WUNRN
The Luo are an ethnic group in western Kenya, eastern Uganda, and northern Tanzania. They are part of a larger group of ethno-linguistically related Luo peoples who inhabit an area ranging from South Sudan, SW Ethiopia, N & E Uganda, SW Kenya and NE Tanzania. The Luo are the third largest ethnic group (13%) in Kenya.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Direct Link to FULL 2014 Text – Journal of the International AIDS Society
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4074366/
Widow
Cleansing & Inheritance Among the Luo in Kenya:
The Need
for Additional Women-Centered HIV Prevention Options
Perry B1, Oluoch L2, Agot K2, Taylor J3, Onyango J2, Ouma L2, Otieno C2, Wong C3, Corneli A3.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
The
customs of widow cleansing and widow inheritance are practiced in several
communities throughout sub-Saharan Africa. In the Nyanza Province of Kenya,
according to tradition, Luo widows are expected to engage in sexual intercourse
with a "cleanser," without the use of a condom, in order to remove
the impurity ascribed to her after her husband's death. Luo couples, including
widows, are also expected to engage in sex preceding specific agricultural
activities, building homes, funerals, weddings, and other significant cultural
and social events. Widows who are inherited for the purpose of fulfilling
cultural obligation have a higher prevalence of HIV than those who remain
un-inherited or are inherited for the purpose of companionship.
METHODS:
As
part of a larger descriptive qualitative study to inform study procedures for
FEM-PrEP, an HIV prevention pre-exposure prophylaxis clinical trial, we
conducted 15 semi-structured interviews (SSIs) with widows, 15 SSIs with
inheritors, and four focus group discussions with widows in the Bondo and
Rarieda districts in Nyanza Province to explore the HIV risk context within
widow cleansing and inheritance practices. Thematic qualitative analysis was
used to analyze the data.
RESULTS:
The
majority of widows reported in the demographic questionnaire being inherited,
and most widows in the SSIs described participating in the cleansing ritual. We
identified two main themes related to HIV prevention within the context of
widow cleansing and inheritance: 1) widows must balance limiting their risk for
HIV infection with meeting cultural expectations and ensuring that their
livelihood needs are met, and 2) sexual abstinence undermines cultural
expectations in widowhood while the use of condoms is deemed inappropriate in
fulfilling culturally prescribed sexual rituals, and is often beyond the
widow's ability to negotiate.
CONCLUSIONS:
Women-controlled
HIV prevention methods such as antiretroviral-based oral pre-exposure
prophylaxis, vaginal gels, and vaginal rings are needed for HIV-negative widows
who engage in sexual rituals related to widowhood.