France: Thousands of FGM reconstructions

France: Thousands of FGM reconstructions

In recent years around 2,800 women who immigrated to France from Africa or second generation immigrants, of the age group between 18 and 50, have turned to hospitals and centres in Paris and Nantes funded by national welfare to have their genitals reconstructed, devastated by the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM).


Strangely, immigrant families often resort to inflicting this perverse on their own daughters in order to deal with difficult living conditions in a foreign country,


This news is circulating in the luxury hotel in Cairo where Egypt's first lady, Suzanne Mubarak, the first lady of Burkina Faso, Chantal Compaore, the deputy speaker of the Senate, Emma Bonino, and secretary-general of the Egyptian National Council for Maternity and Childhood have just finished sharing, in their opening speeches for the "Cairo Declaration on Fgm+Five", the most recent progress that has been made on both legislative and social levels.


The meeting was organised with funds of Italian Development Cooperation, UN agencies and the European Union, as well as private sponsors like Suez Cement, five years after the first conference on the issue.


"Women come from various countries - including African ones - to have this reconstruction. And certainly not in search for the sexual drive they have lost (it takes two to three years for those parts to regain sensitivity) but for psychological reasons. They tell me that they 'finally feel whole' and 'much better' after the operation", said Kady Khoita, a 50-year-old woman from Senegal, known for her anti-FGM action.


Khoita is also an author and president of "EURONET FGM", a network of 35 solidarity associations in Europe for immigrant women and children, with operates with limited funds (400,000 euros, 80% of which comes from the European Union). The initiative was organised by the National Academy of French Medicine, in collaboration with 'Gynecologie sans Frontieres', and the very active commitment of urologist Pierre Foldes.


"The Koran and other teachings of the prophet say that Islam is not in favour of these practices" said sheikh Mohamed Hussein, of the 'House of the Fatwa' Dar el Iftaah, the most important Sunni organisation appointed to determine what is 'haram' - prohibited by God's law - and what is allowed, "they preach the integrity of the human body, to which no harm must be done. There may be some less civilised religious figures who can sell this practice off as religious principle or postpone medical examination, but the recognition that these are practices that damage the bodies of young girls is an insurmountable limit".


Source: ANSAMed (English), h/t TheOPINIONATOR and La Yijad en Eurabia

No comments: