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“I was genitally mutilated at the age of ten. My late grandmother told me that they were taking me down to a river to perform a certain ceremony, and afterwards I would be given a lot of food to eat. An innocent child, I was led as a sheep to be slaughtered.

Once I entered the secret bush, I was taken to a dark room and undressed. I was blindfolded and stripped naked. Two women at the site of the operation carried me. I was forced to lie flat on my back by 4 strong women holding my legs tightly. Another woman sat on my chest to prevent my upper body from moving. A piece of cloth was forced into my mouth to stop me from screaming.

When the operation started I put up a big fight: the pain was unbearable. During this fight; I was badly cut and lost blood. All those who took part in the operation were half drunk with alcohol. Others were dancing. I was genitally mutilated with a blunt penknife.

After the operation, no one was allowed to help me walk. The stuff they put on my wound stung and was so painful. These were terrible times for me. Each time I wanted to pass urine, I was forced to stand upright. The urine would spread over the wound and cause fresh pain all over again. Sometimes I had to force myself not to pass urine for fear of terrible pain. I was not given any anesthetic in the operation to reduce pain nor any antibiotic to fight against infection. Afterwards, I bled profusely and became anemic. This was attributed to witchcraft by the community. I suffered for a long time from acute vaginal infections”

‘Seline’

Conference on Female Genital Mutilation (F.G.M.)

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