Stop This Crime of Female Circumcision !

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Stop This Crime of Female Circumcision !



This picture  of a woman undergoing female circumcision from the Difficult Images Blog says it all.The pain and agony that woman must have experienced is unbelievable.This surely is a case of Human Rights Abuse and Torture.

Female Genital Mutilation FGM or sometimes called Female Genital Cuttting FGC is a term which still sends shivers through my body.FMG is female circumcision which is used to describe a ritual of removing all or part of the female genitalia.This practice is very common in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
In Africa which is where i come from  this practice was used to prepare young girls for womanhood and marriage.This brutal practice has been touted as a passageway for girls from childhood to womanhood and as a way to preserve virginity  and fidelity during marriage by restraining the woman in her sexual behavior.In these communities uncircumcised women are considered dirty and outcasts and they risk forced circumcision.
The practice can  be carried out any time after the birth of the girl child up to sometime before the first pregnancy.
Though FMG is not included in any formal teaching of any religion it is practiced rampantly within the muslim society.
However this practice is not limited only to the muslim society but it crosses religious barriers and is more of a cultural practice. Most proponents of this female circumcision believe that they are empowering their daughters  by ensuring their ability to get married and also  to protect the family's reputation.
Other supporters of this practice view it as their right  by comparing it with the  enlargement of breasts or plastic surgery which is practised in the Western world. And still others look at the criticism of this female circumcision practice as an intrusion upon African cultural practices.
The sad thing is that although many African governments have outlawed female circumcision there is still more than 2 million girls at risk of having FGM each year.Most of these governments have been  silent on enforcing these laws by showing lack of interest and apathy.Even girls in countries like United States  are still at risk with the African Women's Health Center giving a figure of 228,000 women having either undergone FGM or are at risk.


The WHO and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, along with several African and Asian nations, have called for an end to the practice of female circumcision which they see as violent acts against women.There is also growing international support for condemnation of  FGM and a call for severe penalties to be  given to those who practice it.

But even with these laws women are still being circumcised .This practice is  deeply entrenched in the culture and mixed with complex issues of taboo and superstitions.
Just to see how entrenched the customs are in Kenya a motion to outlaw female circumcision was overwhelmingly defeated, not because of the male dominance, but because even some of the women members of parliament voted against outlawing FGM. The women pro-FGM lobbyists argued that the "practice reduces women's sexual drive and therefore promiscuity, premarital sex and adultery."

In this lens I want to raise the awareness about female circumcision  and also look at the health problems associated with female circumcision and exploring  the most popular approaches used to eliminate this practice  in Africa and more specifically in Kenya.


Female circumcision is sexual violence 

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Health Problems Caused by Female Circumcision 

Female circumcision or Female Genital Multilation FGM can cause a range of health issues and complications both physical and psychological.
Bleeding or hemorrhaging can take place and if it persists it can cause death.
Infection due to use of unsterilised tools can develop into an abscess and if untreated get septic and be fatal.
Problems of going to the bathroom by straining in the normal flow of urine and on the other hand uncontrollable flow of urine depending on the extent of the circumcision.
The practice leaves scars which can make sex very painful.
Painful menstruation.
Increase risks of sexually transmittted diseases (STDs) including hepatitis and HIV/AIDS by use of of unsterilised tools being used in unclean condition and sharing of the same tools.
Female circumcision could deprive the girls of ever having any sexual sensation.
Problems getting pregnant and during pregnancy and labor.
Psychological and emotional stress. FGC is typically performed on very young girls. The psychological effects of this painful experience are similar to those of post-traumatic stress disorder.

90% of their women have undergone female circumcision 

Eritrea is a small country situated at the Horn of Africa and inhabited by both Christians and Muslims and other nine ethnic groups who all practice Female genital mutilation(FMG). About 90% of Eritrean women have undergone this ordeal. A former circumciser narrates how they use crude tools like razor blade, scissors, kitchen knives and even pieces of glass to circumcise often more than one girl in very unhygienic conditions.

For a three year old girl Amira a law banning Female genital mutilation came too late after her mother circumcised her to please her future husband. Eritrea banned Female genital mutilation (FMG) in April 2007. The government has imposed a fine of up to several hundred dollars or a jail term up to 10 years but it is still felt that female circumcision is too ingrained in the culture to have much impact in stopping the practice.
The uncircumcised women are looked upon as prostitutes by other women and there is the superstition that a man would die if he slept with an uncircumcised woman. There is also the belief that they are unclean and will not find husbands.

Although the new law is a milestone a long process of public education is required to eradicate female circumcision because this practice is still deeply rooted in the Eritrean culture.

Books on the Horror of Female Circumcision 

The Terror of Female Circumcision! 

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Female Genital Cutting

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A painful ancient ritual - Fe...

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Girl Getting Female Circumcisi...

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Horror of female circumcision ...

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Afar tribe: female circumcisio...

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female genital mutilation vide...

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Everywoman- Female Genital Mut...

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Female Circumcision

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Inside the 'Female Circumcisio...

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The female circumcision abuse has to stop, how can you help? 

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More reading on Human Tragedy of female circumcision 

The Rape of Innocence: Female Genital Mutilation in the U.S.A.

The Rape of Innocence: Female Genital Mutilation in the U.S.A.

Female genital mutilation in the USA has been a we more...0 points

Slave by Mende Nazer

Slave by Mende Nazer

This book is not about FGM but is a harrowing acco more...0 points

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof, Sheryl WuDunn

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof, Sheryl WuDunn

From two of our most fiercely moral voices, a pass more...0 points

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

In this profoundly affecting memoir from the inter more...0 points

Blog Posts on Female Circumcision 

Islam in Europe: Netherlands: 'Ambassadors' appointed to fight ...
In a TV interview on Tuesday, Bussemaker stressed that apart from causing terrible pain, female geni...
Muslims Debate Female Circumcision « Camels With Hammers
This entry was written by Daniel Fincke, posted on November 21, 2009 at 6:18 pm , filed under Islam,...
London Councils Highlights Fight Against Female Genital Mutilation ...
Crime writer Ruth Rendell is supporting the London Safeguarding Children Board's efforts to raise aw...
Cairo, Lusaka, Amsterdam: Female Circumcision - is it Islamic?
Ashur said: ?Female circumcision is a traditional custom, and not a religious act. All the hadiths...

Give women their rights stop female circumcision 

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by mms

Hi This is MMs!

I live in a country where female circumcision is still secretly meted out to frightened girls.This lens is to create awareness and try...

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