CAIRO: For decades, reformers have been trying to end female genital mutilation/cutting, a widespread traditional practice that is harmful to women and girls. Now, however, thanks to a new approach, communities across Africa and some Arab States are standing up together against the practice and overturning deeply entrenched social norms. Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) refers to several different harmful practices involving the cutting of the female genitals. It is estimated that about three million girls, the majority under 15 years of age, undergo the procedure every year. FGM/C is a practice deeply rooted in tradition and persists because it is a social convention upheld by underlying gender structures and power relations. The United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) revealed in its latest report conducted in partnership with the United Nations' Children Fund (UNICEF) that despite a vast awareness campaign Yemen was still very much lagging when it came to FGM, prompting them to raise the alarm and urge the government to do more to put an end to the practice. According to the study 97 percent of young girls in the western province of Hodeidah are still subjected to genital mutilation, putting them in danger to develop chronic pain in infections as well as a total loss of libido. Several aid workers stated that poverty and illiteracy were major parts of the problem, stressing that the government needed urgently to develop new programs in the region in partnership with local tribal leaders to put an end to such practices. Despite prominent Muslim clerics denouncing the practice, saying that its roots had no root within Islam and was actually contrary to its teaching as it advocated mutilation, many villagers are still willing to put their daughters through the horrific ordeal in the name of tradition. The Ministry of Human Rights announced that it was studying the matter and looking at ways to collaborate with the many agencies to put a stop to female genital mutilation. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/b7jKL Tags: Cutting, FGM, Girls Section: Human Rights, Latest News, Women, Yemen
