Uniting To End Global Inaction Towards Female Genital Mutilation
written by Jonas Ho Chan Wai
“No Time for Global Inaction, Unite, Fund, and Act to End Female Genital Mutilation”.
The theme for this year’s International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation is a powerful call to action for global effort in eradicating the harmful practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), also called female circumcision. Beginning in 2012, the United Nations General Assembly has marked February 6th as the day to raise awareness for this cause. In accordance with the fifth goal of the UN sustainable development goals that is gender equality, the UN aims for the full eradication of FGM by 2030 (United Nations Population Fund, 2016).
Though the year of 2020 carried over its myriad of challenges into the new year of 2021, the United Nations has not dampened their efforts in pushing for the elimination of harmful practices against women, one of them including FGM. The COVID-19 has disproportionately affected women globally and the pandemic has unfortunately cast a shadow against many social issues (United Nations, 2021). Though these issues have been shadowed, the sobering reality remains that the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that an additional 2 million girls will go through female genital mutilation by 2030 due to the COVID-19 pandemic if this practice is not halted (United Nations, 2021). If passivity and inaction remain to be our default against the speaking up against the problems of FGM, especially during these trying times, then more women and girls will have to go through the pains of mutilation.
There are several forms of FGM ranging in severity. They are categorised into four types, ranging from more invasive surgeries including the (i) full removal of the clitoris, (ii) clitoris and labia minora; (iii) stitching of the labia majora following removal of the labia minora and clitoris; to the (iv) miscellaneous acts of harm including piercing, pricking, scraping and stretching of the female genitalia (World Health Organisation, 1997). Girls and women who undergo FGM procedures face debilitating conditions, including immediate complications from severe bleeding, shock, infections, urination difficulties, and even death. Long term complications involve the formation of abscess and cysts that require further surgery for removal, pregnancy complications, all on top of detriments to the mental and sexual health of women (World Health Organisation, 1998).
The painful process of female genital mutilation is performed with the intention to injure the female genitalia, mostly for cultural and traditional reasons, often without the full approval or understanding of the consequences in the women who undergo such procedures (World Health Organisation, 1998). These procedures do not confer any medical benefit to the women, though dissidents against FGM warn against using the medicalisation perspective as a central argument against the practice. (Leye et al., 2019). The argument here is that the issue is more than just an argument about health, but also a moral issue. Critics against the medicalisation of FGM worry that by shifting the argument in making the practice more “clinical”, the issue remains present and that it might send the wrong message that “Once we can practice FGM safely, then we can continue doing it” (Earp, 2017). The central issue remains that FGM should not be simply reduced, but completely eradicated.
Even though the WHO views these procedures as a violation of human rights, it remains to be a frighteningly common practice across cultures around the world. For a rough estimate, an average of 50% (ranging from 5% to 98% across all surveyed states) of women in Africa have gone through FGM, totalling 136,797,440 in 1993 (National Committee on Harmful Traditional Practices, 1993). FGM practices have also been found in ethnic minority communities in North America (Action and Information Network for Bodily Integrity of women (RAINB♀), 1995), the Arabian Peninsular (Thadeus, 1992), South as well as South-East Asia (eg. Ghadially, 1992; Pratiknya, 1988) over the past century.
Malaysia is no less innocent on the matter of FGM either, reporting staggering figures with a prevalence of over 90% of women in Muslim communities. In a survey of 605 Muslim women in 2019, 99.3% of the respondents had gone through some form of FGM (Rashid & Iguchi, 2019), and another survey of 1,196 Muslim women found that a significant number of those who had gone through FGM had also encouraged the procedure on their daughters (Dahlui, Wong & Choo, 2012). This same study also identified that the most common reason for FGM was because it was seen as a religious obligation (82.2%). The issue of FGM is not just an issue we can psychologically dismiss as being distant from us, it is happening in front of us, and it is happening to the women around us. It does not help that the National Council of Islamic Religious Affairs (JAKIM) released a Fatwa in 2009 in declaring that female circumcision be compulsory for all Muslim women in Malaysia (Ainslie, 2015).
What can we do to speak up against FGM? Let us return to the theme of International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation 2021:
“No Time for Global Inaction, Unite, Fund, and Act to End Female Genital Mutilation”.
It is important that we take its message seriously and consider how we can do our part in helping to eradicate practices of FGM, and we can start by becoming aware that FGM is an issue, and it’s a big one. Plan International lists several ways we can aid in this endeavour, from challenging the basis of the practice on the ground of discrimination against women, encouraging the need for sexual education in girls in understanding their bodies, but more importantly to talk about the issues as they are, sensitive bits and all. Let us do what we can where it counts under these trying circumstances, this is the time to speak up against FGM, this is time for us to #Act2EndFGM.
Jonas is a student from the University of Nottingham Malaysia pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience. He has been an active member of the Feminist Society for three years and currently holds the position of president in the student-run society. Using his platform in the Feminist Society, Jonas aims to provide forums for the safe discussion of issues of feminism and its intersections, as well as encourage inclusivity on social and gender issues.
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of PHIR-Nott.
