VOA标准英语2015--FGM Remains Rampant in Some Kenyan Communities

FGM Remains¹ Rampant² in Some Kenyan Communities

KEHANCHA, KENYA—

Each February, the United Nations holds the International Day of Zero Tolerance³ for Female Genital Mutilation, or FGM. The practice is believed to affect more than 140 million girls and women globally.

The United Nations has pledged since 2012 to eliminate FGM, and billions of dollars have been spent creating awareness⁴ of the dangers it creates. But in a remote rural district in southwest Kenya, the practice is deeply rooted, and the community doesn't shy away from what it is doing.  

They dance along the highway and in the roads that connect the remote villages. Everyone is in a celebratory mood, for a circumcision ceremony has just been completed.

Practiced with impunity⁵

Circumcision for boys is legal in Kenya. Female genital mutilation is not. But the Kuria community in southwest Kenya openly practices female circumcision, and no police officer dares to stop them.

Some police officers and government officials who did not want to appear on camera told VOA they were outnumbered and the community would turn against them if they tried to act.

Away from the streets, VOA caught up with two teenage girls who underwent the cut that morning.

You could see the trauma⁶ on their faces, even as an elderly woman tried to cheer them up and assure them of their rightful place in Kuria society.

They are prepared and ready to join the rest of the girls who have been circumcised, which signals their transition into adulthood⁷.

Fleeing violence

A stone's throw away from the celebration, a church is hosting more than 20 girls who have been rescued from the cut.

In the church they are taught three main subjects: mathematics, English and religious studies.

In today's religious studies class they learn what the Bible says about female genital mutilation.

Pendo Gati is a survivor⁸ of FGM and a high school graduate. She said she felt unsafe in the community.

"My parents didn't want that, but the clan⁹ are forcing girls to be circumcised, and, for me, I don't see any importance of being circumcised as a girl. So I decided¹⁰ to come here and look for a better place to be," she said.

Breaking tradition

Those who have escaped circumcision, turning against centuries of tradition, have faced abuse and curses.

Robi Marwa, a head teacher at a secondary school, said, "During my wedding, when I was getting married here at this church, Taranganya, some people from my home where I come from -- you know what they were saying: 'Yes, the wedding is good, but they are not going to see a leg of a child.' The people were asking, 'Why is she not going to see the leg of a child? She is already cursed, she can't give birth.'"

That curse and bad-mouthing are in the past today. She has four children, is a university graduate and has become a role model to many girls in her community.

Florence Gachanja works with the United Nations Population Fund to combat FGM. She said that despite the open celebrations in the streets of Kuria, people are working hard to fight the practice.

But the FGM prevalence rate stands at about 27 percent nationally in Kenya, and officials that say in some areas the practice is still very common.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

3 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

4 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

5 impunity   

n.(惩罚、损失、伤害等的)免除

参考例句：

• You will not escape with impunity.你不可能逃脱惩罚。
• The impunity what compulsory insurance sets does not include escapement.交强险规定的免责范围不包括逃逸。

6 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

7 adulthood   

n.成年，成人期

参考例句：

• Some infantile actions survive into adulthood.某些婴儿期的行为一直保持到成年期。
• Few people nowadays are able to maintain friendships into adulthood.如今很少有人能将友谊维持到成年。

8 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

9 clan   

n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派

参考例句：

• She ranks as my junior in the clan.她的辈分比我小。
• The Chinese Christians,therefore,practically excommunicate themselves from their own clan.所以，中国的基督徒简直是被逐出了自己的家族了。

10 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。