Somalia, with 98% FGM rate, one of worst nations in the world for women

By Abby Selden

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is still practiced in 28 African countries. Nowhere in the world is FGM a larger problem, however, than in the East African nation of Somalia, where 98 percent of women between the ages of 15 and 49 undergo FGM [1]. In Somalia, FGM is “a deeply entrenched social convention that is also a prerequisite for marriage” [2].

The most common forms of FGM in the world, as defined by the World Health Organization, are Type 1 (excision of the prepuce, sometimes involving removal of part or all of the clitoris) and Type II (excision of the clitoris with partial or total removal of the labia minora) [3]. The majority of circumcised women in Somalia, however, have been subjected to Type III, infibulation, the most severe form of FGM [4]. Type III is “excision of part or all of the external genitalia and stitching/narrowing of the vaginal opening (infibulation).” It is also referred to as pharaonic circumcision. Outside of Somalia, infibulation is also common in northern Sudan and Djibouti [3]. Once the woman is married, she often needs to be “deinfibulated” in order to have sexual intercourse. Sometimes, this means the husband using a corrosive chemical or razor on the wife’s vagina [5].

The incredibly high FGM rate is just one aspect of an overall catastrophic living situation for Somali women. According to a 2011 Guardian report, Somalia is among the top five worst countries in the world for women [6]. According to this report, “Domestic violence, constant fear of rape, lack of healthcare and basic needs and cultural inferiority are the reality for women in Somalia. They have no voice and little respect” [7]. According to Mogadishu’s Somali Women Development Centre, violence against women is higher in Somalia than any other country in Africa, and the centre’s human rights documentation officer calls Somalia “a woman’s hell on earth” [qtd. in 7]. She also said that “no woman in Somalia is happy to be a woman because, from the cradle to the grave, woman is a victim,” and she called domestic violence, rape, murder and kidnapping of women “part of the daily life, and there is no authority standing to stop this” [7].

Indeed, there is no real authority structure in Somalia, which exists in a state of “political disintegration” and has been without the rule of law for 20 years [6], [8]. According to Somalia’s women’s minister, Maryan Qasim, the fighting leads to a climate in which “you can die any minute, any day” [qtd. in 6]. As British Foreign Secretary William Hague pointed out last month, the country being without rule of law has resulted in one million deaths, nearly 1.5 million being displaced, and 2.4 million depending on food aid. Also, the average life expectancy is 48 years [8].

However, the existing authorities in Somalia do seem aware of the nation’s dismal state for women. When told that Somalia was ranked the fifth-worst country in world for women, Qasim, said, “I thought Somalia would be first on the list, not fifth” [qtd. in 6]. According to Qasim, rape happens “on a daily basis, and female genital mutilation [is] being done to ever single girl in Somalia” [qtd. in 6]. Girls in Somalia are usually circumcised before the age of five [9].

Before the government collapse in Somalia, there had actually been some early progress in the fight against FGM. During the late 1980s, the Somali Women’s Democratic Organization had joined with the Italian Association for Women in Development to organize a national campaign to eradicate FGM, which was fully supported by the Somali government [10]. In June 1988, an international seminar was held in Mogadishu to bring attention to this issue, and representatives from Egypt, Sudan, The Gambia and Nigeria all spoke on the best strategies for eliminating FGM. After more than two decades in chaos, however, FGM rates are still higher in Somalia than any other country in the world. According to the Social Institutions and Gender Index, “all efforts to combat the practice ended as government institutions crumbled” [11]. And as explained by peacebuilding organization and United Nations strategic partner Interpeace, “two decades of civil war have contributed to the negligence of women’s rights across the Somali region” [12].

Despite the dismal state of women’s rights in Somalia, glimmers of progress have been seen in recent years in the fight against FGM. In November 2009, hundreds of Somalis fathered in a stadium to hear the declaration that 20 communities had decided to abandon FGM. This declaration was the direct result of a three-year-long partnership between Senegalese organization Tostan and the Somaliland Culture and Sports Association [13]. The 14 original participating Somali communities in the Tostan program persuaded six other villages to ban FGM, as well. Said one Somali woman in the village of Daami, “I realized through the Tostan programme that I should no longer cut my girls. Some women have challenged me but my husband supports and encourages me. I am confident in my decision and I am committed to it” [qtd. in 13].

More recently, in November 2011, the government of Puntland enacted laws against FGM. To mark this development, the Puntland Development Research Center hosted a conference focused on the how best to approach the issue of FGM, which ultimately produced nine proposals on how to end FGM in the Horn of Africa.  In attendance at the conference were women’s rights activists from Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya, including the Transitional Federal Government’s Minister of Women Development, the First Lady of Puntland, the Vice President of Puntland and Puntland’s Minister of Women and Family Affairs, Asha Gelle Dirie, who organized the conference [12].

These laws against FGM in Puntland came at a pivotal time. Before these laws were enacted, Lul Madar, the head of the Mudug Women’s Development Networking, said that, in Somalia, “instead of decreasing, the practice seems to be re-emerging, particularly in camps for the displaced” [qtd. in 14]. While Madar had admitted that a law against FGM may not totally eliminate the practice, “it will have a fear effect and can be used by activists to fight FGM/C” [qtd. in 14]. And according to UNICEF, while those who oppose FGM in Somalia do so “against the tide of public opinion […] these groups and individuals are slowly making an impact and, with support, can slowly alter the perception and eventually the practice of FGM in the country” [5].

As discussed in the previous article on the importance of the organization Tostan in reducing FGM in Senegal, ensuring that change come from the communities themselves, rather than dictated by an outside authority, is essential. As one Somali woman explained fifteen years ago, “If Somali women change, it will be a change done by us, among us. When they order us to stop, tell us what we must do, it is offensive to the black person or the Muslim person who believes in circumcision. To advise is good, but not to order” [15].

And as UNICEF explains, “Community empowerment holds the key to ending the practice of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) in Somalia” [2]. This is why a strategy of collective abandonment is key to the UNICEF approach. As Somalia Representative Christian Balsley-Olesen explained in 2005, “UNICEF will work with communities throughout the country to guide them in a process of reflection, analysis and public discussion on the issue of FGM/C to bring about collective change. We will also facilitate dialogue between Islamic scholars and Somali religious leaders to reach consensus on this issue” [2]. If a single family in Somalia gives up FGM, the daughters in that family will no longer me marriageable, but if inter-marrying communities collectively abandon the practice, the stigma of not cutting is reduced [2].

In 2005, the UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre launched its global report, “Changing a Harmful Social Convention: Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting.” According to Balsley-Olesen, “This report demonstrates that with a better understanding of why of FGM/C persists, we can work with communities to end this practice. And we believe this can be achieved within one generation” [qtd. in 2].

And many officials in the Somali government have officially condemned the practice. Abdilaziz Sheikh Yusuf, Health Minister with the Transitional Federal Government, said in 2005, “I call on all Somalis to end this practice because of the problems it brings especially for women. All Somalis must come to know that it is a bad practice” [qtd. in 2]. Some Somali religious leaders have also condemned the practice. Said Sheikh Ahmed Hasan Qudubi, “Neither the Koran nor the Xadith endorse FGM. Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia do not practice FGM. I have four girls and I have not cut any of them” [qtd. in 2].

And there has been some evidence that behaviors in Somalia can change. One Somali woman, Medina Hassan, had been an FGM practitioner her entire life, until 1996, after she had taken part in an educational campaign focused on the eradication of FGM. After learning of the health risks of FGM, Hassan gave up her blades, which had been used to cut as many as 15,000 girls [9].

Despite some progress, there is still wide-spread support for FGM among Somalis.  The lack of a stable government and infrastructure is one major obstacle in the struggle against FGM in Somalia. As Wairagala Wakabi wrote in a 2007 Lancet article, “Although several humanitarian bodies have launched a campaign against female genital mutilation in Somalia, the widespread insecurity and absence of a central administration have only handed minimal success to their efforts” [16].

A study conducted through Addis Ababa University and published in 2009 concluded that several strategies are key if progress is to be made in the fight against FGM among Somalis. First, those working to eradicate FGM must have knowledge of Islam and the Koran. At the end of 2011, when some Somali women were pushing for the laws that did ultimately pass against FGM in Puntland, Hawa Aden, the Executive Director of the Galkayo Education Centre for Peace and Development said these women were seeking not only a ban on FGM, but “also a religious fatwa [decree] proclaiming that FGM is Haram [illegal] under Islam” [qtd. in 14]. Indeed, the practice of FGM predates both Christianity and Islam [3].

And second, “community-based interventions about the possible consequences and the need to prevent FGM should be intensified,” particularly through more involvement of men [17]. As Madar explains, it is important to target men in education campaigns, “particularly the young men of marriageable age, professionals and religious leaders. We want to tell these men that circumcision does not enhance or add to a girl’s value as a wife and a mother but actually diminishes it” [qtd. in 14].

Also, women who practice FGM in Somalia may continue to practice it, unless they are given an alternative way of living. Explains Fatuma Hassan, who works with Somali refugees in Ethiopia, “Education is the best way to halt mutilation, but posters and workshops are not enough…the circumcisers may be aware of the harmful effects of FGM, but if they do not have something else to do, then they will continue to practice it” [qtd. in 9]. Practitioners of FGM make a considerable amount of money compared to other Somalis. According to UNICEF, “Somali culture is very flexible, and if viable alternative incomes can be found for their circumcisers, one day they may be willing to stop the practice altogether” [9]. Alternative careers for FGM practitioners may include teaching or being a traditional birth attendant.

In the end, according to UNICEF, a “sensitive, long-term approach” that emphasizes community initiative and involvement is key for the reduction of FGM in Somalia [9].

Click “Read more” to see the sources for this article.

[1]

“Statistics by Area—Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting—Progress.” Childinfo, UNICEF. January 2012. <http://www.childinfo.org/fgmc_progress.html>.

[2]

“MEDIA RELEASE—UNICEF: Communities key to ending Female Genital Cutting in Somalia.” UNICEF. 24 November 2005. <http://reliefweb.int/node/192875>.

[3]

“Promoting Gender Equality: Frequently Asked Questions on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting.” UNFPA.

<http://www.unfpa.org/gender/practices2.htm#3>

[4]

“2009 Human Rights Reports: Somalia.” U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 11 March 2011. <http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/af/135976.htm&gt;.

[5]

“Eradication of Female Genital Mutilation in Somalia.” UNICEF, Advocacy Paper.

[6]

Bowcott, Owen. “Afghanistan worst place in the world for women, but India in top five.” The Guardian. 14 June 2011. < http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/15/worst-place-women-afghanistan-india?intcmp=239>.

[7]

Albadri, Abukar. “The worst places in the world for women: Somalia.” The Guardian. 14 June 2011. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/14/worst-places-in-the-world-for-women-somalia>.

[8]

Chonoko, Ibraham. “Nigeria: Threat to Aid Cut is on Human Rights—William Hague.” Daily Trust. AllAfrica. 7 February 2012. <http://allafrica.com/stories/201202070612.html>.

[9]

“Female Circumcision.” American Family Physician. 60(2): 657-658. 1 August 1999.

<http://www.aafp.org/afp/1999/0801/p657.html>.

[10]

Hosken, Fran P. “Female Genital Mutilation: Strategies for Eradication.” The First International Symposium on Circumcision. 1-2 March 1989.

<http://www.nocirc.org/symposia/first/hosken.html>.

[11]

“Gender Equality and Social Institutions in Somalia.” Social Institutions and Gender Index. <http://genderindex.org/country/somalia>.

[12]

“Puntland takes stand against Female Genital Mutilation.” Interpeace. 18 January 2012. <http://www.interpeace.org/index.php/2011-08-08-15-19-20/latest-news/253-puntland-takes-stand-against-female-genital-mutilation>.

[13]

Shepherd-Johnson, Denise. “Somali communities say ‘No’ to female genital cutting.” UNICEF. 14 December 2009. <http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/somalia_52125.html>.

[14]

“SOMALIA: Women lobby for law against FGM/C.” IRIN [the humanitarian news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]. 3 November 2011.

<http://www.irinnews.org/Report/94136/SOMALIA-Women-lobby-for-law-against-FGM-C>.

[15]

Althaus, Frances A. “Female Circumcision: Rite of Passage or Violation of Rights?” International Family Planning Perspectives. Vol. 23, No. September 1997. <http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/2313097.html>.

[16]

Wakabi, Wairagala. “Africa battles to make female genital mutilation history.” The Lancet. Vol. 369, Iss. 9567. Pg. 1069-1070. 31 March 2007.

<http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2807%2960508-X/fulltext>.

[17]

Getnet, Mitike and Wakgari Deressa. “Prevalence and associated factors of female genital mutilation among Somali refugees in eastern Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study.” BMC Public Health. 9:264. 27 July 2009. <http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/9/264>.