Residents of Thimangri-Imenti witnessed an unusual act when a man was forcibly taken to be circumcised after locals discovered he had never undergone the ritual, which is forbidden in Meru culture.
The man used to refer to his peers as “Waichia,” an acronym used by Meru men to refer to one another after being initiated. “I implore the remaining uncircumcised men to speak up before we come for them,” a resident told BaiteTv.
Another risedent to BaiteTv that a Meru man must be brave enough to go through the initiation process.
“For an adult man to have skipped the rite of passage is an embarrassment and a betrayal of our tradition,” he said.
After a crowd of men frog-marched the victim around the town streets singing traditional circumcision songs, business in the bustling town came to a halt.
In public, the man was paraded naked.
The Ameru’s most significant rite of passage is circumcision, and the joy felt by the initiates is indescribable.
On the day of circumcision, the circumcised seclude the house where the initiatee will stay for the duration of the time with tree branches.
A date is set for the boy’s release after a time of not less than three weeks.
