Every year, about 3 million girls in Africa are at risk going through female circumcision. According to BBC ethics definition, it is the practice of cutting or removing clitoris, a sensitive part of female genitals. The cutting usually takes place when the girl is 3 to 10 years old. Female circumcision has long been a ritual in Africa, it is seen as a preparation for marriage and a prove for the women’s physical endurance. However, the circumcision is carried out in an unsterilized environment using blunt tools such as tin cans or fragment of class. As a result, many women can get infection or even die after the circumcision. Meanwhile, they will have a lifelong loss of sensation during sex.
As far as I am concerned, female circumcision is an inhuman way to treat women, which cruelly deprives women’s rights. Clearly, circumcision considers women to be men’s property, thus neglect their will of whether or not they want to be circumcised. Moreover, because women cannot feel pleasure during sexual intercourse, they are just “used” by their husbands as a means of reproduction.
Except the mental torment women suffer from circumcision, the badly treated wound also causes further pain in women’s physical body. It usually has a negative impact in women’s general health and their child bearing capabilities. Once they are circumcised, it is impossible for them to think that they are the same as other healthy women.
Female circumcision is a result of feudalism. After the circumcision, often times the wound is sewed up and will not be opened until the woman get married. This is a way to keep women’s virginity. Thus, uncircumcised women are thought to be “unclean”. On contrary to this false idea, the ethical attitude is to treat women equally as men. Women should be proud of their gender and enjoy a health life.
Interesting and twisted topic. I for one, am always an advocate for equality among all and rituals such as these always makes me wonder where they stemmed from. It can already be physically painful enough to be a women without the act of circumcision. Why must women be viewed as "property" and a "tool" for men to live their life to their utmost satisfaction? The view of what is considered "pure" and what makes a woman valuable is quite skewed.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting topic. It's absolutely unethical to mutilate women for the purpose of withholding "purity" while also permanently damaging their body and spirit. It's also interesting to take a step back and look at the culturally normal process of circumcising men. It feels normal, or not "mutilation" but it is a similar situation.
ReplyDeleteWow. I was actually unaware about this issue but I am very glad to be educated about it now. First of all, the amount of pain these little girls must suffer in this processes must be immeasurable. However, I was aware that men go through a similar process which is very common, especially in certain religions and this seems fairly normal to me. Although I am sure there are numerous differences between these two practices, I assume that the idea is fairly similar. I personally would not want to ever have to go through such a painful process; though who knows how I would feel if I had grown up in that culture.
ReplyDeleteGreat topic and post, Melissa. Did you happen to come across what women in those traditions feel about circumcision?
ReplyDeleteThis topic is very interesting. And I am also against female circumcision. Everyone lives for himself or herself. Every one is different individual. People have rights to control and manipulate their own lives. I also agree that "women are not the properties of men". In human history, women have been abused and suffered gender discrimination so badly, which is totally unreasonable. Everyone should be respected and be protected by his or her human rights.
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