Female genital mutilation is
classified into three main forms;
1. Clitoridectomy:
Partial or total removal of the clitoris and, in very rare cases, only the
prepuce. This is consider the least harmful version of FGM. (2)
2. Excision:
Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or without
excision of the labia majora . (2)
3. Infibulation:
Narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The
seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the inner, or outer, labia, with or
without removal of the clitoris. This form of
FGM is the most harmful and is what people typically think of when referring to
FGM. (2)
FGM is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of
girls and women. It reflects intense inequality between genders, and is
considered an extreme form of discrimination against women. Since it is almost
always performed on minors, it is a violation of the rights of children. The
practice also violates a person's rights to health, security and physical
integrity, the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment, and the right to life when the procedure results in death. About 140
million girls and women worldwide are living with the consequences of FGM. In
Africa alone, about 101 million girls (aged 10+) are estimated to have had the
FGM procedure. (1)(3)
The causes of female genital mutilation include a mix of cultural, religious and social factors. In many communities that practice FGM, it is a social convention that is considered necessary in order to properly raise a respectable girl. This is traditionally motivated by the culture’s beliefs about the importance of premarital virginity and marital fidelity (3). By completing type 3 FGM (Infibulation), it is believed that women will fear the pain of opening the covering seal and refrain from taboo sexual activities. Though there is no religious script that supports the practice, many religious practitioners and followers believe FGM is a fundamental aspect of a girl’s modesty and devoutness.
The international response to FGM has been large, but not effective. Many organizations publish strategies and declare resolutions against FGM, but do not address the fundamental cause of the practice. In order to create change within a community, you must address their leaders and cause a community-based movement against the practice. Simply stating that it is unhealthy will not motivate individuals to abandon an old, established tradition. It is extremely important to reach out specifically to religious leaders and elders who are respected leaders in the community and to the medicine women who carry out the FGM procedure. If FGM cannot be completed stopped, medicine women can at the very least be educated on proper sterilization, motivate them to perform type 1 and 2 forms instead of type 3, and given the proper resources to make sure her “patients” are properly cared for to the best of her ability.
(1) Department of Reproductive Health and Research, (2012). Annual technical report 2012 (WHO/RHR/13.05). Retrieved from World Health Organization website: http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/reports/rhr_1305/en/index.html
Well written post Merissa. Allow to start by saying that I do not agree with FGM. I believe it is a health risk and should be stopped. HOWEVER, I have serious concerns about how it is viewed :Violation of the human rights of girls and women, an extreme form of discrimination against women, The practice violates a person's rights to health, security and physical integrity, the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and the right to life when the procedure results in death." As an outsider health worker, it is detrimental to progress when you come into another culture and put labels on other cultures. The underlying assumption is that this is done against the will of girls and women. That may be the case with a few but that is not true with the majority. Most girls and women in cultures that practice FGM take it as a right of passage and they accept it and look forward to it. So, false statements and allegations about a health risk practice you are not familiar with undermines the your own efforts to correct the situation. It is imperative that FGM be viewed from its own cultural vantage point and then address its risk.
ReplyDeleteBy understanding FGM from its cultural vantage point, it helps health workers to create interventions that create least resistance. Without a complete understanding of a cultural practice, the interventions to stop it are misguided and yield minimum results. In the case of FGM, "organizations publish strategies and declare resolutions against FGM..." When you declare war on a cultural practice, you create resistance. When you create dialogue, you create buy in and people will change their way of thinking. It is sad that even though many organizations declared war on FGM several decades ago, it is still being practiced. If these organizations had started a conversation and educated people on the effects of FGM, more lives could have been saved and more progress could have been achieved on the fight against FGM. According to the United Nations, "if practicing communities themselves decide to abandon FGM, the practice can be eliminated very rapidly."
In 2008, the World Health Assembly passed a resolution (WHA61.16) on the elimination of FGM, emphasizing action in health, education, finance, justice and women's affairs. In addition to other areas, WHO efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation focus on generating knowledge about the causes and consequences of the practice, how to eliminate it; increasing advocacy, developing publications and advocacy tools for international, regional and local efforts to end FGM.
So what is my point? Educate, educate, educate! Education is the best tool to change a culture.
United Nations (2012), The World Report.
United Nations (2008). The World Report.