2023-07-08 09:15:00
12:15 p.m. Saturday 08 July 2023
Workers at a cheese factory in Kenya were forced to undress to prove if they were menstruating.
And a manager at the company responsible for the factory collected the workers to find out which of them had thrown a used sanitary towel into the wrong container, and made them strip naked after no one confessed – according to the British Daily Mail.
Police in Limuru told local media that the manager has been suspended pending an investigation, and three people have been arrested on charges of indecent assault.
The company issued a statement saying: “As a result of the traumatic incident at the company, we have launched internal investigations to assess exactly what happened, why and how we can appropriately reconcile with employees affected by this painful unilateral decision by the manager, who has been suspended with immediate effect.”
The local police in the area that includes the factory told local media that three people are facing charges of indecent assault, according to the BBC.
Kenyan Senator Gloria Aruba said in a video posted to Facebook that she had received a “mayday call” about what had happened.
She explained that one of the principals “found a used sanitary pad in one of the containers, and from what I gather (from information), this rubbish bin was not intended for the disposal of sanitary pads.”
Aruba, who campaigns against period stigma, added that the principal first gathered the women to ask them who was responsible, and when she received no answer, “she needed to know who was on her period so she could punish who threw the pad in that basket.”
She stressed that despite its attempts to intervene in the case, the company was unable to solve the problem with its employees.
The company said in a statement on its website that it was saddened by what happened, and that the matter “does not reflect the company’s actions as a whole.”
“We are engaging an expert in women’s health to help educate staff, improve communication, and enhance our existing policies and procedures,” the statement said, adding that they are arranging for an independent investigation.
Police told local media that officers “conducted a thorough investigation and recorded the statements of the victims before arresting three suspects.”
They also said that similar incidents occurred at other companies in the region.
“We have reliably gathered that defamation, disparagement and insults have been going on for a long time,” said the local police chief. “I want to warn employers that justice will soon be served for all their victims.”
The BBC quoted activists as saying that stigma around women’s menstrual cycle is a major problem in Kenya.
She stated that last February, Senator Aruba was ordered to leave the parliament hall because of a blood stain on her pants.
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