Female circumcision is also known as female genital mutilation and female genital cutting. It consists of any harm performed to a female’s genital area for non-medical reasons (World Health Organization). Many believe that there are medical reasons for such procedures.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is generally carried out between age four and puberty, although it can be carried out during any time in the female’s life. It can take place in a hospital, but even then, it generally is performed without anesthesia. WHO (World Health Organization) estimates that 140 million girls around the world have experienced it, including 101 million in Africa. Countries in which it is still practiced outside of Africa include Indonesia, Malaysia, Iran, Iraq, Oman, Yemen, Australia, New Zealand, European countries, Scandinavia, the United States, and Canada. In the last six, it is mainly performed by immigrant groups. It is generally performed by a traditional circumciser with a knife, razor, or scissors. Men and women support it in communities that practice FGM.
The WHO offers four classifications of female circumcision. Type one is removal of the clitoris and clitoral hood. Type two is removal of the clitoris and inner labia. With type three, part or all of the inner and outer labia and the clitoris are removed. Then, the area is fused together, leaving a small opening for urine and menstrual blood. The wound is reopened for intercourse and childbirth. About 85% of women who undergo FGM experience types one and two. Type three is most common in Djibouti, Somalia, Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Mali. Type four includes piercing of the clitoris or labia, cauterizing the clitoris, and widening the vagina by cutting.
Of course, there are risks and side effects from FGM. Frequent urinary tract infections and vaginal infections occur. Chronic pain, infertility, fatal bleeding, and cysts also occur. Female genital mutilation may cause complications with childbirth. Generally, these procedures are carried out with unsterile instruments in an unsterile environment without anesthesia. Cutting instruments can include knives, razors, scissors, cut glass, sharpened rocks, and fingernails with sutures made of things like agave or acacia thorns. The procedure can rendure the woman incapable of passing urine. Like all wounds, it may become infected, especially in such unsterile conditions. Septis and tetanus aren’t unheard of. HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus), leading to AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome), and hepatitis may get into the blood stream. Few records are kept and complications aren’t usually recognized, so there is no way of knowing how many fatalities result from such procedures. In Lunsar, Sierra Leone, girls who bleed out are considered witches. Scar tissue may obstruct the vagina or urethra (passage from the bladder to the outside of the body). Damage to the urethra can result in incontinence. Painful menstruation and intercourse are side effects. Complete obstruction of the vagina results in a back up of menstrual blood in the reproductive tract. Damage to the area could result in feces (“poop”) and urine entering the vagina, infecting it and putting any infants in danger. FGM makes it more difficult to diagnose preeclampsia and perform cervical evaluations and also may prolong labor. Emergency c-sections are more common in those who have undergone circumcision. There is an increased risk of death of the infant during pregnancy and birth. The risk is 15% higher for type one, 32% higher for type two, and 55% higher for type three. Women who undergo FGM come to believe that mutilation is normal and acceptable. They have psychological sexual disfunction and it does not destroy sexual desire in women (unlike is thought).
There are numerous reasons that are given for performing female circumcision. Many people believe that it will lower her libido, decrease her sexual drive, and keep her from losing her virginity before marriage or committing adultery when married. In areas where it is tradition, it makes the women more beautiful in their view. They believe it is better for her psychologically. Some Christians, Jews, and Muslims believe that they have a religious obligation to perform routine female circumcisions. It is also believed to increase her husband’s sexual pleasure during intercourse. In some communities, circumcision is a ritual for a girl entering womanhood. Many cultures believe that the clitoris is filthy, ugly, and bad for the hygeine, or even evil. They believe it makes the woman more fertile and makes the child more likely to survive in the womb and after the birth. It supposedly prevents vaginal odors, vaginal infections, urinary tract infections, overgrowth of the clitoris, pain during intercourse, and inflammation. In some cultures, the woman cannot get married, make decisions, or participate in society if she is not circumcised. Some think that removing the clitoris helps prevent cancer. In some religious groups, they believe that an uncircumcised woman’s prayers will not be heard. According to customs, an uncircumcised woman cannot bare a boy child. If an infant touches the clitoris during birth, it is thought to have water on the brain or die and the mother’s milk is thought to become poisonous. It is thought that if a man’s penis touches a woman’s clitoris, he will become impotent. Some societies perform it to make the woman easier to tame and control so that she will be the perfect wife and mother. With circumcision in infants, it is thought to allow them to walk and prevent stomach upset. Many uncircumcised women believe that a clitoris will continue growing to incredible sizes if not cut.
In 1982, Sweden was the first Western country to outlaw female circumcision. It is currently illegal in Australia, New Zealand, and the European Union. FGM is included in section 268 in the Criminal Code of Canada. In 1997, the Centers for Disease Control in the United States estimated that about 168,000 girls in the country had undergone female circumcision or were about to. In 1996, the United States offered safety to a 19-year-old Togo tribe member to avoid circumcision and a forced marriage, setting a precedence. It became illegal to perform such a procedure on someone under the age of 18. As of January 2013, it is illegal to send a girl out of the country for a circumcision. A man in Atlanta, Georgia from Ethiopia became the first man convicted of the crime in 2006 when he cut off his two-year-old daughter’s clitoris, earning him ten years in jail. In 1985, female genital mutilation was outlawed in Britain. In 2003, it became illegal to send a British citizen out of the country for a circumcision. In 2005, it became illegal to send a Scottish citizen out of the country for a circumcision. Some citizens get around the laws by sending their girls back to their home country to visit relatives, at which time they have the procedure performed before returning home. In France, there have been 40 trials since the 1980’s.
*Information in this paper were gathered from Wikipedia and Circumstitions.com.*
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