Alternative Rites Of Passage Research Articles

The ‘Loita Rite of Passage’: An alternative to the alternative rite of passage?

Since the late 1990s, so-called ‘alternative rites of passage’ (ARP) have gained popularity in Kenya as a strategy to end female genital mutilation (FGM). ARPs promise to end FGM while respecting indigenous cultures by mimicking the ‘traditional’ initiation ritual but with the omission of the physical cut. The limited number of studies on ARPs largely point out the approach's weaknesses and challenges. This article explores the case study of the Loita Rite of Passage, an ARP implemented among the Loita Maasai of southern Kenya and associated with NGO SAFE Maa. It analyses how the Loita Rite of Passage differs from the ARPs of other NGOs in Kenya and identifies factors for success.

Lessons learned from implementing alternative rites in the fight against female genital mutilation/cutting.

Introductionhistorically, programs aimed at making communities abolish female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) consisted mainly of awareness campaigns on sexual reproductive health and rights and the enforcement of newly implemented laws. These types of programs or interventions appear to be only partially effective and sometimes yield unintended results, such as actually strengthening commitment to FGM/C or transforming it into a secret practice. A newer approach to change that is intended to account for the cultural meanings ascribed to FGM/C are alternative rites of passage (ARP). Amref Health Africa started adopting this approach in 2007. Since then, by a trial-and-error process lessons have been learned, that will be reflected upon in this paper.Methodsdesk research was conducted on organizational data regarding all Amref Health Africa's efforts to end FGM/C. Ninety-four in-depth formal interviews were held with members from Maasai and Samburu communities in Kenya targeted through maximum variation sampling. And participant observation of significative events as well as daily pastimes took place during school holiday season at the end of 2016. Furthermore extensive informal talks were held with project donors, activists, journalists, members of other non-governmental organizations, members of community services organizations, local government officials, high-ranking Dutch and US diplomats and senior members of the Anti-Female Genital Mutilation Board, which is part of the Kenyan Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs. On the basis of these data a framework on different positions on FGM/C was developed and published in early 2018. By reviewing the data again from a particular change management and public health perspective, by peer-debriefing within a multi-disciplinary research team and by explicating the lessons learned this paper adds to an overview that is of crucial importance to practitioners working to end FGM/C.Resultsrisk of exclusion, perceived loss of cultural identity, changing meanings ascribed to cultural practices, lack of precise knowledge about subjective (sexual) experience and negative stereotyping are reasons not to adhere to anti-FGM/C programs. Areas of concern are the role confusion with following-up on policing, perceived outsider interference and the intended prolonging of the transition phase into womanhood not being explicated and embedded with ARP. Aspects to enhance to lever change more effectively are education and school curriculum development, male involvement, new stylization of love relationships, monitoring and evaluation and inclusive aspects of religion.Conclusionchanging a culturally embedded practice such as FGM/C is inherently complex. Because the cultural meanings ascribed to this practice are also evolving, any intervention that is effective at present might become superfluous in the future. A holy grail approach to change simply does not exist. Change needs to be levered in a variety of ways while working on the alignment of all these efforts by regular and thorough quantitative and qualitative assessments of effects and side-effects and reflections on lessons learned.

Alternative Rites of Passage in FGM/C Abandonment Campaigns in Africa: A research opportunity

Alternative Rites of Passage (ARP) are a relatively recent invention, and a key element in female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) abandonment strategies organised by NGOs in some regions of Africa, particularly East Africa. They aim to replicate traditional initiation rituals for pubescent girls who are transitioning to womanhood, but without FGM/C. This paper briefly describes the genesis of ARP in Kenya since 1996, and discusses its significance as a hybridised cultural assemblage that forms part of new cultural and relational processes. It emphasises the importance of examining the deep context in which ARP takes place, including the traditional ritual that it aims to replace. The paper identifies lacunae in the literature, and potential lines of enquiry for future research. The Appendix includes summaries of a selection of the literature on ARP.

Alternative Rites of Passage: Faith, rights, and performance in FGM/C abandonment campaigns in Kenya

ABSTRACTAlternative Rites of Passage (ARP) are touted by NGOs and international donors as an alternative to female initiation into womanhood, but without female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/FGC). They are becoming increasingly popular in Kenya, and with donors funding global campaigns against FGM. In these ceremonies and the instruction that precedes them, girls’ human rights (mainly to life, health, education, protection) and cultural rights (manifested in teachings and ritual elements that aim to mimic the cultural traditions of the community concerned) are intertwined in one social space. ARP is discussed here in the broader context of constitutional change that has introduced the concept of cultural rights to Kenyan citizens, while simultaneously outlawing harmful cultural practices. However, the meaning of ‘culture’ within ARP is rarely defined by external or internal actors. Moreover, the central role of Christian faith leaders – especially Pentecostal – in ARP tends not to be regarded as cultural by local actors, including NGOs, and is largely overlooked in the scanty literature. This article argues that faith leaders’ contribution to ARP constitutes significant ritualised cultural performance, but religious messages do not necessarily sit well with the more secular discourses of rights and law around FGM. ARP may be read as a newly-invented ritual that aims to replicate aspects of traditional initiation. In so doing, pick-and-mix notions of pastness, culture, social transformation and tradition are being incorporated into a hybridised ritual that its proponents present as evidence of development and modernity, and a ‘harmless’ alternative to FGM.

Implications of female genital mutilation on girls’ education and psychological wellbeing in Tarime, Tanzania

ABSTRACTThough female genital mutilation is widely practiced in Tanzania, there has been no systematic examination of its long-term implications on girls’ wellbeing. Employing interviews and focus group discussions, this study explored the implications of female genital mutilation (FGM) on girls’ wellbeing in Tarime, Tanzania. The results revealed that the effect of FGM on girls are multifaceted, including early marriages, parents’ negative attitudes towards girls’ education, girls’ change in attitudes and loss of interest in schooling, which lead to poor educational achievement in many ways. Notably, girls who manage to escape FGM suffer from isolation and stigma from their peers who have been circumcised. Arguably, FGM is both a protective and risk factor for girls in Tarime. FGM is a protective factor against stigma and isolation for circumcised girls, and it is a risk factor in denying circumcised girls’ opportunities for education, and in perpetuating stigmatisation for the uncircumcised girls. We have concluded that, in the absence of more positive alternative rites of passage for adolescent girls in Tarime, and despite the widespread awareness about its negative consequences, FGM is likely to continue due to its centrality in the Kuryan cultural, social and economic necessities.

Female genital mutilation and cutting: An anatomical review and alternative rites.

The World Health Organization reports that more than 200 million women currently alive have been subjected to female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) worldwide, and three million girls continue to be at risk each year. FGM/C today is women's business. The vulva is formed by the labia majora and the vestibule, with its erectile apparatus. These structures are located under the urogenital diaphragm, behind the pubic symphysis in the anterior perineal region. The clitoris is entirely an external genital organ: the glans and body covered by the prepuce are visible/free while the roots are hidden. FGM/C procedures are classified into four types. Infibulation is the narrowing of the vaginal orifice with creation of a covering seal by cutting and appositioning of the labia minora and/or the labia majora, with or without removal of the clitoris. Deinfibulation is necessary to improve health and well-being and to allow intercourse or facilitate childbirth. Clitoral reconstruction is feasible for genitally mutilated patients. Female genital cosmetic surgery should be classed as FGM/C type IV. Both immediate and long-term complications are associated with FGM/C. It remains primarily a cultural rather than a religious practice. Different interventions have been used to persuade communities to abandon it. Alternative rites of passage are seen as an important strategy for eliminating this harmful practice. Such alternative rituals avoid genital cutting and involve educating girls about family life and women's roles, exchange of gifts, celebration, and a public declaration for community recognition. FGM/C is a violation of human rights and must be abandoned. Clin. Anat. 30:81-88, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Changing Concept of Adolescence in Kenya: Three Generations Speak

Kenya has at least 42 tribes. Each of these tribes had a unique way of marking the boundary between childhood and adulthood. It is like once pubertal signs emerged, the adolescent was said to be ready for adulthood. Traditional conceptualization of adolescence is not clearly defined, because while puberty marks the beginning of adolescence today, this was not the case in the traditional society. In the traditional society, when a girl started getting her menstrual periods, she was considered mature and arrangements for marriage were started. Modern rites of passage tend to come closer to how modern text books define adolescence. Most boys undertake circumcision after completing primary school, as they wait to join high school. Upon realizing that the hospital ceremony, unlike the traditional one, is lacking in complementary teachings, some Churches have organized teachings prior to circumcision. For girls, after circumcision for them was banned, alternative rites of passage (ARPs) are being instituted, most often targeting urban girls, but these, too, raise questions: Do alternative rites of passage fulfill the same functions for modern society that traditional ceremonies once fulfilled? And, if they do so for girls, is there reason to believe that they ought to be developed for both genders? This paper examines self-reports of Kenyans spanning three generations regarding social roles and identity-seeking among those who did (primarily older men) and did not (primarily younger men and women of all ages) participate in traditional initiation ceremonies.