In Ethiopia and other parts of Africa it is costumed to perform circumcision on young females without their consent. FGM ( female genital mutilation) usually is done 10 days after birth or when the girl is 8 years old. There are three types of FGM, sunna mutilation, excision, and infibulation. Sunna mutilation is done mostly in West Africa by removing some or all of the clitoris. Excision is performed in Sudan and its consists of the clitoris, labia minora and prepuce being removed. Finally, Infibulation is done in Ethiopia, Egypt and Somalia, where they remove the clitoris and prepuce and later sew up some of the vulva. Furthermore, this procedure is very unsanitary and painful because no antibiotics and anesthetics are used. FGM is not done because of religious beliefs, rather its more of cultural custom that has spread throughout years among different religions. It is done because the people believe it prevents the woman to have any sexual drive before marriage and therefore it keeps them pure.
This practice can be considered a human rights issue because it is dangerous to the young females health and can cause many complications as they grow up. Also its done without their consent and they don't have any say on whether to continue with the surgery or not.
Cultural relativism can defend this practice because its something that is common custom in their culture. It has been done for years and passed on through generations, so its something that others must view objectively.
Personally, I believe this practice shouldn't continue to be done because it risks the lives of young girls, who aren't aware of the consequences of the procedure. Though, a similar practice is done in the west, male circumcision, but it doesn't have health risks like FGM. I believe that those cultures should be educated about the health risks of their practices and in hope they could stop and reduce the continuation of FGM.
References:
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION FEMALE (CIRCUMCISION) IN AFRICA, MIDDLE EAST AND FAR EAST. (n.d.). ReligiousTolerance.org by the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. Retrieved February 13, 2011, from http://www.religioustolerance.org/fem_cirm1.htm
UNICEF - Ethiopia - Female Genital Cutting: Painful procedures in the name of tradition. (n.d.). UNICEF - UNICEF Home. Retrieved February 13, 2011, from http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_18246.html
It is pretty difficult to try and understand the justification behind this invasive practice. Not only are they causing detriment to the individuals body, they are also depriving them of sexual gratification before they are old enough to know better, and the worst part is that it is not done with consent. I find this cultural practice one of the most inhumane as a surgery like this can never be corrected. The fact that it has been carried out in their society's history, seems to make it justifiable enough for them to carry on with it. With that said, we must sill try to create space for understanding practices like this, even if we feel it is a historically dated and unjustifiable procedure.
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