The Tears of a Kayeyei
*"(THE CRY OF A KAYAYEI - STORY OF KODINA), written by Frimpong Emmanuel"*
"I have been raped 12 times since I moved from Walewale in the Northern Region to work as a Kayayo,†Mama Kodinu said,  tears running down her cheeks as she spoke. As a head porter earning her keep at the Kasoa old market in the Central Region, Kodinu’s tales of pain and agony are heavier than the loads she carries for her daily butter and bread."
Surprisingly, six of the rape incidents resulted in unwanted pregnancies. “I have had four abortions,†she said, wiping her tears while, at the same time, casting her eyes around for prospective clients. With her were two children she claimed were the products of the last two sexual violations she encountered with three different unidentified men.
The 34-year-old currently sleeps in front of a provision shop at the Kasoa new market with her two daughters, Sibuinu, three, and Balengu, one and half years old. At the old market, where Kodinu had been working since her relocation, there are many young girls under the age of 18 engaged in similar ventures for their daily bread. Most of these girls are from the northern part of the country, such as Bimsi, Chopowa, Dugu, Daboya. Others, too, travelled from villages in the Central and Western regions.
Kodinu said although she had reported the violations against her to the Kasoa police on the first two attempts in 2008, nothing was done about it. “The first time I reported the case to the police, they gave me
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