We are abused by our women, Kenyan men cry

By Tebby Otieno

In one of the informal settlements of Nairobi’s metropolitan's Kawangware, is a man whose efforts are employed in transporting luggage for people from one area to the other. On a sunny afternoon he is in his vest while on a rainy day, he is in his T-shirt, he never puts on warm clothes because his job always makes him sweat, this is his source of income that puts food on his table and pay other bills.

I met him in Kawangware stage 2 area when the sun was up, seated on one side of his cart commonly known by locals as mkokoteni, he identified himself to me as Jack. Out of Jack’s effort lies inner struggles as he narrates

 “My wife left out of a small issue related to my work, sometimes I could go to work and get little money, when I tell her that’s what I got, she says it is not enough and sometimes she even used to accuse me of having other women and complaining I was not taking food home. We stayed in marriage for four years but she never used to show me love I am now suffering alone” he said

Jack’s wife left when he was out, according to him, she carried everything that was in the house. He chose not to report

“she went with children and she keeps on asking me for money, men we are suffering. I did not report because when you go there, they will defend your wife. They will not listen to a man; they only listen to women. She used to hate me, abuse me, when I could get home after they have eaten she serves me cold food, calls me stupid I have suffered…no one is defending us, everyone is defending women, we are forced to leave everything to God, He is our defender” he narrates

Jack represents several men suffering in silence, men who probably have never gotten reason to open up to authorities for justice. According to gender based violence Champion in Meru County, Ahmed Yusuf, most men who go through abuse shy off and would instead lie about the ordeal

“Some of the cases we get are women and children, but for men you see them looking depressed but don’t report, you can find someone being beaten by wife and then in public they tell you they had accident like they fell out of a bodaboda” he comments

Gender based violence, GBV is being harsh against a person because of their gender, that means that somebody is being bullied or threatened because either they are a woman or a man or because of their social expectation. Executive Director at Women Empowerment Link, Virginia Nduta says what comes out as aggressive is in simple terms punishment

 “When we now look at issues raised around wife/husband, what we call intimate partner relationships, we have wide range of what encompasses gender based violence, so it goes beyond physical violence to psychosocial violence which goes around intimidation, harassment, economic and even sexual violence. GBV is something that persists over time so you’ll find that gender based violence certain actions like a wife serving husband cold food, insulting husband could be as a result of other issues that are ongoing within family units that have been unresolved. So you find that in a family setup a lot of couples or intimate partners are resolving to other ways of revenge as opposed to open communication, so that is how actually GBV starts building up” Explains Nduta.

In every stage of life there are challenges that come with the growth, during this process there is interaction and relationships in between, but still, when people differ, there is that person who will hold back to avoid either emotional or physical violence. In one of my travels, I decided to engage a male taxi driver who was dropping me to Westland in Nairobi. Mwaniki Lernard agreed that we have the conversation after I introduced myself to him. He says once in a while women provoke men. I asked him why Kenyan men keep quiet about this

“The African society brings us up in a way that whenever we are attacked by women, there is always a belief that a man should not speak out, so according to the society we are supposed to be the head and not coward to such. Even in the police stations you find that there are not many cases which have been reported of men being attacked by women but trust me, now especially with the pandemic so many people are suffering, because so many jobs have been lost, so many businesses are down. You find that even the money that you used to get before is not available right now but for women they are usually there when it is convenient for them, so when things get tough they return it in a way that it is a bit arrogant or abusive. Those cases are there but men don’t have the confidence and attitude to speak out. Lately there are so many men who have been attacked by women, some have been harmed, some have been killed so these cases are there were it not they got to that level that there was murder they would not have been reported” Narrates Leonard 

Leonard’s comment led me to Kabete police station. A police officer, at gender office here tells me that men who report do not care how public will judge them considering prosecution process 

“We have been receiving cases of men being beaten and we have prosecuted some of the cases, after they report, we record statement, we gather evidence we go to scene, you see in every case there has to be witnesses- someone who saw, someone who heard or if it was an assault and maybe an injury has been inflicted there was medication, we go as per the doctor’s summery. This year we have between 10-20 percent GBV cases reported by the male, they are very few and when men come, if he is a husband, then later the wife comes because most of these cases are domestic. You see when you come to report at police station it is like you are making it public because you don’t fear what the public will say because this is a case that will even go to court and at the court it is not a private court, it is an open court where people will listen to what is happening so some of them fear, they don’t want to wash their dirty linens in public.” Explains a police officer in gender office at Kabete Police Station

The National Police Service in conjunction with Jamii Thabiti and Women’s Empowerment Link, have come up with a set of standards to implement Standard Operating Procedures on response and prevention on gender based violence by police officers. The trainings help police officers on how to handle better cases of GBV, this is done by offering trainings to various police officers, working in gender offices at their respective police stations

“Either way, you have to empathize with any gender, you can’t say it is better to handle male or it is better to handle females. What you have to do is empathize with them, know how to handle them, listen to them, give them a listening ear, ensure there is very high confidentiality, ensure if at all wherever they have come from, if maybe they are living in the same house maybe it is a wife who has  abused the husband and they live in the same house ensure that man’s safety comes first, maybe for example ask him, does he has anyone whom he can live with at the moment, if not look for a safety house where he can stay for a while as he survives from whatever has been happening as you handle the case” Confirms a police officer in gender office at Parklands Police Station.

Naturally, men have cover of a home while women are assumed to be the picture of love and care. Psychologist Dr. Gladys Mwiti says from a cultural perspective, there will be a lot of shame and then there will be a lot of ego bashing because when a woman abuses a man it means bashing male ego. This in return leads to shame and then other psychological factors with many unanswered questions

“It even gets worse from a man’s perspective if he reports the abuse he goes through. Imagine you’re going to report such a serious thing and guys are having a laughter of their life. Men should report but even before they report they should be asking themselves where did this come from because you may go report and go home more traumatized, the better thing even before they report is arm themselves with understanding, and by understanding you don’t just walk in a police station. So you sort of like to enter a safe place with someone before you go reporting, so you go to the police with understanding because you are going to report expecting them to do something. By the way, every man is better off preventing this from happening because of the outcomes you can’t tell. Many women don’t have the muscles but they have the tongue” says Dr Gladys

Society for years has socialized men in a way that they have more power than women. They grow up knowing they don’t need to cry so even when they are having issues be it emotional, social, economic or whatever kind of issue they are expected to ‘man up’. Fortunately, there are men who feel there is a need for change and this can be achieved by bringing men together and creating a conducive environment for social change. Executive Director at Advocates for Social Change Kenya, formerly known as Men for Gender Equality Now, Phillip Erick Otieno explains   

 “The reason why we work with men and boys is also to bring to light some of their issues so that they are able to speak up and also to create awareness to them and to sensitize them that they can also talk, they can come out and say when things are not going right. Actually because of patriarchy men still hold key positions in decision making and therefore even in terms of coming up with social norms, they should come up with those norms that also allow everybody to be able to come out and to air their afflictions without fear of being laughed at or being stigmatized based on what they are going through because that always hurt them” he said

He also calls out on men to be free to share that other side of them that is wanting since Kenyan law, applies to anybody whose rights are being infringed on 

“The problem we are having as a society is that a lot of times even when men are violated, let’s take an example of when men are violated by women then it becomes very difficult for those men to come out because of the societal expectations and therefore this man will keep quiet but the fact is anybody who is violated be they a man or a woman then their rights have been infringed on and the law needs to take its course. In Kenya we have various laws, if the man is violated sexually then the Sexual Offences Act of 2006 will come into place, if the man undergoes domestic form of violence, physical violence, emotional violence , sociocultural violence-beating, hitting, biting all those kind of things then The Protection Against Domestic Violence Act can also be applied to deal with these cases and remember our laws are not laws that are only used for female or women victims or survivors of violence but it is for both” Concludes Mr Otieno

In June this year, Dan ShieShie Foundation in collaboration with TeleSky, Kenya Healthcare Foundation and Kenya Private Sector Alliance, KEPSA established a toll free line 1196 to assist men facing gender-based violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the number, men who report are linked to counsellors who counsel them without charge. A report released by Gender Based Violence in Kenya 2014, shows that 56.5 percent of men report the gender based violence cases at police stations.

Thousands of people suffer from food poison globally every year

By Tebby Otieno

‘‘What I can say about food safety is, like this my work someone might say it does not require hygiene but this is food, because when you come here I will slaughter for you chicken, I have to make sure I wash it in clean water in a clean environment. That way, even as you go cook that food, there will be no food poison. It will be very safe.”

Every food consumer has a variety of ways they use to identify safe food be it in farms, markets or hotels. In Nairobi’s informal settlement Kawangware market, a lady in her fifties who buys most food products from this market says she has created a network of food vendors who she buys specific food products from within this particular market. Apart from that she also uses her common judgments through observation

‘‘You know good things invite eyes in the market. I also look at the person who sells them and from the look, I am always able to tell this food is safe. There are those sensitive foods sometimes they are removed from dirty places and that has ever happened to me. That is why nowadays I make sure I buy food from those straight from farms. When I buy something like tomato I make sure I wash them well with soap before I use them” says Hannah Muchiri 

    Transportation is one way that leads to loss of quality of food regardless of all the measures put in place by producers. Stella Oboge who sells chickens to individuals and hoteliers in Nairobi says sometimes chickens reach her when some of them have broken wings or legs. Some even reach her when they have died in the process of transportation. She uses brokers in Bomet and Kericho who transports them to Nairobi whenever she places order

‘‘Once in a while some chicken will die because of long distance or maybe because they have suffocated because they have not eaten or taken water. Chickens are always safe because they are only tied on legs and transported through trucks. When they get here, we untie them and place them in this shelter” She says

Being in business, Stella needs to satisfy her customers and make sure they buy from her severally, this she says, means she has to make sure she sells healthy chicken

‘‘Actually most of my customers who come back request that I sell them exactly like the one I sold them last time because when they cooked they found it was good. I only sell (kienyeji) indigenous chicken and my customers love them because they are fed on vitamins, proteins and everything so by the time they are grown they have taken seven or eight months. Such chicken when brought here and you buy even its cooking process is different, you will eat it and take its soup as well” she acknowledges 

               The government of Kenya has set regulations controlling industries/producers for example Meat Control Act cap 356 controls the slaughter and processing of meat for human consumption. Stella who sells chicken has to follow all legal policies put in place for her business to continue operating

‘‘There are those people from the health department who come here, take wastes and saliva samples of chicken and tell us if the chickens are safe or not. What I can say about food safety is, like this my work someone might say it does not require hygiene but this is food, because when you come here I will slaughter for you chicken, I have to make sure I wash it in clean water in a clean environment. That way, even as you go cook that food, there will be no food poison. It will be very safe” She concludes

          The nature of work leads people to hotels. Some walk in to eat food and head back to their workplaces after a meal, while others host conferences within hotels and take meals as well during breaks between conference sessions. Some spend in these hotels before or after they travel to various places, they too eat in hotels. At least, each person once in a while finds themselves eating food in hotels, but who ensures that these foods are safe?  Carol Katuba a hotelier explains how they make sure their customers consume safe food

‘‘We identify suppliers who supply our products be it vegetable, meat and everything. As a hotelier you have to visit your supplier who is your source so when they bring them we have to do a delivery check that must meet health requirements, that means that they have to give you a medical certificate. We also have a person who inspects the food including how they were handled even before they were transported, are the dates in place and then look at the texture of the product. If it is meat they can open randomly any of the containers/packages and check the content of that meat and take a sample of it and take it to the lab. In case suppliers give us food which does not meet specification you have a right to return that product and change the day’s menu. Suppliers should also give prior notice when they are outsourcing products because we have to visit the farm and know how the product is natured for us to get tender and tastier meat free from antibiotics and insecticides” She explains

While commemorating World Food Day under the theme ‘‘Food safety, everyone’s business” June 7, this year, the World Health Organization, WHO pursued its efforts to mainstream food safety in the public agenda and reduce the burden of food-borne diseases globally.

A veterinary surgeon who has specialized in livestock production systems with extensive experience in poultry, says food safety is a shared responsibility between governments, producers and consumers. According to Dr Victor Yamo, everybody has a role to play from farm to table to ensure the food consumed is safe and will not cause damages to health

‘‘The critical thing is to understand that the world is losing about 420,000 people per year.1 in 10 people will suffer from food poisoning during the year which gives it a figure of about 600, 000 people suffering from food poisoning because of poor food safety. Ultimately when you look at the Kenyan context one of the big agenda item for President Uhuru Kenyatta is health and you cannot have a healthy nation unless the food that they eat is not causing negative impact on the population it has” Says Dr. Yamo

Dr. Yamo who has worked in the chicken industry for over twenty years says feed demand changes because of what the animal is supposed to do. However, he insists that chicken must have a balanced diet that is protein, carbohydrate, vitamins, minerals and water

 ‘‘In all those things, good quality feed must also be without any chemical that causes problems to the animal whether its chicken, pigs or whatever. They must also be not having any bacterial contamination because part of the problem that we also have is feeding animals with spoilt food failing to understand that the reason why food should not be consumed by human is the same reason the same food should not be fed to animals” Concludes Dr Yamo

Kenyan former prime minister Raila Odinga is among prominent leaders who have ever been reported to have suffered food poisoning. According to an article by The Standard dated March 8th 2017, Odinga was treated at the Karen Hospital for food poisoning where he was treated and discharged. According to the article, Raila Odinga who is the current High Representative for Infrastructure Development in Africa was taken to hospital after he complained of stomach ache.

Health experts say the whole world is moving to a one health concept because how waste disposal is managed has an impact on vegetables one is trying to produce and how animal health is managed has an impact on the quality of product that comes through to ensure only safe food is consumed globally. In fact, 2019 research on consumer concerns shows that the quantity of food that human beings consume, depends on food safety and the production process. This means that food that is free from antibiotics is consumed in large quantities even if they are more expensive.