‘CHIBELEBELE’ RESURFACES AND TAKES ROOT IN CHIBOMBO
A HARMFUL traditional practice known as ‘Chilebelebe’which is meant to prepare girls for sex, has continued to be observed in Chibombo district of Central Province.‘Chilebelebe’ is a small shrub with soft roots which are peeled and then inserted in a girl’s private part to prepare her for sex in future. In the olden days, chilebelebe used to go hand-in-hand with the initiation ceremony known as chisungu.
Although the tradition has been abandoned by elderly women, adolescents have adopted it and are now encouraging younger girls to do it.
Agness Sikute, a member of the Women’s Rights Organisation (WRO) in Chibombo, explained that when a girl is about 10 years old, the traditional counsellors known as alangizi would start inserting a small root of the chilebelebe in their private part.“
If the root penetrates, they would ask the girl if it was painful and (they would) reduce the size of the root until the girl got comfortable with the size being inserted.“Steadily, the alangizi would begin to increase the size [of the root] when she gets comfortable with it, they would declare her old enough to accommodate any man,” Mrs Sikute said.
This came to light yesterday during Oxfam’s ‘Her Future, Her Choice’ project review where stakeholders were brought together to enlighten the media on the progress and challenges on the project.“We have done a research on the traditional practice of chilebelebe in Chibombo district; we have gone in different areas and gathered women who are called alangizi to tell us more about chilebelebe and how it is done.
Mrs Sikute said parents no longer practise the traditional rite, but adolescents have picked up the bad tradition and are initiating younger girls.Meanwhile, Mrs Sikute said a lot of teenage pregnancies and child marriages are taking place at Lukanga, Kabushi, Kaswende and other fishing camps because there are no schools to keep the children busy.
And Women’s Rights Organisation facilitator and focal point person Maureen Ngulube said Oxfam and Women in Law and Development in Africa have trained alangizi, traditional leaders, church leaders, and peer educators to enable them to propel the sexual and reproductive health education.
Oxfam organised a meeting between the media and stakeholders involved in Her Future, Her Choice project which is aimed at strengthening reproductive health and rights in Chibombo district.The meeting was meant to enlighten the media on sexual and reproductive health rights issues obtaining in Chibombo district.
Stakeholders were drawn from the education and health sectors as well as peer educators and Women’s Rights Organisation.