FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION 1

Running Head: FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

Female Genital Mutilation: Causes and Impacts

Quinn Rooney

Glen Allen High School

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Abstract

This research paper is an exploration into the statistics surrounding female genital

mutilation in both developing and first-world countries in addition to the legality of what is often

referred to as female circumcision. Furthermore, the trends of the proportion of women affected

will be discussed. As more women are becoming educated, the issue of female genital mutilation

is becoming more and more a part of a topic of conversation as it had previously been a taboo

subject that was kept secret to ensure the reputation of the women and her family were protected.

Lastly, the review will approach the impact that female circumcision has on the victims in order

to put a name and story to the statistics.

Introduction

Female genital mutilation, originally called female circumcision until the 1970’s when it

was determined that the use of the word circumcision normalized the practice, lacks a clear

origin. Some historians believe that it first started in ancient Egypt as there were circumcised

mummies found that lived in the fifth century BC. Others suggest that it originated on the slave

trade, most likely as another form of control and assertion of power of people. Despite its

origins, female genital mutilation did not only occur in Africa; in ancient Rome there is evidence

that female slaves underwent the mutilation as a way to decrease the likelihood of a slave

becoming pregnant. Not simply an ancient practice, female genital mutilation is not only

practiced in developing countries but also in first-world countries such as the United States of

America and England (Llamas, 2017). In fact for western countries, such as the United States in

the 1950’s, the practice was performed in order to treat illnesses such as epilepsy, mental

disorders, masturbation, and melancholia. (Adeyanju, A., Afolabi, B., Bello, O., & Odukogbe,
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A., 2017). This would transformed, analyst Sarah Rodriguez concluded, into female genital

mutilation being used in western countries in order to “control female sexuality” and to promote

a woman being focused on her wifely duties instead of any bothersome sexual desires, a belief

that made the practice very popular leading up to the 1960s. Clearly not simply a regional or

generational issue, female genital mutilation is a very real threat to the safety and emotional

security of young girls and women all around the world (Rodriguez, 2010).

FGM Defined

Female genital mutilation can be defined by several different actions, but they all fall

under the World Health Organization and the United Nations’ definition that mutilation includes

“all procedures that involve altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical reasons”

(International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, 6 February, 2019). There

are four different types that fall under the umbrella definition of female genital mutilation. Type

1, also called a clitoridectomy, is the “partial or total removal of the clitoris” (Female Genital

Mutilation or Cutting, 2018). This type primarily occurs in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Kenya. Type 2,

most commonly practised in Sierra Leone and Guinea, is the “is the partial or total removal of

the clitoris and the labia minora.” (Female genital mutilation, 2018). Type 3, also known as

infibulation, involves sewing the labia together to make the vaginal opening smaller while the

clitoris may or may not be removed in addition in order to narrow “the vaginal orifice with a

covering seal” to preserve a girl’s virginity (Female genital mutilation (FGM) frequently asked

questions, 2018). Type 3 is not only the most common, but it is the most dangerous as well and

has the most health concerns associated. Type 4 is more general as it can include any “harm to

the female genitalia for nonmedical purposes” which can include anything from scraping,
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pricking, cutting, and cauterization (Female Genital Mutilation or Cutting, 2018). This is the

least common practice but the “symbolic form of the practice” is most commonly found in

Burkina Faso, Chad and Guinea (Koski & Heymann, 2017). All four types may also include the

insertion of a corrosive substance into the vagina in order to “scar, tighten and narrow it” and an

anesthetic will rarely be used as over eighty percent of female genital mutilation occurrences do

not occur in or near a medical facility, meaning the young girls are forced to endure torture to

their genitalia with no relief from the pain during or after the procedure (Roberts, 2014). In a

data collection of sixteen countries, the PRB found that “one-third of countries with data,

FGM/C is half as common among young women (ages 15 to 19) than among middle-age women

(ages 45 to 49)” (Madsen & Bietsch, 2017). Similar results were found in a study done by Alissa

Koski and Jody Heymann for BMJ Global Health in a long-term trend analysis of female genital

mutilation in twenty-two countries, concluding that “the practice has been declining slowly and

steadily for 30 years in many countries including Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Kenya.”

(Koski & Heymann, 2017). The apparent solution, according to Elizabeth Leahy Madsen and

Kristen Bietsch is education for women. [See Table] (Madsen & Bietsch, 2017).
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In some of the countries with the most occurances of the outdated practice, there is a significant

decrease in a girl’s likelihood of being affected based on whether or not her mother has been

educated. The impact of a mother’s education is also placed on top of the impact of more efforts

being made to stop it. For example, in PRB’s study from which the table was made, it was found

that,

“In Burkina Faso, where nearly 90 percent of women in their 40s have been

forced to undergo [female genital mutilation]...the low prevalence rate

among young girls (14 percent for ages 5 to 9; 5 percent for those under age

5) provides evidence that a growing share of families are abandoning the

practice.” (Madsen & Bietsch, 2017).

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This apparent “progress has not been uniform,” however, as countries such as Mali and Gambia

have “remained high and stable” (Koski & Heymann, 2017). There are still many efforts that

need to be taken in order to ensure the safety of young girls around the world.

Reasons for FGM

While the reasoning behind the practice of female genital mutilation is different in every

culture and community, there are six overarching themes that all of the reasons fall into. The first

of which is to keep a woman clean as, in some cultures, the female genitalia is seen as dirty so it

is altered in order “to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal” (Female genital mutilation (FGM)

frequently asked questions, 2019). Another reason is to aid in ensuring that a woman is still a

virgin when she gets married. This is especially the case for the type three procedures, as often

times the men look for their bride to still be sewn up and for them to have the “honor” of being

able to cut them open. Thirdly, it is often seen as a rite of passage for young girls transitioning

into adulthood. It is also a condition by a potential husband for him to agree to marry her. The

fourth reason for female genital mutilation is that people believe it is a religious duty, despite

requirements of it appearing in any holy texts. The fifth, and arguably most disturbing, argument

for female genital mutilation is that it increases the sexual pleasure for men, simply enforcing a

culture of male domination and ownership of women’s bodies (Female Genital Mutilation or

Cutting, 2018). None of the arguments have any medical or scientific evidence that supports the

varying theories, nor do they have any religious text to support them either. The only argument is

that of tradition, a dangerous concept as something that happened in the past is not necessarily

correct in modern-day society.

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Who Is Affected?

For the most part, countries in the Horn of Africa are the most affected by female genital

mutilation, however, this does not mean that young girls all over the world are not vulnerable to

the impact of the procedure. In a study of women aged fifteen to forty-nine, the countries with

the highest proportions of women affected by the practice were Somalia with 98%, Guinea with

97%, Djibouti with 93%, and Sierra Leone with 90% (Koski & Heymann, 2017). Countries such

as Mali, Egypt, Sudan and Eritrea are close followers with percentages all in the eighties

(Llamas, 2017). The countries also have an impact on what type of FGM is the most common.

So, how many people do these percentages represent? An estimated 100 to 200 million girls

living today are victims of female genital mutilation (Llamas, 2017). That is over the population

of 186 out of 195 countries in the world. This means that if every living victim of the outdated

practice was gathered to make their own country, only seven countries would have a larger

population than theirs. (Countries in the world by population, 2019). Another factor that must be

accounted for it that these numbers are simply an estimate as not only will many women not

report it--be it due to shame or their privacy--but many don’t even know what was changed on

their bodies. It is not only isolated to Africa either. In fact, American occurrences of FGM have

tripled since 1990 (Female Genital Mutilation or Cutting, 2018). The fact that female genital

mutilation is plateauing where it is highest and increasing, where it would normally be

considered nonexistent, is incredibly frightening as there is little legislation that has made a

noticeable difference, the only “treatment” that seems to work is that of educating women.

(Madsen & Bietsch, 2017).

Effect On Women’s Health

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The practice of female genital mutilation is rarely done in a sanitary area with trained

professionals working with clean, new instruments. Instead it is usually done on the floor of a

house with an old blade, piece of glass, or knife (Female genital mutilation (FGM) frequently

asked questions, 2018). The young girls, who are given no pain medicine, face severe physical

trauma. The girls affected face constant infections due to unsanitary utensils and environments.

They have “severe pain, excessive bleeding...urinary problems...shock [and] death” and often-

times require surgery later on in life, for example they may go through the deinfibulation process

(Female genital mutilation, 2018). They have many issues when trying to have intercourse and

giving birth due to the scar tissue as it can cause tearing and excessive bleeding when reopened,

especially with type 3, which causes the most health concerns. In the case of type 3 mutilations,

husbands with often cut the women back open themselves in order to have sexual intercourse,

which only adds to the scar tissue and chances of infection (Female Genital Mutilation or

Cutting, 2018). This can physically cause their body to go into shock, but it can also have a

devastating effect on the women’s mental and emotional health. The girls and women will often

have psychological trauma and become afflicted with issues such as depression, anxiety, and

post-traumatic stress disorder (Female genital mutilation, 2018). Due to the majority of female

genital mutilation victims living in rural, impoverished villages in Africa, there is little to no

medical care, let alone mental health treatments. They are forced to suffer through these issues in

silent--as there is both a lack of education and a stigma about the strength of a person who

struggles with their mental health--and often remain silenced their entire life, forced to put on a

happy face and do what they are told. A victim further explained that “the trauma of the assault

also had a bearing on intimate situations with her partner” (Ritchie, 2016). Female genital
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mutilation in any form, in any location, always has the same devastating impact on the young

girls and women who are victims of the practice.

Impact

The impact is clear: it tears away any hope for independence that young girls have and

institutionalizes a sexist agenda that promotes the mutilation of a girl’s body for the sole purpose

of pleasing men. Women who have realized the horrors of the practice have spoken out about the

devastating effects it had on them. This pain is succinctly summarized in Dahabo Muse’s poem

Feminine Pain.

“It is what my grandmother called the three feminine sorrows, She said the day of

circumcision, the wedding night, and the birth of a baby are the triple feminine

sorrows. As the birth bursts, I cry for help, when the battered flesh tears. No

mercy, push! they say, It is only feminine pain! And now I appeal: I appeal for

love lost, for dreams broken, for the right to live as a whole human being. I appeal

to all peace loving people to protect, to support and give a hand to innocent little

girls who do no harm, obedient to their parents and elders, all they know is only

smiles. Initiate them to the world of love, not to the world of feminine sorrow!!”

(Muse, 1998).

Another victim of the practice says that her decision to not have her daughters be “cut”

had a negative impact on her relationship with her family. They believed that she rejected

the “protection for the family” that female genital mutilation provided. The protection they

spoke of what referring to two aspects: the image of the family and the financial gain from

her daughters getting married. Her relationship with her mother was especially strained
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from her decision as her mother felt if the girls were not cut that they would be

disadvantaged. Her mother being angry at her and pushing her away haunted her until her

mother’s death (Ritchie, 2016). Mariya Taher, another female genital mutilation survivor,

didn’t know what the practice was until she later read about it when she was a teenager.

She feel like she had been betrayed by her family, that despite having an otherwise

enjoyable childhood, “it was a violation,” something she had to work on with her mother,

who now opposes the outdated practice (Moghe, 2017). Just recently, a mother in England

was charged for practicing female genital mutilation on her three-year-old daughter when

the judge decided that “it's a barbaric practice and a serious crime. It's an offense which

targets women, particularly inflicted when they are young and vulnerable” (Guy, 2019).

Conclusion

Female Genital Mutilation is a far-reaching issue that is only recently starting to be

brought up as a topic of conversation in political and social discussions. Due to women’s

education in developing areas and the breaking away from tradition that many families are

displaying, the numbers of female genital mutilation are decreasing, but are still too high to be in

any way accepted by society. No matter the reason, the truth of the matter is that young girls

lives are being put in danger everyday by the practice that can be boiled down to being done to

simply assert male dominance over women and to make the girls feel as if their bodies were put

on earth for the pleasure of men. Female genital mutilation impacts millions of girls by savagely

and disrespectfully modifying their bodies without any of their consent, and is not based in any

logic or fact. It impacts the girls for the rest of their lives and needs to have a bigger push to stop

it.
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References

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in Africa. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5422681/

Countries in the world by population. (2019). Retrieved from

https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/population-by-country/

EU policy & legal framework. (2015). Retrieved from

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Female genital mutilation or cutting. (2018). Retrieved from

https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/female-genital-cutting

Female genital mutilation. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact

-sheets/detail/female-genital-mutilation

International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, 6 February (2019).

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Guy, J. (2019). Woman jailed for 11 years for performing FGM on her 3-year-old daughter.

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index.html

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Madsen, E. & Bietsch, K. (2017) Data in new wallchart show female genital mutilation/cutting
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