Ending Female Genital Mutilation

Across parts of Africa, the Middle East and Asia, the following scene is replayed over and over: A girl, often between 4 and 12 years old, is held down by three or four women while all or part of her external and internal genitalia is cut off.  The practice known as, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or Female Circumcision can be the partial or full removal of the external genitalia. FGM can often be fatal, especially when done in non-sanitary conditions, and, or by non-medically trained persons. The fatal results of FGM can often be caused by excessive bleeding, transmission of disease, or shock. The complications and the long-term effects of FGM can include; pain, infertility, difficulties in child birth, trouble with menstruation or urination, problems and extreme pain with intercourse, lack of sexual desire, no sexual stimulation, and mental illness.

Female genital cutting (FGC) reflects deep-rooted inequality between the sexes, and is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women.  More than 100 million women and girls worldwide are affected by different forms of cutting. Infibulation is the most severe form, where some or all of the external genitalia are cut, leaving only a very small opening for urination and menstruation.

Many countries where FGM has been common have passed laws to ban the practice, however laws have proven to be ineffective on their own, as often the practice is deeply rooted in the culture or history. Additionally laws prove futile without education and awareness, as many countries have discovered, only when its been at the high cost of death. Such as can be seen in the following posts; Egypt Makes Huge Strides in Putting an End to Female Circumcision and Girls Death in Burkina Faso Has Many Wondering If Laws are Enough!. However many FGM related deaths never make it into the media, nor are they often reported.

While rates of FGM have fallen in many countries, the fight to end the practice is far from over and efforts must not only continue in countries where the practice has a long standing history, but also in the West as the fight for gender equality and an end to sexual violence is global and will not be won without a united effort. FGM must be clearly seen as a human rights violation, and not a one time instance of abuse. Therefore education and awareness on the long term effects must be put into place, as should laws be established that address the severity of the crime, and in doing so on a global scale we can begin to see the end of this extreme form of gender-based violence.

The practice of FGM is no easy subject to talk about, regardless of the culture.  However the longer we look away from this dangerous and needless practice, we are only ensuring more suffering of girls across the globe.  Thus we do need to ensure that  and leadership from the United States and other world leaders is put forward, as such efforts will to urge the countries where FGC occurs to end this human rights abuse.

Please see my previous posts on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)/Female Circumcision for more information and background on the issue. Please also see the World Health Organization (WHO) FGM Fact Sheet for more on the long term consequences of FGM.