The call was made by the LC5 Chairperson of Amudat district during the launch of a research report on the persistence of female genital mutilation by CCFU in Amudat On the 20th September 2023.
The Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda (CCFU) in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and support from UN Women in Uganda launched a report that highlights the persistence of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Uganda, with a focus on Karamoja.
The event which was attended by representatives of the civil society organisations, Amudat and Moroto district local government, cultural institutions, health workers, members of the community and religious leaders was held at Amudat district local government headquarters.
Despite being outlawed by the FGM act of 2010 by the government of Uganda and different interventions by different stakeholders, the practice of FGM continues to take place in Ugandan communities, especially in Karamoja.
This study, therefore, was aimed at interrogating the reasons for the persistence of the practice despite being outlawed by the government as well as exploring alternative rites of passage which could possibly be adopted to signify the passage of girls from childhood to womanhood. It was further intended to help development actors to design appropriate interventions to address the practice of FGM while respecting the identity of the people in the concerned communities. The study was conducted in two cultural communities of the Pokot of Amudat district, and the Tepeth of Moroto district.
While speaking at the event, the Deputy Executive Director of CCFU, Fredrick Nsibambi noted that “what makes our research unique is that we interrogated alternative rites of initiation for women and girls. We pledge to work with the communities and local leaders to promote the use of these rites and end the actual cutting.”
The study findings reveal that FGM among the Pokot and Tepeth is linked to cultural identity, a reason why the practice has persisted even after being outlawed by the government. The attachment of FGM to the cultural communities practicing it is demonstrated by the high level of confidentiality with which it is done; consequently, from the police stations in Amudat, there is little information/ statistics on the number of women or girls that have been cut. This has also posed challenges to the implementation of the law.
The study also discovers that the practice of FGM has undergone significant changes in terms of the process due to the enactment of the law which is punitive rather than reformatory and this has pushed it underground. For instance, while it was done communally in the past, it is now clandestinely done and in some cases, church songs are sung to disguise the practice.
Alternative rites of passage to initiate girls into womanhood
While presenting research findings, the Deputy Executive Director of CCFU, Fredrick Nsibambi noted that according to the community in Amudat District, alternative rites of passage which can be explored and adopted to “graduate” girls from childhood to adulthood instead of FGM.
Some of these include; Collective/ communal grooming and passing out of girls by the community at Kipuntogh, a ceremony which involves Chepokomerwa (dance) and Kilakat (dressing the girl) where all girls that are of age would be graduated at one function in the whole village characterized by celebration.
‘Lopeikere’ which is likened to a fundraising initiative which they proposed to be done for girls who are of age and have attained a certain level of education. It was believed that this would be a good incentive for the girls to patiently go through the education system as they wait for this ceremony which in their opinion, would be a source of pride to the girls being recognized as is the case with FGM.
Revitalising “Naleyo” among the Tepeth which is a traditional dance which attracts girls from all villages so they can be identified by potential suitors was another alternative rite of passage proposed by the community members.
The LC5 Chairperson called upon CCFU to work in collaboration with other partners that are already fighting FGM in the communities to implement the activities.
“If we have to achieve the end of FGM, we have to work with cultural leaders as an important resource. They are key to mindset change, but we need to change their mindset too.”