Mother burns daughters private parts for coming home late

A 17-year-old girl is nursing burn wounds at the Nairobi Women’s Hospital after her mother doused paraffin on her thighs and private parts and lit her on fire. This was in a bid to “tame” the teen after she allegedly came home late.

The incident happened two weeks ago at Riruta Satellite, Nairobi after the girl’s mother, angry that her daughter was being “promiscuous”, decided to teach her lesson.

“My mother had travelled, leaving our neighbours to watch over us. When I came back home one night at around midnight, the neighbours reported me to her and she got mad,” says the girl.

It was at this point that she tied her daughter’s hands and legs, beat her for almost an hour and then went and fetched kerosene and threatened to burn her.

According to witnesses, the mother poured the paraffin on the daughter’s skirt and ordered her 13-year-old son to strike a matchbox and burn her.

“My younger brother started crying saying he did not want to do it but mother insisted and he forced him to light a match,” says the teen.

Her siblings came to her rescue and covered her with a blanket which helped put out the fire but she had already sustained serious burns in her thighs, hands and private parts.

The mother did not even bother rush the victim to hospital instead locking her in the house until the neighbours reported her to the chief.

She was taken to Nairobi Women’s Hospital who referred her to Kenyatta National Hospital who refused to admit her. She was then taken to a children’s home but was returned to Nairobi Women’s after her wounds became septic.

Doctors say the teen is out of danger and is expected to make a full recovery.

“She’ll be okay, most of the wounds are superficial, the healing process is taking place,” says a doctor attending to her at Nairobi Women’s Hospital.

The girl’s mother has since been arrested and police say they are investigating the matter. Police say she had told them that she fell in hot water.

“I’ve tried running away from home before because she used to beat me all the time. Maybe God allowed this as a reason for me to go away from her,” she says from her hospital bed.