El pasado año tuve el honor de entrevistar a Waris Dirie, modelo africana y presidenta de la Desert Flower Foundation, una organización sin fines de lucro dedicada a combatir la Mutilación Genital Femenina alrededor del mundo.
La MGF (en iglés, Female Genital Mutilation, o FGM) es una práctica socio-cultural conocida por ser especialmente practicada en el África Subsahariana y en diversos países tanto africanos como asiáticos. Como su nombre indica, esta práctica pretende remover, dañar o eliminar por completo parte del aparato genital de la mujer. La inmensa mayoría de víctimas son niñas, sufriendo esta clase de mutilación. Según el Protocolo de prevención de la Mutilación Genital Femenina en la demarcación de Girona actualizado en febrero de 2006, se afirma desconocer el origen de tal práctica pero se considera que podría ser una práctica iniciada hace miles de años y surgida en el antiguo Egipto, previa al nacimiento y expansión del Islam, que se difundió a través de la influencia de la civilización egipcia.
La MGF está reconocida como un grave atentado contra los derechos humanos y una muestra de la dominación que ejercen en muchos lugares los hombres sobre las mujeres. Pero además entraña consecuencias físicas para las víctimas que incluso pueden llevarles a la muerte, si no padecer secuelas para toda la vida.
Después de varias clasificaciones ofrecidas por la Organización Mundial de la Salud durante los últimos años, dicha organización ha reconocido cuatros tipos de MGF.
- Tipo 1: Supresión del prepucio con o sin supresión de todo o parte del clítoris
- Tipo 2: Supresión del clítoris con extirpación total o parcial de labios menores
- Tipo 3: Supresión de parte de los órganos genitales o todos y sutura de la obertura vaginal
- Tipo 4: Punción, perforación o incisión del clítoris y/o de los labios. Estiramiento del clítoris y/o los labios. Cauterización del clítoris y del tejido circuncidado. Raspado del tejido que envuelve el orificio vaginal o corte de la vagina. Introducción de sustancias o hierbas corrosivas en la vagina para causar sangrado con la finalidad de estrechar el canal vaginal. Cualquier otro procedimiento que concuerde con la definición.
Según los estudios realizados, en Cataluña la población de riesgo es originaria básicamente de regiones donde se practica el Tipo 1 y 2.
Sobre Waris Dirie:
Waris Dirie es una famosa modelo de orígen somalí, que también se ha caracterizado por ser autora de varios libros, por su carrera como actriz y por su importante y crucial activismo contra la mutilación genital femenina.
Nacida en un clan nómada somalí el año 1965, Waris escapó de su familia a la edad de trece años cuando iba a ser tomada como esposa por un hombre mucho mayor que ella. Su huida la llevó a Londres, donde un fotógrafo la descubrió. Así empezó su carrera como modelo. Sus andanzas por el mundo de la moda la catapultaron a la fama, adquiriendo pequeños papeles en películas de alcance internacional, como lo fue una de las películas de James Bond, donde Waris aparecería.
Waris aprovechó el renombre que adquirió en el mundo de la moda y la alta sociedad para dar a conocer en el mundo el problema de la mutilación genital femenina. Ejemplos de ello los encontramos en una entrevista que concedió a la revista Marie Claire. Cone l paso de los años, Waris escribió el libro “Flor del desierto”, convirtiéndose en un best-seller.
Entre los logros más destacables de Waris en relación a su lucha contra la mutilación genital femenina se encuentra su nombramiento como embajadora de la ONU contra la mutilación genital femenina, una famosa entrevista concedida a la cadena Al Jazeera donde expuso sus críticas ante toda la comundidad musulmana, la co-producción de la película “Flor del Desierto” o su nombramiento como embajadora de la paz por la Unión Africana. Sin embargo, la vida de Waris fue muy dura. Ella misma fue víctima de la mutilación genital, y ha sufrido incidentes relacionados con acosadores en Europa y Estados Unidos.
A continuación, la entrevista (en inglés):
Is Female genital mutilation a practice made only in Africa?
No, despite the fact that the practice is most common in sub-Saharan Africa where it is practiced in at least 28 countries, it is also practiced in Middle East (Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates) and parts of Asia (Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia). There are also reports of a limited practice in Jordan, the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in some Kurdish communities in Iraq. Also, because of immigrant communities living in other parts of the world, FGM has become a serious concern in many European countries (such as Italy, Germany, France, UK, Sweden or Denmark) and also in USA or Australia.
No, despite the fact that the practice is most common in sub-Saharan Africa where it is practiced in at least 28 countries, it is also practiced in Middle East (Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates) and parts of Asia (Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia). There are also reports of a limited practice in Jordan, the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in some Kurdish communities in Iraq. Also, because of immigrant communities living in other parts of the world, FGM has become a serious concern in many European countries (such as Italy, Germany, France, UK, Sweden or Denmark) and also in USA or Australia.
Here, in our country (Spain) and more countries around the Globe, citizens believe that Female Genital Mutilation it's only about the removal of the clitoral hood, and nothing more; it's that true?
Unfortunately this is not true.
There are 3 major types of FGM which vary in their severity. The first type called clitoridectomy involves the removal of prepuce or the clitorical hood. The other two types are more severe, excision involves removal of clitoris and labia minora and it is practiced by about 80% of population. The most severe form, infibulation, involves removal of clitoris, labia minora and two thirds of labia majora.
There is known that female mutilation involves serious health risks for the victims, but people doesn't know the truly consequences of that; can you explain us if there are children who die because of this practice?
There exist serious physical as well as psychological consequences of FGM and they affect its victim for all her life. The procedure itself is extremely painful and traumatizing and because of unsanitary conditions in which the procedure is performed and sometimes excessive bleeding, unfortunately children also die from the procedure.
There exist serious physical as well as psychological consequences of FGM and they affect its victim for all her life. The procedure itself is extremely painful and traumatizing and because of unsanitary conditions in which the procedure is performed and sometimes excessive bleeding, unfortunately children also die from the procedure.
Furthermore, the victims suffer from depression, flashbacks and nightmares for the rest of their life. They are on high risk when giving birth to a child and suffer from chronicle pain and permanent inflammations.
We understand that many women who were victims of that practice are currently helping or doing the same mutilation to their children. It's true that there are women who follow this?
Yes, unfortunately despite the painfulness of the procedure and lifetime complications, the women continue to mutilate their daughters. The reasons for this are different (culture, religion, preserving virginity and promiscuity, insurance of marriageability, health reasons-the belief that clitoris is dirty). These women not only lack the education but also the choice of their daughters not to be mutilated.
Yes, unfortunately despite the painfulness of the procedure and lifetime complications, the women continue to mutilate their daughters. The reasons for this are different (culture, religion, preserving virginity and promiscuity, insurance of marriageability, health reasons-the belief that clitoris is dirty). These women not only lack the education but also the choice of their daughters not to be mutilated.
We have laws in Spain that ban and prosecute female genital mutilation as a concrete crime itself. Does exist laws against female genital mutilation in Europe?
Yes, all European countries where FGM is practiced recognized laws which regard FGM to be a crime. The only EU country that does not have an explicit laws on FGM is Germany, nevertheless, girls and women can be protected against the practice implicitly.
Yes, all European countries where FGM is practiced recognized laws which regard FGM to be a crime. The only EU country that does not have an explicit laws on FGM is Germany, nevertheless, girls and women can be protected against the practice implicitly.
What kind of actions and policies are the best way to eradicate this practice in Africa?
Firstly, we believe that education of women is the first and the most important tool in eradication of the practice., because when you educate a women, you educate whole nation.
Firstly, we believe that education of women is the first and the most important tool in eradication of the practice., because when you educate a women, you educate whole nation.
Secondly, there needs to be a change in the perception of women within society. In many societies, women are still looked at and treated like goods. They are traded for marriage. They have no rights without their fathers or husbands. They are bluntly disregarded as human beings. In such a social structure, it is not be possible to protect women from violence such as FGM. What needs to change is their position. Empower women to take decisions for themselves and they WILL start taking different decisions for their daughters!
Has there been any progress against this practice in Africa since the Desert Flower Foundation?
Has there been any progress against this practice in Africa since the Desert Flower Foundation?
Our Foundation belongs to one of the most influential non-profit organizations because of which more and more African countries have created the law against FGM. We are also very successful in raising awareness against the practice. Because there exist s no official statistics on FGM, it is very difficult to say how big the decrease in practice is. However, from information we gained and emails we receive, more Africans oppose the practice and the numbers are decreasing.
We made surveys between spanish citizens, and it reveals that most people believes that female genital mutilation has its origin on Quran and muslim religion. "Desert Flower" film denies that. What do you think about the fact that european society could blame Quran for female genital mutilation?
FGM has nothing to do with culture or religion. It is the most cruel way of suppressing women one could possibly think of and it is the most cynical crime of child abuse. But of course people justify the practice by saying it is part of their culture of by arguing that their religion demands that they mutilated their daughters. This is not true. No religion in the world demands FGM, in fact, FGM is a breach of the most basic rules of many, if not all religions.
FGM has nothing to do with culture or religion. It is the most cruel way of suppressing women one could possibly think of and it is the most cynical crime of child abuse. But of course people justify the practice by saying it is part of their culture of by arguing that their religion demands that they mutilated their daughters. This is not true. No religion in the world demands FGM, in fact, FGM is a breach of the most basic rules of many, if not all religions.
But clearly it is not only the African but also the European and worldwide community that need to be educated about the practice and about the fact that it has no religious implications whatsoever.
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