May 27, 2004

The practice of female genital mutilation continues unabated in many parts of the world and society turns a blind eye to a cruel act, writes Nosheen Mardani

“I was led like a sheep to be slaughtered,” my maid told me when narrating how she had been forcefully circumcised. “When I was 10 years old my grandmother took me down to the river saying that they would perform a ceremony and I would be given lots of food to eat afterwards. I was taken to a dark room, undressed and made to lie down flat on my back. A piece of cloth was forced into my mouth... I was badly cut with a blunt knife and lost a lot of blood. While I was suffering terrible pain the others were singing and dancing.”

I was shocked to hear this story. Millions of women are suffering because of female genital mutilation (FGM) or female circumcision. The procedure refers to the removal of parts of the female genitalia which is performed in several societies in accordance to age old customs and the like. The sinister implication of such practices violates the rights of women to life, health and dignity.

Research shows that this operation is forced on approximately 6,000 girls every day, worldwide; about one every 15 seconds, and one-fifth of the world’s 600 million Muslims practice female genital mutilation. This is performed in different areas using various methods upholding a range of values and beliefs.

There is no conclusive evidence to indicate when and where the custom started and how it spread. There is no consensus on whether the practice originated in one locality and then spread, or if it was practiced by different ethnic groups in different areas at different times.

The speculation is that FGM has been performed for at least 1,400 years (some references estimate 2,000 years). Some say that it started during what Muslims call “al-gahiliyyah” (the era of ignorance). However. all monolithic religious texts are silent on the subject. In Muslim societies FGM is most commonly reported in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. Lesser degrees of mutilations are performed on women in parts of the Middle East and the subcontinent. There are reports to indicate that certain indigenous groups in central and South America also practice FGM.

The age at which the mutilation is carried out varies. The practice may be carried out during infancy, childhood, at the time of marriage or during a woman’s first pregnancy. However, the most common age seems to be between four and 10.

There are also different ways in which it is performed. Some girls undergo it alone within the family, but it is more often done by a group of relatives and neighbours as part of an initiation ceremony. Many times this practice is followed by traditional dances and songs by elders of the community. The person who performs the procedure is usually an older woman, traditional healer, midwife, at at times even a qualified doctor.

Depending on the financial status and education level of the community, local anaesthetics are used by a practitioner. However, other instruments like broken glass, a tin lid, scissors, a razor blade, thorns, a sharpened stem of a tree etc., have also been used to perform FGM. Once done, certain herbal concoctions — and in some places cow dung — are applied which are believed to facilitate healing.

There is a series of justifications for the persistence of this traditional practice that is injurious to women’s health. In some cultures men prefer circumcised wives because they are considered more likely to be faithful. Others believe that the female genital skin is dangerous and must be removed for health reasons. Some believe that it is a poisonous organ, which can cause a man to get ill, become impotent or even die if he comes into contact with it.

Furthermore, it is believed that a baby will be hydrocephalic (born with excess fluid in the head), if its head contacts the mother’s genital skin during birth. Others argue that FGM prevents genital odours and some say that it prevents vaginal cancer, reduces nervousness in girls and makes a woman’s face more beautiful.

However, what many don’t realize is that FGM can result in certain medical conditions such as: haemorrhage, shock, painful scars, cysts, chronic urinary infection and chronic pelvic infections. Later in life, it can cause kidney stones, sterility, sexual dysfunction, depression and various gynaecological and obstetric problems. The use of unhygienic instruments can cause severe types of infections and increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases.

Many people remain unaware of this ancient practice. The British liberal humanist, Jill Tweedie when writing about FGM in the Guardian said: “Those who do it, those to whom it is done, those in whose countries it is done, and those outside who know it is done all too often collude in a conspiracy of silence engendered by an odd but very potent combination of ignorance, custom, shame, poverty and academic aloofness.”

Many in Muslim communities are ignorant about the women’s suffering due to this cruel act. It’s time to wake up and do something for Muslim women around the world. Simply disapproving such practices does not solve the problem. Moreover, it is not fair to just criticize. Nor can society remain passive in the name of multiculturalism.

We know that the practice of FGM is painful and can have adverse effects on the health of the baby girl later on in life. However, we must always work from the assumption that human behaviour and cultural values that may look meaningless to us, or harsh from our particular personal and cultural standpoint, have meaning and fulfill a function for those who practice them. People will change their behaviour only when they themselves perceive the new practices proposed as meaningful and functional as compared to the old ones.

Thus, society’s aim must be to convince people, including women, that they can give up a specific practice without giving up meaningful aspects of their own culture. We have to convey this message through the media, health education sessions and must have some law to protect women and help them get their rights. If society can achieve this, it can then say that it has fulfilled its duty as good citizens.

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