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Saturday 2 April 2011

Female Genital Cutting: Overall Perspectives / Points to Consider

Female Genital Cutting: Overall Perspectives / Points to Consider



I recently completed an essay regarding female genital cutting, which is the process of the removal of some or all parts of the female genitalia, of which there exist four different types of categories ranging from Type 1 to Type 4 as categorized in relation to the extent/amount of cutting that is done.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) ( http://www.who.int ): “Female genital mutilation is classified into four major types.

1.                  Clitoridectomy: partial or total removal of the clitoris (a small, sensitive and erectile part of the female genitals) and, in very rare cases, only the prepuce (the fold of skin surrounding the clitoris).
2.                  Excision: partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or without excision of the labia majora (the labia are "the lips" that surround the vagina).
3.                  Infibulation: narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the inner, or outer, labia, with or without removal of the clitoris.
4.                  Other: all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, e.g. pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area.”

We had to look at female genital cutting within the socio-cultural context and its impact on woman’s reproductive behaviour and health, as well as expanding on the reasons why the practise still continue, despite movements to abolish them. And, within that - simultaneously looking-at and getting an idea of the solutions underway to educate and inform the masses who still practise female genital cutting about/of the implications of the practise on the physical, immediate and long-term etc. in attempts to change the traditional cultural ways of life, into methods that still embellish tradition-itself, uphold the culture – yet change/alter the way it’s being done from cutting, to – for example simply practising celebrations that symbolise what the cutting symbolised – so, changing the action, yet maintaining the symbolic-meaning. So – there are various approaches in the world to changing the action of FGC – together with policies, organisations and female leadership-roles speaking-up/speaking-out.

In investigating this particular point within the context of culture – one get an idea of the extent of the problem we face within the world, regarding the extent to which we’ve accepted and allowed ourselves to endow ourselves with identity and what we’ve externally defined equal-to and one-with idealizing-ourselves through  material-possessions, traditions etc. related to one’s life, future, security and safety – all which relates directly to money, as status/position within one’s community, society and/or culture.
And all this is so ingrained, to the extent where – physical-mutilation is accepted and allowed, so as to secure and ensure children/girls’ future with regards to marriage, to preserve their virginity for their future in marriage, to ensure they don’t get pregnant before marriage (to name but a few) – all of which is done to secure their daughter’s/children’s future in relation to their socio-cultural contexts/reasons for continuing the practise.

When breaking it all down to the core/actuality of what marriage, future, security, social status and respect comes down to – is: Sex and Money, in and as all its different forms and manifestations it currently consist of and exist as within this world. And how we’ve defined ourselves, who we are, our lives and that which we pass on – to/towards Money and all and everything that money represents.
Even within culture and tradition – it’s sex and money, just in different forms/manifestations - though representing the same thing, as beautifying  sex and money into and as concepts such as marriage, security, future, status, respect and love.

In having a look at the deliberate physical-compromise these girls undergo to secure their future and position in the world – it’s no different to the extent every single person in this world deliberately self-compromise to secure their future and position in the world. It just varies in relation to culture and traditions within and of particular cultures.

So, in terms of changing this world – we’ve got quite a road ahead of us, yet – it starts with ourselves, each one taking the one first step and continuing walking step by step, breath by breath.
Because – as you can see, the extent to which we exist through the Mind and how we’ve defined ourselves in the Mind through – just looking at culture and the extent to which we’ll internally and/or externally compromise for our definitions, beliefs and ideals and how what is real, as the physical suffer as we drive ourselves through the mind in energy to fulfil our wants, needs and desires within fear and survival; it’s extensive.

So – we’ve got to have a look at this world through the eyes of self, and consider the extent to which we mutilate the physical, internally - for the Mind to strive, as the Mind feed off-of the physical to ensure its existence as we accept and allow ourselves to continue existing, living and participating in and as Mind and how we’ve defined our ‘unique’ Mind within the context of ‘who we are’ and everything and all else that determines this ‘I’.
And, so – we’re all equally responsible for and of physical-mutilation as we accept and allow it even within and as ourselves by our very acceptance and allowance of/as the Mind. And so –to change this reality, we’ve got to start with ourselves as individuals – in stopping the Mind, the System, the Separation and assist and support ourselves to get back into the Physical, the real reality that is right here in and as Breath and simultaneously walk a solution for Humanity as self that stand within a Equal Money System. Establishing equality and oneness within and without, equal and one – together. This is the answer to a new, changed human being and humanity.

We’ve got a long road ahead of us, so – let’s get moving and get this done, one step, one breath, one being at a time...

Thanks
Sunette

Sources

Gruenbaum, E. 2005. Female genital cutting: culture and controversy, in Gender in cross-cultural perspective, edited by CB Brettell & CF Sargent. 4th edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, in Anthropological Theory In Practise: a reader, compiled by S Herselman and JMF Wouters. Pretoria: University of South Africa
Female genital mutilation. World Health Organization. 2011. From: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs241/en/ (accessed 02 March 2011)

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