As a Nigerian-American young female, I am interested in knowing and learning about the international issues that afflict Nigeria's and other African countries' citizens, especially its women. One of those issues is female genital mutilation. Female genital mutilation is a custom practiced in many countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Everyday, 6,000 girls and women are mutilated and the practice is even becoming widespread in the United States because of the rising number of immigrants who come here and request for the "sacred surgery" to be done on their daughters and wives. After hearing about the prevalence of this practice in Nigeria, I was immediately called to action and I decided to let young women about female genital mutilation.

     Female genital mutilation (FGM), also called female circumcision, is defined as the cutting or partial/total removal of the external female genitalia for cultural, religious, or other non-medical reasons. This procedure is carried out on young girls, from ages four to ten, depending on the ethnic group. FGM removes the tissues around the vagina that allow women to have pleasurable sexual feelings. Some reasons for FGM are to ensure a girl's cleanliness, reduce promiscuity, and increase the chances of marriage. Many people describe this procedure as being a form social and cultural control over a woman's sexuality. Some cultures see FGM as a rite of passage for young girls and many cultures have made this a tradition after practicing it for several thousands of years. When a girl is cut, she is considered a "real" woman because her "male parts", the clitoris and labia, are removed. Families of the mutilated females have "justifications" for these practices. Local villagers consider a girl who is not circumcised "unclean", and therefore unmarriageable. People also think that a girl who does not have her clitoris removed is considered a great danger and ultimately fatal to a man if her clitoris touches his penis.

The types of FGM (in order of extremity) are:

1)Sunna (meaning tradition in Arabic) or circumcision: This consists of the removal of the clitoris and clitoral hood.

2) Clitoridectomy or excision: This consists of the removal of the clitoris, the clitoral hood, the glans (the erectile tissue at the tip of a clitoris), and the adjacent labia.

3)Infibulation or pharaonic circumcision: This, the most extreme form of FGM, consists of the removal of the clitoris, the adjacent labia (both minora and majora), and the joining of the vulva across the vagina. The bleeding, raw, and scraped edges of the large lips are held together by thorns and other fastening devices or are sewn together with catgut or thread, until a scar forms to close the entrance to the vagina. The legs of the newly circumcised girl are held together for several weeks until the wound heals and a tiny opening is made, usually by inserting a splinter of wood, to allow urine and menstrual blood to pass through.

4)Intermediate: Some groups categorize FGM differently; they include a fourth category collecting all unclassified procedures of FGM. Intermediate FGM is similar to excision or a clitoridectomy, but, sometimes, part of the labia majora is removed.

     Most of the time, an older woman, a traditional healer, a barber, or a qualified midwife or doctor performs FGM under very unsanitary conditions with tools such as razor blades, sharp rocks, scissors, kitchen knives, and sharp pieces of glass. These instruments, in most cases are used on girls, in succession, without being subject to any cleaning or other disinfecting methods, thus, causing transmission of infectious diseases, like HIV/AIDS, which is an issue by itself.

     Immediate consequences of FGM include severe bleeding, shock, hemorrhage, and septicemia, which can all cause instant death. Long-term complications include sexual frigidity, genital malformation, delayed menarche, chronic pelvic difficulties, infection from a stoppage of menstrual blood and urine, and several obstetric problems.

     FGM occurs in over 25 countries, including Benin, Chad, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Indonesia, and Malaysia. It has been documented that over 150 million girls and women have been circumcised in countries across Africa and the Middle East. There are probably even more cases that have not been documented due to underreporting.

     Sometimes, if a woman knows about the procedure before it is performed, she has a slight chance of escape from her country. Take Fauziya Kassindja, for example. Kassindja had led a happy childhood in Togo, but when her father passed away, she was forced to live with conventional-minded relatives. They had arranged for her to marry a 47-year-old man, Kassindja was only 17, and undergo FGM. Only hours away from being cut, Kassindja escaped and left West Africa for the United States. She was arrested on charges of illegal immigration in the US, but after waiting 16 months for asylum, she was set free. Her courageous story gained a lot of attention and she appeared on the Oprah show and wrote a book, Do They Hear You When You Cry? Unfortunately, there are other women who were not as lucky as she. *Mary, from West Africa, was 12 years old when her grandmother told her it was her time to be cut. It took five men to hold her arms and legs while she struggled to keep her genitals from being cut with a dull and dirty razor. She said the pain was so unbearable, she couldn't eat, drink, or speak for a long period of time. Even to this day, *Mary experiences pain when she urinates or goes through menstruation.

     There is an international effort arising to stop FGM. The World Health Organization (WHO) has cited female genital mutilation as a serious public health problem and has taken various measures to abolish FGM. In 1979, the WHO led a seminar in Khartoum, Sudan, in which nine African and Middle Eastern countries devised programs that influenced health education and health training programs. The WHO, along with UNICEF and UNFPA, published a policy statement on FGM to promote policy development and action at the global, regional, and national level. Several countries where FGM is a traditional practice are now developing national plans of action based on the FGM prevention strategy proposed by WHO. In 1984, the Inter-African Committee (IAC) on traditional practices affecting the health of women and children was organized by African women to prevent FGM from occurring. Other organizations that have aided in the fight to stop FGM are the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), United Nations (UN), and the National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Center (NOCIRC).

     After you have read this, I want you to think about what occurs around the world today and what you can do to solve the problems that plague our society. But before that, think about what it means to be a woman and how it feels to know that approximately 6,000 of ours sisters are being violated each day against their will. Then, I want you to actually do something. Join with others and teach those who are ignorant to this matter that this is a violation of human rights and should not be held in isolation or not thought of just because it does not occur around you. If you do, the world will surely be a better place. *

______________________

* This person wishes for their name to be withheld.

Sources

-feminist.com, Hosken, Fran P., 1995-2001
-The Hollyfield Foundation, 1982
-Find Articles.Com
-Amnesty International - FGM Report, 1997