Clare Boothe Luce once said, “Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed. If I fail, no one will say, ‘She doesn’t have what it takes.’ They will say, ‘Women don’t have what it takes’” (qtd. in The Quote Garden). There is no question that today women have what it takes. Today, women play key roles in many political initiatives around the world, and they continue to bring to light many important issues that without their attention may go unnoticed. No longer is the world questioning whether or not women can be beneficial or influential in the political world. It knows for a fact that they can. The political realm has recently taken great strides to establish the importance of women activists and politicians in the world, and these women have never been needed more than now. Many important issues are surfacing in the international community regarding women’s rights and these topics, though of interest and extreme importance to men, benefit greatly from female leadership and direction. One such issue is that of Female Circumcision or Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
The issue of Female Genital Mutilation has only recently been addressed in the political realm, despite the fact that this disturbing practice has been used as a traditional rite-of-passage ceremony in Africa for centuries. FGM is the practice of removing and in some cases completely closing off a young girl’s genitals. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that somewhere between 100 and 140 million girls have undergone some form of Female Genital Mutilation (7). They also estimate that each year another 2 million girls are at the risk of FGM (9). In all of its forms, Female Genital Mutilation is incredibly damaging to the individual for many reasons and has been deemed by the United Nations to be a violation of human rights.
The article Female Genital Mutilation divides the practice of FGM into four types. This is what normal female anatomy looks like:
It states that in type one FGM (called a clitoridectomy), a part of or the entire clitoris is removed and the wound is sewn up. Type one looks like this:
In type two (called an excision), the entire clitoris is removed and part or all of the labia minora also. Often rough stitches or crude balms are applied to the wound, often resulting in infection. Type two looks like this:
Type three (commonly known as infibulation) is the most serious form of FGM and involves removal of the clitoris, labia minora, and parts of the labia majora. The vaginal opening and urethra are then sewn over leaving only a small opening through which urine and menstrual flow escape. This is type three:
Type four involves piercing or pricking of the genitals, the introduction of damaging or painful substances into the vagina and in some cases cauterization of the clitoris (or remaining wound) (Committee on Bioethics 153). All forms of FGM are extremely painful and have damaging long-term effects.
Female Genital Mutilation has been shown to cause serious physical and psychological damage to those who have been circumcised. The article, Female Genital Mutilation: An Injury, Physical and Mental Harm, reveals that some of the more serious health problems caused by FGM include infection, urine retention (because of pain), infertility, higher risk for HIV due to unclean surgical instruments or unclean environments, and painful, or in some cases the impossibility of, intercourse. The article also revealed that some of the common psychological effects of FGM include post-traumatic stress disorder, loss of memory, severe nightmares, chronic irritability, severe depression and a high risk for psychosomatic diseases (Utz-Billing and Kentenich 227). All of these are examples of the common effects of Female Genital Mutilation and are some of the main reasons for political as well as social action against this practice, no matter the good intentions behind it.
The most common reason FGM is practiced is for rite-of-passage purposes. It is seen as a way of maintaining a “calm” or “controlled” sexuality. It culturally prepares a girl for marriage and supposedly helps to “save” her for her wedding night. The age at which FGM is preformed on a girl varies by region and culture. The WHO states that it can be preformed on girls from the time of birth to the time of a woman’s first pregnancy (10). The most common age, however, according to authors Anika Rahman and Nahid Toubia, is between the ages of four and twelve (3). The thought behind the practice is that FGM is a way to keep a woman’s “honor” in tact. It is not linked to a specific religion, but rather to traditional tribal coming–of-age practices. However, despite good intentions, the consequences experienced by those with FGM have led many international activists to believe that there is a better way to provide a girl with a coming-of-age ceremony without removing her sexuality altogether and yet maintaining a sense of honor in African cultures.
These activists are mostly women who, either through personal experience or through years of research and study, are incredibly educated regarding FGM and desire to protect both current and future generations from the negative effects of this practice. Mary Robinson, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and one such political activist, further explains, “Female genital mutilation affects the physical integrity of women and children and as such should be condemned. In doing so, it is necessary to act with tact and patience, bringing communities to understand that their cultural values are not to be confused with cultural practices, and that those practices can be changed without adversely affecting values” (qtd. in Rahman and Toubia 1). Many of these women have joined to form groups and organizations in various countries around the world to fight Female Genital Mutilation. It is the hope that through these women’s lives, other women will be encouraged to stand up against similar violations of women’s rights around the world.
Some of these groups of women include NOW (located in Nigeria) and New Woman (located in Egypt). Frances Althaus, a senior editor for International Family Planning Perspectives, comments on the effects of these organizations, “in part because these groups brought fresh perspective to the issue, the emphasis in discussions of female circumcision shifted to encompass women’s human and reproductive rights as well as their health” (130). Althaus goes on to explain that with these new perspectives stronger approaches to the topic of FGM have occurred. According to her, the International Conference on Population and Development used the term “Female Genital Mutilation” for the first time instead of “Female Circumcision” in the Programme of Action in Cairo 1994. She states that, “the Programme refers to female genital mutilation as a ‘basic rights violation’ and urges governments to ‘prohibit and urgently stop the practice…wherever it exists’” (130). These women are already changing perspectives around the world regarding a practice to which, until recently, the world has turned a blind eye.
The WHO claims that in the past the topic of FGM has been deemed “an issue of such extreme sensitivity” as to prevent any real action from taking place (5). Slowly but surely this view has changed and others are realizing the great amount of danger in which these young girls are placed because the international community has placed this violation of rights on the back burner. The article Female Genital Mutilation: A Physical and Mental Harm cites several international organizations such as the World Health Organization, the World Medical Association and UNICEF who have condemned the practice of FGM and who have created projects to combat its continuation (Utz-Billing and Kentenich 228). Central to all of these projects is the valuing of women and children and the desire to protect their rights. In fact, it is so important that women be involved in ending this practice that the WHO has stressed the need to involve both women activists and women directly affected by FGM in their efforts. They state, “Using… women affected by FGM is an effective strategy for lobbying and education purposes and should be used more often” (45). Sometimes it takes women to bring attention to the fact that women’s rights are being violated. Sometimes women are the only ones who see the real horror of the violations.
Another example of an organization started by and run by women is the Maendeleo Ya Wanawake. Located in Kenya, this group desires to see women uplifted from all forms of oppression. The WHO reveals that in 1996 this group made significant progress in ending FGM by implementing an alternative initiation ceremony program (54). Their program locates girls eligible for excision and educates their families. The results are very positive. The WHO says, “Alternative coming of age ceremonies can be used to introduce sexuality education and life skills to girls in a way that is acceptable to their parents and their communities” (54). Honoring the traditions and culture surrounding the practice is very important. The WHO elaborates, “It is then easy to judge, condemn, and then to feel that ordering people to stop the practice is the proper course of action. However, this does not always work – as many anti-FGM activists have learned the hard way… Anyone working in this field needs to examine…their own assumptions… and work toward becoming ‘culturally competent’” (77). This task seems to be more easily done by women, especially since the issue pertains to women specifically. Those women who have been able to put aside their own prejudices have been honored by success in their work to end this practice.
One such effective approach occurred in Senegal in 1997. The book, Female Genital Mutilation: A Guide to Laws and Policies Worldwide, explains that one of the goals behind an approach to the ending of FGM in Senegal was to not only end the practice, but to empower women and have them choose for themselves to leave this practice behind. The result was amazing. Not only did an entire village of women voluntarily abandon the practice, their men supported their decision. A public declaration was made stating that never again would FGM be practiced there. This choice spread from village to village and eventually led to a law in 1999 prohibiting the practice of FGM in Senegal (Rahman and Toubia 77). This movement was led by women who, though not politicians, stood up for their rights and influenced global policies. In turn, this movement has inspired women worldwide to do the same. Whether called “politicians” or “activists” women are beginning to reject this traditional practice and turn to other ways of honoring both their bodies and cultures. These women have what it takes to make change in the world. No one can say, “Women don’t have what it takes to make a difference.” They have already made begun to make a difference.
Works Cited
Althaus, Frances A. “Female Circumcision: Rite of Passage Or Violation of Rights?” International Family Planning Perspectives 23.3 (1997): 130-133. Print.
Committee on Bioethics. “Female Genital Mutilation.” Pediatrics 102.1 (1998): 153-156. Print.
The Quote Garden. 14 Oct 2007. Web. 14 June 2010.
Rahman, Anika, and Nahid Toubia. Female Genital Mutilation: A Guide to Laws and Policies Worldwide. London: Zed Books Ltd, 2008. Print.
Utz-Billing, I. and H. Kentenich. “Female Genital Mutilation: An Injury, Physical and Mental Harm.” Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology 29.4 (2008): 225-229. Print.
WHO. Department of Woman’s Health. Female Genital Mutilation: A Handbook For Frontline Workers. 2000. Web. 14 June 2010.
