A woman simply identified as Emeterhire has been reported dead in Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State, after allegedly being forced to undergo female genital mutilation (FGM) following complications during childbirth.
According to the Nation, Emeterhire, from the Aniocha South Local Government area, had previously fled her village to escape the harmful cultural practice but was allegedly coerced back and subjected to the ritual against her will.
Sources from the village told the publication that Emeterhire’s mother, Erhuvwun, had also undergone FGM in her youth, surviving the ordeal but living with its physical and emotional scars. The source said the community of Ogwashi-Uku upholds FGM as a sacred rite of passage, believed to “purify” young women and prepare them for marriage.
After years of living peacefully in Asaba, where she had built a new life, falling in love, and was expecting her first child, Emeterhire was urged by her mother to return to her village. According to the report, Emeterhire’s mother feared that without the traditional blessings of the village, her grandchild would be cursed. Unaware of the dangers awaiting her, Emeterhire returned home as her due date approached.
According to the report, when complications arose during her labour, village elders, who had long resented her for evading the ritual, imposed the FGM procedure she had escaped years ago. In the dead of night, as she lay weak from childbirth, the elders allegedly forced her to undergo mutilation. Unable to resist due to her fragile condition, the procedure was performed without her consent.
By dawn, Emeterhire had succumbed to the trauma of both childbirth and the FGM procedure, leaving behind a newborn child. Her death has ignited widespread outrage, with human rights activists condemning the practice of FGM and calling for justice.
“This is a tragic example of how harmful cultural practices rob women of their lives,” local advocate told the publication urging immediate action to protect women and girls from such customs.
Emeterhire’s mother, devastated by the loss of her daughter, has vowed to fight against FGM to ensure her granddaughter does not face the same fate. She hopes her daughter’s death will be a turning point in the fight to eradicate the practice in Ogwashi-Uku.
