FGM is the cutting of the clitoris of girls in order to curb their sexual desire and preserve their sexual honor before marriage. Those who survive are often traumatized and may suffer adverse health effects during marriage and pregnancy. Human rights activists and international human rights organizations view FGM as a pervasive form of violence against women and have been vocal in the global awareness campaigns to end the practice.
However, speaking out against FGM in Iraqi-Kurdistan, until recently, was strictly taboo. Experts agree that the strict taboo prevented women and girls from speaking about their experiences, which is a main factor in the continuance of the practice. The article in the Hawlati has brought the highly taboo debate into a public forum where people can publicly criticize as well as defend the practice.
On August 28th, Falah Muradkhin, the coordinator of WADI, a German NGO dedicated to empowering women and promoting human rights in Iraqi-Kurdistan, published an article in the Hawlati summarizing the various findings of its research and activities. Before WADI started this wide campaign, FGM had not been discussed in Iraqi-Kurdistan. According to WADI´s statistics, in the 201 villages surveyed, 3502 of 5628 women and girls in Iraqi-Kurdistan were mutilated. WADI interviewed women in Dohok Sulaimanyah, Arbil, Garmyan and part of Kirkuk Governorate. Activists and physicians reported similar rates from other parts of the Kurdish region in Northern Iraq. As a result of these findings, women’s groups and human rights organizations have initiated a broad public debate on FGM in the region.
Mr. Muradkhin of WADI received support from the General Secretary of the Islamic Women’s Union, Mrs.Bekhal Abu Bakr, who published an article in the next edition of the Hawlati, strongly making the point that FGM is not an Islamic practice. “Islam is against FGM: It is a pity that some people do not have enough information about the religion of Islam, and as a consequence declare that Islam would not guarantee equal rights for women. But according to our knowledge Islam, considers male and female as equals who complete each other.”
Both articles published in the Hawlati deeply upset one of the leading Islamic clerics in Northern Iraq, Mr Bawke Hareth. In response, he published an article, strongly defending Female Genital Mutilation as an Islamic practice. In his article, “Islam is with Circumcision,” the cleric rejects even the positions laid down by an Al Azhar University fatwa, banning FGM: “There is no difference between males and females and both are asked by their God to circumcise and there many articles in Quran prove this.”
A campaign to stop FGM in Kurdistan is a result from such public debates. The campaign was initiated and is supported by various local and international organizations. The campaign’s goal is to implement an effective ban on FGM through:
-A representative study on the appearance of FGM in the Kurdish region of Northern Iraq;
-A public awareness campaign and an educational program on the physical and psychological consequences of FGM;
-A collaboration of local organizations to work on a legal ban on FGM.
In March 2007, an open letter to the Kurdish Regional Parliament was published in all regional newspapers demanding that effectives steps to ban FGM be taken. The campaign has gained more than 14,000 supporters within a few months. A legal ban on FGM would be a major success of the campaign; however, participating organizations agree that a ban alone cannot solve the problem. FGM is a practice deeply rooted in society and tradition and Islam is often used as a justification. Consequently, outreach programs that not only sustain campaigns to raise awareness, but also provide a wide range of help for the victims must accompany the ban. The open debate on FGM in Iraqi-Kurdistan is a step in the right direction.
For more information on the campaign, please visit:
www.stopfgmkurdistan.org and www.wadinet.de
