ..tulkua tuongee maneno ya fgm
[08:24, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: Mambo mkubwa
[08:24, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: How are you. Thanks for reaching out to me
[09:28, 10/10/2018] Youth: So why are you fighting this precious Gem our Africans should go through
[09:31, 10/10/2018] Youth: Am a member of the kikuyu council of youth and we really fighting for female circumcision and practicing it on those who have undergone the kikuyu teaching ‘kirira’
[11:12, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: Sorry I fell asleep kwa gari. Tell me more why do you support it bro. Your reasons. Then we can begin from there
[11:25, 10/10/2018] Youth: Its Reasons are purely based on my culture..there is something known as “mbini ya tata”(aunt’s earing) and thiri wa cucu (deni ya grandma ) wiĺl not disclose their deeper meaning but basically the rituals states that all women must find their aunts earing and must pay their grandamas fine..because their late grandma’s was circumcised IT IS A MUST FOR ONE TO UNDEGO THE CUT!!..
I don’t how to put it well in writing, its best explained orally
[11:28, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: I have an understanding. Hata kama sio deeper. I am a Meru
[11:30, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: I agree it’s a cultural issue. But research shows it has no medical benefits whatsoever. I believe for this reason we should abandon it. Remember our grandparents used to pierce their ears and pull them? Si tuliwacha hiyo.
[11:33, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: Culture is beautiful and valuable! It should be guarded jealously. This I agree but harmful cultural practices have no place in the 21st century. This is the only reason as to why I preach against it
[11:40, 10/10/2018] Youth: Its harmful only when done in the kienyeji..it has no medical complications but cultural wise it has strong effects if not practiced
[11:57, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: My friend whether done by a doctor or a nurse, the effects are the same. It is like telling me if you lose your leg as long as it’s a doctor who has cut it or its done properly then there is no harm
[11:59, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: Make me understand though these cultural effects?
[12:42, 10/10/2018] Youth: Effect depends on the wrath your ancestors will give you; to those I have interacted with here are some:
1: Complications during birth
2: cervix cancer (believe it or not..after the cut she didn’t go for any more chemo)
3: Giving birth to abnormal children
Others can’t say it here (cia mucii tí como)
You may tend to say that we are living in the 21st century, so this is hogwash and ancient but time will tell.
[15:35, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: But these are just myths.
[15:36, 10/10/2018] Tony Mwebia: This is why I said you can’t allow your grandma to school you bro. Did you do biology in High school
[17:28, 10/10/2018] Youth: The myth concept was brought by the whites. It’s our culture! All those whom have undergone the cut are well with zero complications. what’s your stand against it?
As a council; We are not going back to the culture blindly…like i know fgm is fought in the rift communities to end early marriages. For us we aren’t interfering with one’s life…In fact; AM taking two UNIVERSITY GIRLS for the cut this weekend. One of them studying medicine leave alone high school biology knowledge. Am glad our people are getting back to their roots as well embracing modernity where necessary
[08:49, 10/12/2018] Tony Mwebia: Mambo mkubwa
[08:49, 10/12/2018] Tony Mwebia: Waendelea aje
[20:42, 10/13/2018] Youth: Nko poa..
There is a difference between mutilation and circumcision!!.. we circumcise our girl not mutilate. Thank you
[09:05, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: The difference is the same
[09:05, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: How have you been lakini
[13:14, 10/22/2018] Youth: have been good..kusukuma wasichana wapate rweji tu
[13:15, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: So umekeketa wangapi so far
[13:15, 10/22/2018] Youth: Over 100
[13:17, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: Ha ha ha .. Uongo
[13:17, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: Wapi Picha .. Ama evidence
[13:19, 10/22/2018] Youth: Picha hakuna…huamini
[13:22, 10/22/2018] Tony Mwebia: Siamini
[11:44, 11/16/2018] Tony Mwebia: Mambo boss
[12:36, 11/16/2018] Youth: Fiti fiti sana
[12:38, 11/16/2018] Tony Mwebia: Waendelea aje
[12:40, 11/16/2018] Youth : Naendelea fiti.still preaching of our culture😅
[12:42, 11/16/2018] Tony Mwebia: Ha ha ha.. I was asking for consent to publish some of your Comments on my blog. But I will not reveal your identity
[12:42, 11/16/2018] Tony Mwebia: Na Kwa social media pia
[12:45, 11/16/2018] Youth : Its fine
[13:15, 11/16/2018] Tony Mwebia: Perfect
To my fellow Kikuyu friends is this really happening? Have you heard about it! Let’s talk,this sounds pretty serious!!!
Keep the comments coming
I am adding some comments that I am getting from differen WhatsApp groups!
It’s happening and it’s real. A while back I heard someone from my village telling another woman akuje akunywe Chai coz msichana wake ametahiri. And the father of the girl really seemed very excited.
Surely something has to be done
This occurs mostly with Kikuyu’s from central itself..
Am from rftvalley and witnessed 2 of my classmates from muranga undergo the cut in class six with such reasons he is saying….in high school…kitale another one told me similar story after we had a group discussion ya c.r.e on FGM….another not far from home neighbor married in central had to first undergo it before anything else…..my own 4/5 of my mums sisters went through it and the one that dint go thru was rescued by the sisters having gone out of our home area and saw other communities don’t do it…..reasons for doing it very tied to wat that youth person is saying
Crazy I tell you. This has to be addressed soonest. We need the affected women and girls to start talking
Hi Tony. I come from kiambu county and mugiki are the ones doing this thing. They circumcise their wife’s and daughters. And they don’t even hide it.
This seems like a sad situation and it needs to be addressed. We need to open up this conversation
I have read Tony’s conversation with the unidentified youth. My gut reaction is that he is a Mungiki adherent most probably a fresh recruit based on his misplaced nostalgia with the pre-modern cultural rites and his passion to execute them on others (women). Part of their diet is cannabis with muguka as chewing gum so one expects such lofty impossibke thoughts as turning the clock of time for a century as part of their theorising.
Mungiki is a youth criminal gang gone too far due to the government lacking for years and years ways of constructively engaging them apart from shooting them dead to eliminate them. But that creates martyrdom for successive generations of marginalised youth.
If there are young women who have been cut as the youth alleges that would most likely be through coercion. It would have been a condition for the young women to be allowed to fit in their drugged world.
It is common in big cities for young women to be violent ly kept trapped in such gangs.
London and other big cities for instance do go through times when criminal gangs can be sexually abusive to their female members but the good thing is that the County governments and the Police are good at disrupting the gang operations (without killing them of course) and helping the female members out.
The women do get used to run criminal errands such as drug trafficking and also to provide sexual services to the male gang members.
Being children by virtue of their age the Police and other government agencies ought to be on their radar.
I also had a similar feeling this could be the return of Mungiki
Those saying its the resurfacing of mungiki, lemme make it clear..ITS THE RESURFACING OF KIKUYU CULTURE!!!
The female circumcision is unstoppable guys;though is freely done on a willing person not forcefully…we must go to our roots!!
Exactly……. I support it 100%
I don’t believe any informed Kenyan of sound mind, without coercion would willingly subject herself to FGM
Imagine it happens Tony…I was shocked to be shown some PCEA women guild who practice it.
Yea Tony, it’s happening in hospitals in kangema…….Mungiki is on the rise
This is so deep, and patiently done.
Very crucial information shared there!