Eradicting female genital mutilation in Sierra Leone

At the age of 16 Christiana was forced to marry a man older than her father and to take part in a secret FGM ceremony to initiate her into womanhood. “All the women in our family have been initiated. They were preparing me for marriage. The man who wanted to marry me told my family into initiate me into the secret society. I was not pleased about that because my granny who raised me was not around. When we went there I was so afraid. I almost fainted in the process. I was really painful, that was why I was so afraid. ”

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The fight against female genital mutilation in Mali

When she was a girl, Kadi dreamt of having a husband and family. She never thought her journey into married life would cause her so much suffering, and certainly never imagined it would be life threatening.

Kadi lives in the rural village of Tingolé, roughly 90km east of the Malian capital, Bamako. As a young girl, she underwent the practice of excision, or female genital mutilation (FGM), and went on to suffer the consequences.

“They destroyed my body through this abominable practice, I have been through hell”

Experiencing major problems giving birth to her children, excessive abdominal bleeding and days of paralysis, Kadi very nearly lost her life. 

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“I only wish I'd known then what I know now: I could have spared so many girls.”

“I only wish I'd known then what I know now: I could have spared so many girls.” Bobo Siede performed Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) at ceremonies across Guinea Bissau for more than 20 years. Now she works with Plan to advocate against it.

As we reach the tenth International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) on 6th February 2013, Plan is continuing to raise awareness within African communities about the dangers of the traditional practice – and change minds.

FGM, sometimes performed on girls as young as six, has many serious health risks: it violates the rights of girls to be protected from harm and often leaves women fighting for their lives. But in many communities it is a cherished tradition, defended by men – and women. 

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Challenging traditions around FGM

Safaa is 23 years old and lives in a slum area in Egypt with her husband, two sons and a daughter.

Growing up, Safaa’s family was very poor and, like other girls in her community, she married young.

"Once I got married, I got so busy with my children, and I forgot about myself and my rights. Even if I was very young, I started to behave like my mother and like many other women in my community, replicating behaviours and traditions that were very hard on girls. Even traditions that I had criticised before like female genital mutilation, I considered for my daughter," she says.

However Safaa's attitude changed when her neighbour invited her to a women's awareness support group. 

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