Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female circumcision or female genital cutting, refers to "all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs whether for cultural, religious or other non-therapeutic reasons". The term is almost exclusively used to describe traditional, cultural, and religious procedures where parents must give consent, due to the minor age of the subject, rather than to procedures generally done with self-consent (such as labiaplasty and vaginoplasty). It also generally does not refer to procedures used in gender reassignment surgery, and the genital modification of intersexuals.
FGC is practiced throughout the world, with the practice concentrated most heavily in Africa. Its practice is extremely controversial. Opposition is motivated by concerns regarding the consent (or lack thereof, in most cases) of the patient, and subsequentely the safety and consequences of the procedures.
History of anti-FGM campaigns
The commitment against the practice of FGM dates to the early 1960s. By 1997 research on female circumsicion by the World Health Organization revealed several detrimental health consequences on the practice. Since then CAGeM promoted an organized campaign agaisnt FGM and teamed up with several advocacy organizations. The campaign started with health educational programs in small communities and has been instumental in the banning of FGM in several communities. The campaign has grown to include presenting educational workshops in larger communities around the world and assisting victims of FGM. Currently the campaign against FGM has taken roots in several countries and continues to grow.
Research
We are currently conducting research on the health effects of FGM and on the current statistical distribution of the practice. Immediate consequences of the practise, such as infections, are usually only documented when women seek hospital treatment. Therefore, the true extent of immediate complications is unknown. CAGeM is currently cunducting research to document the immediate complications. To participate in our study please contact us.
The campaign is committed to the eradication of female genital mutilation (FGM). The campaign links grassroots activism in countries that still practice FGM to foster communication, information and strategy sharing. The mission of the campaign is to ensure that countries practicing FGM adopt a definitive strategy to end FGM and provide protection to women and girls who flee their countries for fear of being mutilated. The campaign focuses on developing and implementing educational programs to eradicate FGM and assisting victims (see Restoring Victims). The campaign also pursues the introduction of legislation banning FGM and is committed to supporting anti-FGM campaigns around the world.
Join Us
We currently have over 300 reporting members around the world. To join our campaign please join our listserv , volunteer, or make a donation. To start a campaign against FGM in your community, please contact usand we will send you the necessary tools to start your campaign.
Between 100 and 140 million girls and women worldwide have been subjected to one of the first three types of female genital mutilation. Estimates based on the most recent prevalence data indicate that 91,5 million girls and women above 9 years old in Africa are currently living with the consequences of female genital mutilation. There are an estimated 3 million girls in Africa at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation every year. Types I, II and III female genital mutilation have been documented in 28 countries in Africa and in a few countries in Asia and the Middle East.
Did you know that FGM is practiced in the United States?
Some forms of female genital mutilation have also been reported from other countries, including among certain ethnic groups in Central and South America. Growing migration has increased the number of girls and women living outside their country of origin who have undergone female genital mutilation or who may be at risk of being subjected to the practice. The prevalence of female genital mutilation has been estimated from large-scale, national surveys asking women aged 15–49 years if they have themselves been cut. The prevalence varies considerably, both between and within regions and countries (see Figures and Table below), with ethnicity as the most decisive factor. In seven countries the national prevalence is almost universal, (more than 85%); four countries have high prevalence (60–85%); medium prevalence (30–40%) is found in seven countries, and low prevalence, ranging from 0.6% to 28.2%, is found in the remaining nine countries. However, national averages (see Table) hide the often marked variation in prevalence in different parts of most countries (see Figures).
Listed below are countries in which female genital mutilation of Types I, II, III and "nicking" Type IV has been documented as a traditional practice. For countries without an asterisk the prevalence is derived from national survey data (the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) published by Macro, or the Multiple Cluster Indicator Surveys (MICS), published by UNICEF.
Estimated prevalence of female genital mutilation in girls and women 15-49 years (%) .
Benin 2001 16.8
Burkina Faso 2005 72.5
Cameroon 2004 1.4
Central African Republic 2005 25.7
Chad 2004 44.9
Côte d’Ivoire 2005 41.7
Djibouti 2006 93.1
Egypt 2005 95.8
Eritrea 2002 88.7
Ethiopia 2002 74.3
Gambia 2005 78.3
Ghana 2005 3.8
Guinea 2005 95.6
Guinea-Bissau 2005 44.5
Kenya 2003 32.2
Liberia* 45.0
Mali 2001 91.6
Mauritania 2001 71.3
Niger 2006 2.2
Nigeria 2003 19.0
Senegal 2005 28.2
Somalia 2005 97.9
Sudan, northern
(approximately 80% of total population in survey) 2000 90.0
Togo 2005 5.8
Uganda 2006 0.6
United Republic of Tanzania 2004 14.6
Yemen 2004 22.6
* The estimate is derived from a variety of local and sub-national studies.
Because of the federal law in the US prohibits FGM, citizens and refugees in the US take their daughters to their country of origin to have the procedure performed. In April 2010, legislation was introduced in congress to attempt to make transport of girls for FGM illegal, and still pending.
Individual US States with legislation against FGM
California- AB 2125 (Figueroa and Lunneen)
Delaware- SB 393 (Henry)
Illinois- HB 3572 (Mulligan-Deuchler)
Michigan- HB 6095
Minnesota- 144.3872
New Jersey- ACR 35
New York- A 5010
North Dakota- SB 2454
Rhode Island- S 2317 (Perry, Cicilline,Parella,Graziano and Gibbs)
Tennessee- SB 2394 (Crutchfield)
Texas- H.B. 91 (Giddings, Thompson, Chavez, Clark)
Wisconsin- 365
States whose anti-FGM bills did not pass:
Colorado- 96-031
New York- S 597 (Volker, Montgomery), S 510 (Volker, Montgomer)
South Carolina- 7769
States that punish parents as well as doctors who perform FGM
Bills whose status is unknown
Louisiana- HCR 52
*Other US states DO NOT have legislation against FGM
Other countries with Legislation against FGM
Africa:
Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt (Ministerial decree), Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Niger, Nigeria (multiple states), Senegal, Tanzania, Togo. In Sudan only the most severe form of FGM/FGC is forbidden by law.
Others:
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States (federal law, and specific state laws).
Penalties range from a minimum of six months to a maximum of life in prison. Several countries also include monetary fines in the penalty. As of June 2000, there have been prosecutions or arrests in Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ghana, France and Senegal. Belgium. Benin, Nigeria, and Uganda are proposing laws to ban the practice of FGM/FGC.
In September 2001, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on Female Genital Mutilation . The resolution calls on the member states of the European Union to pursue, protect and punish any resident who has committed the crime of FGM even if committed outside the frontier ("extraterritoriality") and calls on the Commission and the Council to take measures in regard to the issuing of residence permits and protection for the victims of the practice. The resolution also calls on the member states to recognise the right to asylum of women and girls at risk of being subject to FGM/FGC.
Source: Female genital mutilation/cutting : a statistical exploration. New York, NY, UNICEF; 2005
The term "female genital mutilation" (also called "female genital cutting" and "female circumcision") refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. Between 100 and 140 million girls and women in the world are estimated to have undergone such procedures, and 3 million girls are estimated to be at risk of undergoing the procedures every year. Female genital mutilation has been reported to occur in all parts of the world, but it is most prevalent in: the western, eastern, and north-eastern regions of Africa, some countries in Asia and the Middle East and among certain immigrant communities in North America and Europe.
Female genital mutilation has no known health benefits. On the contrary, it is known to be harmful to girls and women in many ways. First and foremost, it is painful and traumatic. The removal of or damage to healthy, normal genital tissue interferes with the natural functioning of the body and causes several immediate and long-term health consequences. For example, babies born to women who have undergone female genital mutilation suffer a higher rate of neonatal death compared with babies born to women who have not undergone the procedure.
Communities that practice female genital mutilation report a variety of social and religious reasons for continuing with it. Seen from a human rights perspective, the practice reflects deep-rooted inequality between the sexes, and constitutes an extreme form of discrimination against women.
Female genital mutilation is nearly always carried out on minors and is therefore a violation of the rights of the child. The practice also violates the rights to health, security and physical integrity of the person, the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and the right to life when the procedure results in death.
Decades of prevention work undertaken by local communities, governments, and national and international organizations have contributed to a reduction in the prevalence of female genital mutilation in some areas. Communities that have employed a process of collective decision making have been able to abandon the practice. Indeed, if the practising communities decide themselves to abandon female genital mutilation, the practice can be eliminated very rapidly. Several governments have passed laws against the practice, and where these laws have been complemented by culturally-sensitive education and public awareness-raising activities, the practice has declined.
CAGeM has played a key role in advocating against the practice and generating data that confirm its harmful consequences. We have also made a major contribution to the promotion of gender equality and the elimination of female genital mutilation.
CLASSIFICATION
De-infibulation
Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of marriage (by the husband, or a circumciser), in order to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At childbirth, many women also have to be cut again, because the vaginal opening is too small to allow for the passage of a baby. Attempts at forcible penetration may cause rupture of scars and sometimes perineal tears, dyspareunia, and vaginismus. Excessive penile force during first intercourse can cause severe bleeding, shock and infection.
Re-infibulation
In some communities, the raw edges of the wound are sutured again after childbirth, recreating a small vaginal opening. Re-infibulation is the sewing up of a circumcised woman’s vaginal opening after childbirth or periodically during her life when she feels as though her opening has gotten too big or loose.
Type I
Type I FGM is the partial or total removal of the clitoris (clitoridectomy),and/or the prepuce removal (clitoral hood), see Diagram 1B. When it is important to distinguish between the major variations of Type I mutilation, the following subdivisions are proposed.
Type Ia, removal of the clitoral hood or prepuce only.
Type Ib, removal of the clitoris with the prepuce. In the context of women who seek out labiaplasty, Stern opposes removal of the clitoral hood and points to potential scarring and nerve damage.
Type II
Type II FGM is "partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or without excision of the labia majora (excision). When it is important to distinguish between the major variations that have been documented, the following subdivisions are proposed:
Type IIa, removal of the labia minora only
Type IIb, partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora
Type IIc, partial or total removal of the clitoris, the labia minora and the labia majora. Note also that, in French, the term ‘excision’ is often used as a general term covering all types of female genital mutilation.
Type III: Infibulation with excision
Type III FGC is narrowing of the vaginal orifice with creation of a covering seal by cutting and appositioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora, with or without excision of the clitoris (infibulation)." It is the most extensive form of FGM, and accounts for about 10% of all FGM procedures described from Africa. Infibulation is also known as "pharaonic circumcision."
In a study of infibulation in the Horn of Africa, Pieters observed that the procedure involves extensive tissue removal of the external genitalia, including all of the labia minora and the inside of the labia majora. The labia majora are then held together using thorns or stitching. In some cases the girl's legs have been tied together for two to six weeks, to prevent her from moving and to allow the healing of the two sides of the vulva. Nothing remains but the walls of flesh from the pubis down to the anus, with the exception of an opening at the inferior portion of the vulva to allow urine and menstrual blood to pass through, see Diagram 1D. Generally, a practitioner deemed to have the necessary skill carries out this procedure, and a local anesthetic is used. However, when carried out "in the bush," infibulation is often performed by an elderly matron or midwife of the village, with no anesthesia used.
A reverse infibulation can be performed to allow for sexual intercourse or when undergoing labor, or by female relatives, whose responsibility it is to inspect the wound every few weeks and open it some more if necessary. During childbirth, the enlargement is too small to allow vaginal delivery, and so the infibulation is opened completely and may be restored after delivery. Again, the legs are sometimes tied together to allow the wound to heal. When childbirth takes place in a hospital, the surgeons may preserve the infibulation by enlarging the vagina with deep episiotomies. Afterwards, the patient may insist that her vulva be closed again.
This practice increases the occurrence of medical complications due to a lack of modern medicine and surgical practices.
A five-year study of 300 women and 100 men in Sudan found that "sexual desire, pleasure, and orgasm are experienced by the majority of women who have been subjected to this extreme sexual mutilation, in spite of their being culturally bound to hide these experiences."
Most advocates of the practice continue to perform the procedure in adherence to standards of beauty that are very different from those in the west. Many infibulated women will contend that the pleasure their partners receive due to this procedure is a definitive part of a successful marriage and enjoyable sex life.
Type IV: Other types
There are other forms of FGM, collectively referred to as Type IV, that may not involve tissue removal. Type IV FGC as "all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for example, pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterization." This includes a diverse range of practices, such as pricking the clitoris with needles, burning or scarring the genitals as well as ripping or tearing of the vagina. Type IV is found primarily among isolated ethnic groups as well as in combination with other types.
Our empowering educational worshops helps people to examine their own beliefs and values related to the practice in a dynamic and open way, that is not experienced or seen as threatening. Educational sessions will be empowering if they serve not only to impart new knowledge but also to provide a forum for participants to exchange experiences, and help them reveal and share complex inner feelings and examine conflicting attitudes towards female genital mutilation in the community.
Empowering education is done through various forms of training, including literacy training, analytical skills and problem-solving as well as through the provision of information on human rights, religion, general health and sexual and reproductive health. Classes and workshops include the use of traditional means of communication such as theatre, poetry, story telling, music and dance, as well as more modern methods, such as computer-based applications and mobile phone messages.
Educational activities are sensitive to local cultural and religious concerns or run the risk that the information provided will be regarded as morally offensive and result in negative reactions in communities. Information provided is based on evidence, but at the same time build on local perceptions and knowledge. Community based educational activities build on and expand the work with the mass media such as drama, video and local radio.
As female genital mutilation is a manifestation of gender inequality, a special focus on women’s empowerment is important (see right). However, educational activities reach all groups in the community with the same basic information to avoid misunderstandings and to inspire inter-group dialogue. The format is adapted so as to suit the realities of each specific group. It is also important to include young people - both girls and boys - as they are often more open to change, and can themselves be important change agents.
CAGeM also provides training workshops for service providers on clinical management of FGM, working effectively with women affected by FGM, child protection issues, and FGM educational tools and resources.
As female genital mutilation is a manifestation of gender inequality, the empowerment of women is of key importance to the elimination of the practice. Addressing this through education and debate brings to the fore the human rights of girls and women and the differential treatment of boys and girls with regard to their roles in society in general, and specifically with respect to female genital mutilation. This can serve to influence gender relations and thus accelerate progress in abandonment of the practice.
Programs which foster women’s economic empowerment are likely to contribute to progress as they can provide incentives to change the patterns of traditional behaviour to which a woman is bound as a dependent member of the household, or where women are loosing traditional access to economic gain and its associated power. Gainful employment empowers women in various spheres of their lives, influencing sexual and reproductive health choices, education and healthy behavior.
Schools can offer a forum for learning and
discussion about female genital mutilation if they can create an environment of confidence, trust and openness. Artists and others who provide positive role models are brought into schools, and materials are developed for teachers and integrated into school curricula and teacher training on subjects such as science, biology and hygiene as well as those in which religious, gender and other social issues are addressed.
Nevertheless, schools may not always be the ideal setting for learning about sensitive and intimate issues and, as many girls and boys are not enrolled in school, other outreach activities for young people are needed. As it is advisable to reach all groups of the community with the same basic information, all forms and spaces of learning, including intergenerational dialogue are explored when designing initiatives to address female genital mutilation.
Workshops are also provided internationally to schools to help raise awareness and support against FGM.
To have CAGeM present an Educational Worshop at your institution/organization, contact us.
Different mechanisms have been used to make public the pledge to abandon the practice. In some contexts, public pledges have taken the form of written declarations, publicly posted, which are signed by those who have decided to abandon female genital mutilation. In West Africa, pledges are typically made in the form of inter-village declarations involving as many as 100 villages at a time. These are festive occasions that bring together individuals who have participated in the educational sessions, religious, traditional and government leaders and a large number of other community members. Often, people from communities that have not been directly involved in promoting abandonment are invited as a way of spreading the abandonment movement. Media are typically present and serve to disseminate information about the fact that communities are abandoning the practice and to explain the reasons why.
Among some populations where female genital mutilation is traditionally accompanied by a "coming of age" ritual, alternative rituals that reinforce the traditional positive values but without female genital mutilation, have been pursued. Such approaches have added new elements in the rituals, including education on human rights and sexual and reproductive health issues. Alternative rites have been found to be effective to the extent that they foster a process of social change by engaging the community at large, as well as girls, in activities that lead to changing beliefs about female genital mutilation.
As with individual families, it is difficult for one community to abandon the practice if those around it continue. Activities at community level therefore include an explicit strategy for spreading the decision to abandon the practice throughout the practicing population. This is typically done by passing information and engaging in discussion with influential members of other communities that are part of the same social network. Through a strategy of organized diffusion, communities that are abandoning the practice engage others to do the same, thereby increasing the consensus and sustainability of the new social norm that rejects female genital mutilation.
Stand with us Against FGM
Donate, Join, and volunteer today!
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Every year thousands of girls and women lose their lives because of FGM. Some of them die immediately from shock or hemorrhage, others later, from infection, AIDS spread by communal ceremonies, or in childbirth gone awry because of physical damage resulting from genital cutting. All of these girls lose their chance for health, happiness, and fulfillment of their potential and hopes in life. At present, girls who choose not to be cut have no place in their home communities, and they need the life options that education can provide. If they remain dependent in village life, they will eventually be coerced and submit to FGM, followed by an early marriage. Rescued girls who have escaped female genital mutilation are given free shelter with free primary and secondary education. After that they may go on to higher education, with a sponsor's support, becoming prepared to stand on their own feet, contribute positively to their communities, and free to support themselves and choose a way of life that does not require female genital mutilation. Your sponsorship will trully save her life.
Sponsorship
Sponsors may contribute the whole amount or we can pool their donations with several others to cover the cost for one girl.
The girl you sponsor will send you letters, photos and updates about her life.
Thousands of women live in pain and suffer from the detrimental health effects of female genital mutilation. Some of them have developed obstetric fistula, a debilitating disorder that causes women to be ostrasized from their communities. Currenly there are hundreds of women waiting for treatment, restorative surgery, and rehabilitation at our free hospital which with adequate funds, we intend to open in May, 2012. Since we are offering these services for free we depend on our sponsors to cover the cost of these surgeries.
You may sponsor a surgery for one patient for $9,640. Sponsors may contribute the whole amount or we can pool their donations with several others to cover the cost for one surgey of a patient with the most need.
If you want to help us build this hospital and help as many women as possible, please click on the "Donate" botton on the left, and donate under "Victim Restoration".
The patient you sponsor will send you letters, photos and updates about her surgery and recovery.
AFRICA ARISE
A documetary on Female Genital Mutilation
Date: February 6th, 2012. Location: 505 8th Avenue, New York, NY 10018
Time: 7pm to 10pm. Speaker: Soraya Mire ( sorayamire.org )
Thanks to the sponsors below who helped make this event successful!
Join us for the Walkathon to help send medical equipment and volunteers to villages in West Africa and provide the much needed health and psychological attention to victims of female circumcision and obstetric fistula. It is critical that we move forward quickly and we are committed to raising funds to building, and creating a clinic where women and children marred by the results of genital mutilation can seek refuge.
Date: April 14th, 2012
Location: Central Park, New York
Time: 9am
To participate in the walkathon please contact us.
To sponsor the walkathon please click here.
"I was circumcised at the age of nine. My mother told me that they were taking me down to the sacred woods to perform a certain ceremony, and afterwards I would become a real woman. As an innocent child, and young girl I was taken away and when I came back I was never to be the same again.
Once we entered the so-called sacred bush, I was taken into a very dark room in a hut and undressed. I was blindfolded and stripped naked. There was dancing and drinking outside and all was festive. There was nothing that could indicate to me that I was going to live a nightmare that would change my life forever and haunt me. I was made to lie on my back, strong women held my legs tight. One woman sat on my chest in a bid to prevent my upper body from moving. A piece of cloth was forced in my mouth to stop me screaming and the operation began.
I could not put up any fight .The pain was excruciating and unbearable. I was badly cut and lost a lot of blood. All those who took part in the operation were half-drunk with alcohol and seemed to be in a trance or in another world where only spirits could dare. Others were dancing and singing, while I was being mutilated with a knife that would have been used on many other girls of my age.
