Sabaot women testify why their husbands are no longer ‘men’

Published on 13/07/2011

By Vitalis Kimutai
Hundreds of men in Mt Elgon were rendered sexually inactive as a result of torture during a military operation.
Boys, young and elderly men in the region had their private parts pricked with sharp objects, including needles, razor blades, copper wires and hit with blunt objects.
Women testifying during a National Inquiry on Sexual and Reproductive Health session conducted by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights in Kitale said hundreds of men were no longer productive.
"As a result of the torture they underwent in the hands of soldiers and the Sabaot Land Defence Force (SLDF), the men can no longer sire children neither can they have meaningful sexual intercourse with their spouses," a woman revealed.
Another woman stated that as a result of the humiliation, most men had since fled their homes, leaving their families behind as they sought jobs in towns.
"Majority of them cannot live with the shame especially after their wives and children learned of what had befallen them after they were tied to trees in the forest and tortured," she said.
The men are said to have sustained injuries on their testicles and are yet to receive medical treatment or counselling.
"It is sad that our husbands and sons were subjected to crude methods of vasectomy by the soldiers and SLDF operatives and are no longer productive," a woman said.
Military personnel deployed to the region by the Government to crack down on SLDF — who had subjected residents to a reign of terror — have been accused of raping, defiling and torturing locals