An African Female Circumcision Ceremony![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/african_circumcision_ceremony1.jpg)
Reuters photographer Siegfried Modola gained access to a circumcision ceremony in rural Kenya for young girls of the Pokot tribe, in Baringo County.
The traditional practice of circumcision is a rite of passage that marks the transition to womanhood and is a requirement for all girls of the tribe before they marry.
More than a quarter of girls and women in Kenya have undergone genital cutting, according to United Nations data. Despite a government ban on the life-threatening practice since 2011, the long-standing tradition remains a rite of passage for girls, particularly among poor families in rural areas.
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_001.jpg) Pokot girls walk towards their homes prior to the beginning of their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County, Kenya. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_002.jpg) Pokot girls stand outside one of the girl's homes prior to the beginning of their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_003.jpg) Pokot girls wait together in a home before their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_004.jpg) A Pokot woman falls into a trance after drinking a local brew and dancing during a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_005.jpg) Members of the Pokot tribe gather round a fire before a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_006.jpg) Members of the Pokot tribe gather round a fire before a female circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_007.jpg) Pokot girls sit inside a hut during their circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_008.jpg) Pokot women and children rest by a fire during the early hours of the morning as they wait for the beginning of a circumcision ceremony, about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_009.jpg) Pokot women place stones where girls will be seated to undergo their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_010.jpg) Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_011.jpg) Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_012.jpg) Pokot girls run from their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision rite in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_013.jpg) Pokot girls, draped in animal skins, sit on rocks during their circumcision ceremony. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_014.jpg) A Pokot girl cries after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_015.jpg) A Pokot woman performs a circumcision on a girl in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_016.jpg) A Pokot woman holds a razor blade after performing a circumcision on four girls in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_017.jpg) A Pokot girl is smeared with white paint after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_018.jpg) A Pokot girl is smeared with a white paint after being circumcised in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_019.jpg) Pokot girls covered with animal skins squat on rocks after being stripped naked and washed during their circumcision rite in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_020.jpg) A Pokot girl bleeds onto a rock after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_021.jpg) A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she can rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_022.jpg) Pokot girls, covered in animal skins, walk to a place where they will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_023.jpg) Pokot girls, covered in animal skins, walk to a place where they will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_024.jpg) A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_025.jpg) A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
![](http://totallycoolpix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/20141113_african_circumcision_ceremony/african_circumcision_ceremony_026.jpg) A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County. SIEGFRIED MODOLA/REUTERS
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