At the age of 16, a man named Calixte Nzamwita – who lives in Rwanda, Africa – made a significant decision which would impact his life for the next half-a-century – he wouldn’t go outside of his house if it meant he’d come into contact with women.
Last year, at the age of 71, Nzamwita sat down with Afrimax English to reveal why he made such a drastic decision.
He said: “The reason I locked myself inside here and have a fence on my house is because I want to make sure that women will not come close to me.”
The footage shows a mud house and a strong fence build all the way around the perimeter, allowing for some outdoor space for Nzamwita.
The fence covered in bits of cloth so it’s hard to see in or out of the residence. But why doesn’t Nzamwita want any sort of contact with women in particular?
Well, he explained: “I do not want women around me because they make me really scared.”
Nzamwita says he’s scared of women because of ‘poverty’.
Nzamwita’s strong fear of women is known as a condition called gynophobia.
Medical Today explains: “Gynophobia is an intense and irrational fear of women. The disorder differs from misogyny, which is hatred and prejudice toward women that people learn through social environments.
“It is a type of specific phobia. A specific phobia relates to a phobia of a specific situation, object, activity, or animal. A person may develop a specific phobia from observational learning or experiencing a traumatic incident, usually during childhood.”
However, despite his fear of women, its women living around his house who helped him survive all those years in isolation.
A woman told the outlet Nzamwita doesn’t let them come ‘close or talk to him’ so they ‘give him things by tossing them into his house’.
“And then he comes and picks them up,” she added. “[…] He takes what we offer from a distance.”
Nzamwita said: “The way I live is enough for me. I didn’t have any idea of having a woman and I’m okay with that.”
In 2023, Nzamwita made progress in tackling his phobia by allowing a woman into his residence. Although, she told Afrimax English it was only because people from the channel were there too.
Medical Today also notes that gynophobia can be taught how to cope with the condition with the help of mental health professionals who can aid in them ‘chang[ing] their patterns of thought and behavior to improve their quality of life’.