Mary Ombara
5 July 2002
Prostitution is not a new trade in Rangwe, South Nyanza, but social workers are astounded by its meteoric rise in the height of the Aids pandemic. Nearly 500 orphaned girls in the district have become sex workers.
"The epidemic has left them fending for themselves," says Ms Nereah Seda, a community worker. Neglected by relatives, their behaviour is reactive and reckless.
Many defiantly declare prostitution to be a reliable source of income yet the trade earns them only 12 per cent of their total income. "Although monetary gain appears to be the foremost consideration, for many, commercial sex might never have been an option".
"The extreme loneliness resulting from the tragedy of losing both parents is unbearable. Many girls become vulnerable to risky sexual relations to fill the void," says Ms Seda, of Community Aid International.
Age gives men an upper hand while poverty reduces the girls' bargaining power. "Relationships between older men and young girls are tricky. Fear of losing coveted privileges makes the girls take big risks", says Nairobi psychologist Nancy Weribo.
Making a bad situation worse
But the girls' dual relations with male peers make a bad situation worse. Schoolboys become an even higher risk group. "We noted an alarming incidence of voluntary pre-marital sex amongst the youth," says Ms Seda.
Anthropological studies in Rangwe reveal cultural practices that perhaps unwittingly endorse pre-marital sex. "Many traditions have sexual connotation," says Mr Joseph Kwaka, director of Community Aid International. "Wife inheritance, tero buru and chodo (Luo cultural rites) seem to make involvement with multiple sex partners morally acceptable in the wider community."
The girls' main motive is to get better careers later in life. "If you want something nice from a man, you play well," says a 14-year-old commercial sex worker. Men, on the other hand, argue that the girls are provocative.
Community workers want to stop this behaviour, which abets the spread of Aids. "Roughly five girls infect schoolboys daily," says Ms Seda. The community, outraged that sex occurs at prep in classrooms and study halls, and in sugar plantations, is requesting school authorities to act.
Mr Kwaka says untamed sexuality makes abstinence impossible although men concede condoms could be an alternative. "But if a spouse insists on abstinence, I would look elsewhere", says a defiant man. The target is usually an orphaned girl.
To ease the girls' poverty, the organisation is looking for ways to stop the spread of Aids. Mitumba (second-hand clothes) trade is a popular option and would boost their income. The community would also easily monitor the girls' activities.
"We could support orphanage activities such as a posho (grain) mill, a mini-super-market or a small cafeteria", says Mr John Okeyo, a mason. Others could organise harambees (fundraisers) for the girls' up-keep and counselling.
(KNA)
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