More than 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone female genital mutilation in countries where the practice is commonplace. This is very serious, and deserves more attention from the whole world, on behalf of women.
On the 6th of February, we celebrate the international day of zero tolerance against female genital mutilation. This day has been created by the united nation in 2003, in the hope to end this practice in the entire world before 2030. Last year, UNICECF celebrated this day, by cooperating more with boys and mens (without excluding women) to transform social norms and to create a new positive norm. The main goal of this partnering was to ensure families, communities, institutions, policy makers to support girls and to promote the elimination of female genital mutilation. Both of the engagement is necessary to break the barriers and make people aware of gender, norms that sustain this harmful practice. Men should recognize their privilege, then they could use it to transform the attitudes and behaviors.
Female Genital Mutilation, otherwise known as « FGM » comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, without valid reason, without their consent. The girls are young most of the time. There is no medical reason, because there is not even an anesthesia. It hurts a lot. The girls can have serious problems later, or in the present moment, as death. To add, they can be traumatized. It can cause them psychological problems, such as a drop in self-confidence, and to others, especially men.
The origin of this practice is unknown, historically and geographically. There are hypothesis. Some thinks that this practice is born in the middle east, and then moved to Africa by Arabs merchants. In the past, female genital mutilation were used in a medical way to solve mental disease (for example hysteria). Women’s sex was considered as a problem. It was also here in the slavery period.
It’s a traditional ritual in Africa, and also in Asia. A woman, before mariage, is mutilated, to make sure she has no particular desire for another man or sexual relationship. This is also for the pleasure of the man, so he can control everything. After mariage, the man has to cut with a knife the seams if she has infibulation, wich means, if the lips of her vulva are sewn shut. A woman is not « desirable » is she is not amputated. This practice is also used to reduce the libido of the women. There is a link between this ritual and our society. In some countries, women are still submissive and men are in control. Mindsets around the world are not the same, but one thing's for sure: women will have to keep fighting for years to come, even if there has been a lot of progress on this front. Every woman in this world must be able to choose how she wants to live her life, who she wants to love.
Having a limb amputated because you're a woman is destroying someone psychologically and physically for the rest of their life.