by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

In a bid to keep their religious faith, some Kenyan parents do not take their children to hospitals, even for the most basic immunization. Such parents believe that only God heals and seeking conventional medicine is like worshiping idols.

Section 53(c) of the Constitution of Kenya gives all children indiscriminative right to access of health, nutrition and shelter. But the same constitution, under section 32(1), gives all Kenyans the freedom of thought, religion and conscience. While the law requires parents to seek conventional medicine including immunization for their children, parents who opt for “freedom of worship” ignore the children’s law. It is a clash between medicine, law and health.

by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

Cases of domestic violence are on the rise in Kenya. While in the past women were known to receive beatings from their husbands, it seems in recent years that women too are inflicting violence on their husbands.

In many African traditions men beat their wives to show their superiority. In some customs, women are equated with children and men discipline their wives just as they would their children.

by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

With the current inflation in Kenya, the number of Commercial Sex Workers (CSW) in Nakuru, the capital of the most populated Rift Valley province, is rising steadily – a trend that began after the 2007-2008 post-election violence.

The dangers CSWs are exposing themselves to range from HIV infection to mistreatment by clients and other workers. Karen Gakii, 22, will never forget the ordeal she underwent at the hands of her fellow CSWs.

by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

When they hear cries of their fellow countrymen hit by acute food shortage, Kenyan peasant farmers in more productive areas have no money to donate. While they may feel the need and the wish to feed other hungry Kenyans, these farmers cannot reach out with financial help.

More than 3.6 million Kenyans are in urgent need of food assistance. Within Rift Valley, which has a population of about 10 million people, millions languish in hunger, depending only on relief food. Yet other Kenyans in the Valley are struggling to find ways to dispose of produce following a bumper harvest.

by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

In a bid to retain culture and due to the greed of men who profit by marrying off their daughters, some communities in Kenya still practice Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

Section 14 of The Children’s Act of 2001 in Kenya protects children against harmful cultural practices under which FGM falls. Though this law has been in place for a decade, the practice is still rampant, especially among pastoral communities where even a girl may demand FGM since she has been brought up believing it to be part of her initiation to maturity.

by Rachel Muthoni
-Kenya-

Since they were evicted from the Mau Forest complex two years ago, more than 10,000 families have known no better life than that of suffering, sleeping in the cold, hunger, and lack of access to basic amenities.

by Rachel Muthoni
- Kenya -

If only Kenyan society would choose to understand their kin and friends who are HIV-positive, deaths resulting from this virus could be reduced significantly. But the stigma associated with being infected or affected by HIV hinders such acceptance and understanding, and makes many reject their friends and relatives when they are diagnosed.