Female circumcision is a ‘rite of passage’ for young girls from childhood to adulthood. This cruel practice involves the removal of the clitoris and other parts of the female genitalia. Followers of this practice believe that it is an effective way to curb a woman’s sexuality.
It is often referred as female genital mutilation by the Amnesty International and the World Health Organization. The word mutilation is used to reinforce the idea that this barbaric practice is a violation of the human rights of girls and women. Though, locally the term used widely is the less judgmental ‘cutting’. After all, no parent likes to think that they are mutilating their own daughters.
Apart from the Middle East, female genital cutting is widely practiced in African countries, especially in the region from Senegal in West Africa to Somalia on the East coast. But now, due to immigration this practice is not confined to any specific region and has spread to Europe, Australia, and even the United States. British police are of the opinion that in Britain alone 66,000 girls face the risk of genital mutilation. According to Amnesty International, approximately 130 million women all over the world have been affected by some form of genital mutilation or the other. Despite the practice being banned in most countries, it is still a very enduring tradition, and more than 2 million such procedures are being performed every year.
A very large section of tradition-bound families make their daughters undergo this genital cutting when they are on a vacation in their home countries. By doing so, the people involved in this crime can cover up their tracks and the girls get enough time to recover.
Unfortunately, till the time this barbaric practice is completely stopped, millions of innocent girls worldwide will continue to suffer physical and emotional trauma all in the name of culture.
via: Y!News
