Mother flees to avoid Daughters’ Initiation

By Alfred Fofana
Dora Hallowell, who was reported to run away after she learnt that her daughters are to be forcefully initiated, has disappeared after returning to Freetown from Makondu Village.
A family source informed this medium that Dora unceremoniously left Makondu after her Mother-in-Law, Ramatu Hallowell, informed Dora that she had made arrangements for her female grandchildren, Marie, Zainab and Ramatu- Dora’s daughters, to be initiated into the Bondo society- the traditional female circumcision rite.
The source further disclosed that Dora’s Mother-in-Law later came to Freetown where her son, Jacob Hallowell- Dora’s husband, and the kids reside, to forcefully take her grandchildren to be initiated in the village, Jacob telling his wife to allow the children taken to the village to be initiated.
As at press time, Dora’s husband- Jacob, family members and loved ones are concerned that Dora, together with her five kids- has disappeared. Dora was last seen in July 2023.
The female circumcision rite, or Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), as it described by those against such a traditional practice, has lately come under scrutiny by some activists; but the genital-cutting practice is still an integral part of this country’s culture.