Join forces to banish the mutilation of women Emma Bonino IHT Wednesday, September 15, 2004
A brutal custom BRUSSELS In the last decade the global community has made giant strides to promote and protect human rights. Light has been shined on some of the dark corners of the world that concealed human rights abuses. Simply put, the world is slowly become a better and safer place to live for many people. . Much has been achieved through nonviolent struggle to improve the human rights of women in Africa and the Arab world, but there are still significant and critical battles ahead. In too many places specific problems facing millions of women and children are still justified in the name of "culture" or "tradition." . One of the biggest remaining abuses for women and girls is the forced female circumcision, or clitoridectomy. A far better description is female genital mutilation. The practice ranges from circumcision to the total removal of the external genitalia. The practice occurs throughout the world: it is estimated that overall 135 million women and girls have undergone it, with two million currently at risk. . While female genital mutilation is most prevalent in Africa and in some parts of the Arab world, it is by no means an isolated problem. There are reports of female genital mutilation in Asia and among migrant communities the world over, from Australia to North America to Europe. For too many people, discussion of this barbarism is taboo. . Despite the policy in many places of turning a blind eye, an unprecedented mobilization in the last few years, both in the affected countries and internationally, has raised awareness and stressed the need to solve the problem for the sake of the women and children concerned. . This week hundreds of victims, former circumcisers, doctors, teachers, judges, parliamentarians, government and nongovernment representatives, as well as cultural, religious and other community leaders, will gather in Nairobi to discuss strategies to combat female genital mutilation. In an effort spearheaded by the government of Kenya, they will come together to share ideas and strategies; most important, they will talk to one another about the problems affecting their societies and how they might be overcome. . Change will require a concerted effort by all members of society. In the case of female genital mutilation, change is all the more difficult to bring about because it requires not only the establishment of a political environment and legal framework in which to support change, but also breaking long-established rules of custom. . Female genital mutilation cannot be tolerated or "made safe," it should simply be banished. Having girls mutilated in hospitals or by medical practitioners does not solve the problem. The use of professional surgeons is as much a threat as the practice itself, because it masks the fact that female genital mutilation is a violation wherever it is done, under any circumstances. The only way to overcome this problem is to bring about change in behavior - primarily in parents and women - and to have strong laws to back up those who are willing to stand firm and say no to female genital mutilation. . One positive development was the adoption by the African Union heads of state in July 2003 of the Maputo Protocol on the Rights of Women. Article 5 of the protocol stipulates that female genital mutilation should be prohibited and condemned. Ratification of the protocol by as many countries as possible would mean a considerable step forward not only for the fight against female genital mutilation, but also for women's rights and gender issues in general. . Every step we take toward the elimination of female genital mutilation represents a victory for human rights. The world cannot become complacent about this brutal practice. . Emma Bonino is a member of the European Parliament and a former European commissioner. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/BRUplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> *************************************************************************** Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. 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