FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION : HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION OR CULTURAL PRACTICE?

The Republic Of Sudan or Sudan has criminalized carrying out female genital mutilation ( FGM) making it punishable by three years in jail, according to the United Nations. I was shocked and mortified that such practices are still existing on our planet but first let us address the Elephant in the room, WHAT IS FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION?

WHAT IS FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION?
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) also known as female genital cutting is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia ( a person external organs of reproduction) or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The practice is mostly found in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. UNICEF estimated in 2016 that 200 million women living today in 30 countries -27 African countries, Indonesia, Iraqi Kurdistan and Yemen - have all undergone the procedures. It is usually carried out by a blade, It is conducted from days after birth to puberty and beyond. Procedures differ according to the country or ethnic group.

TYPES OF FGM:

*Type one : Clitoridectomy - partial or total removal of the clitoris

*Type two : Excision- removal of the clitoris and inner labia (lips), with or without the outer labia

*Type three : Infibulation or pharaonic circumcision - cutting, removal of part or all external genitalia and stitching or narrowing of the vaginal opening 

*Type four : Any other type of intentional damage to the female genitalia  (burning, scraping, piercing )

The practice is rooted in very strong gender inequality, attempts to control women's sexuality (saddening), and primitive ideas about purity, modesty, and beauty. In the Bambara language (mostly spoken in Mali), it is known as bolokoli ( "washing your hands") and in the Igbo language as isa aru or iwu aru ( "having your bath")
There is no known health benefits but series of bad effects like
- Recurrent urinary and vaginal infections
- Chronic pain 
- Infertility
- Hemorrhaging 
- Epidermoid cysts and difficult labor
- Psychological effects like anxiety, depression and post traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD)
- Sexual problems such as decreased sexual desire and pleasure, pain during sex, difficulty during penetration and decreased lubrication during intercourse

 REASONS
The most common reasons why people(mostly women) still participate or encourage such barbaric practices are social acceptance, Religion( no proof of this), hygiene, preservation of virginity, marriageability and enhancement of male sexual pleasure( sick) . 
Dahabo Musa, a Somali woman, described infibulation in a 1988 poem as the "three feminine sorrows":the procedure itself, the wedding night when the woman is cut open, then childbirth when she is cut again. Despite the evident suffering, it is women who organize all forms of FGM

WAYS WE CAN END FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION
Female genital mutilation(FGM) is a barbaric practice with no health benefits that can only lead to pain, trauma and different medical complications.
There have been international efforts since the 1970s to persuade practitioners to abandon FGM, and it has been outlawed or restricted in most of the countries in which it occurs, although the laws are poorly enforced.
Since 2010, the United Nations has called upon healthcare providers to stop performing all forms of the procedure, including reinfibulation after childbirth and symbolic "nicking" of the clitoral hood. There have been strong opposition to continue in this inhumane practice, it is now up to you and me to try and end this practice. Dont think because it did not happen to you, its far away Girls are still getting circumcised and most of us are aware. We can end FGM by
- Creating more awareness
- Community Outreach
- Be Vigilant 
- Speak out about the risks and realities of FGM
- Challenge the discriminatory reasons FGM is practiced
- Educate girls on their right to decide what happens to their bodies
- Change traditions- with the support of older generations
Please let us all do our parts in ending FGM  and creating a safer environment for young girls.



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