We all know that male circumcision generally refers to the surgical removal of the foreskin, which is one of the oldest and most widespread surgical procedures in the world.
Circumcision of males was described and evidenced as early as 6000 B.C. in ancient Egypt, and even earlier during the Paleolithic era; in religions like Judaism and Islam, male circumcision is an indispensable religious obligation.
In countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, South Korea, and Africa, newborn circumcision or ritual circumcision is a widespread custom or rite of passage. 
In modern times, male circumcision is approximately half for religious customs and half for health reasons.
After all, circumcision has clear and extensive benefits in treating conditions like phimosis, preventing sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/HPV, preventing balanitis, penile cancer, and promoting sexual health.
However, female genital mutilation (FGM) is an entirely different matter.
FGM is not only a barbaric practice that severely damages female genitalia but also grossly violates the fundamental human rights of women and girls.
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
FGM is currently defined by the World Health Organization as “Female Genital Mutilation (FGM),” referring to “all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.”
FGM is mostly performed at some point between infancy and adolescence, such as at birth, age 5, or 14, and occasionally on adult women.
It is usually carried out by traditional practitioners or elderly women who have not been medically trained, under unsterilized and unanesthetized conditions.
Family members hold down the girl while using a razor blade, glass, or knife to cut off the clitoris or labia, sometimes stitching the vulva, leaving only a small opening for urination and menstruation, then applying herbal remedies, which takes 1-2 weeks to heal.
The WHO defines four types of FGM:
- Type 1: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the clitoral hood, the most common form in Egypt and southern Nigeria.
- Type 2: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or without excision of the labia majora.
- Type 3: Also known as infibulation, where the vaginal opening is narrowed by creating a covering seal. This is done by cutting and repositioning the labia minora or majora, sometimes using sutures, with or without removal of the clitoral hood and clitoris.
Type 3 is the most brutal form, mainly practiced in Northeast Africa, particularly in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. - Type 4: Includes all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, such as pricking, piercing, cutting, scraping, and cauterizing the genital area, including symbolic clitoral hood incisions and labia stretching.
Indonesia mainly practices Types 1 and 4 with symbolic cuts; labia stretching is prevalent in Eastern and Southern Africa, such as in Uganda.
History and Current Status of FGM
The practice of FGM dates back over two thousand years, with an unclear origin, appearing in traditional groups or cultures in Africa with patriarchal social structures, considered a traditional social custom.
It is a means to control female sexuality, promoting premarital chastity and marital fidelity, related to women’s “purity, beauty, and honor.”
In the 2nd century B.C., Greek geographers recorded that circumcision was performed on newborn girls or marriageable girls aged 14 on the east coast of the Red Sea; in 5th century B.C. Egypt, some female mummies showed evidence of this.
Strangely, today in Sudan, FGM is called “Pharaonic circumcision” (i.e., Egyptian circumcision), while in Egypt, it is called “Sudanese circumcision.”
Some believe it was a form of protection for women against rape by equatorial African herders.
Research indicates that the Red Sea slave trade between 1400 and 1900 was also linked to FGM. During this period, African women were sold into the Islamic Middle East as concubines or servants, proving their virginity and preventing pregnancy to fetch a higher price.
To this day, FGM is widely distributed globally and has been brought to various parts of the world through migration.
(According to the 2020 Global Response Report, the percentage of women aged 15-49 who have undergone FGM)
As of 2024, the United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that 230 million girls and women in 31 countries (144 million in Africa, 80 million in Asia, 6 million in the Middle East, and 1-2 million in other parts of the world) have undergone one or more types of female genital cutting.
Each year, 3-4 million girls are at risk of having their genitals mutilated.
The situation is most severe in countries like Somalia (99%), Guinea (96%), Mali (86%), Egypt (87%), and Sudan (87%) in East and West Africa.
(Data from the 2024 Report)
It’s worth noting that FGM is not a religious ritual; it does not exist in most denominations of Judaism, Islam, Christianity, and is largely opposed.
Surveys show that FGM is more common in rural areas of Africa; the higher the education level, the lower the acceptance rate. In many regions of Africa, men often oppose FGM, while it receives support from over half of women, especially elderly women.
In a poem from 1988, Somali woman Dahabo Musa described FGM as “the three pains of women”: the surgery itself, the first night of marriage when she is cut open, and then during childbirth when she is cut open again.
The Harm of FGM
FGM has no health benefits and is harmful to girls and women in many ways, severely damaging their genitalia, causing numerous complications, and interfering with their physical and mental health and sexual function.
The more severe the FGM, the greater the risks.
Short-term complications include: severe pain, excessive bleeding (hemorrhage), swelling of genital tissue, fever, infection (tetanus), urinary retention, wound healing issues, damage to surrounding tissue, shock, and death.
Long-term complications include: painful urination, urinary and vaginal infections, menstrual pain, scarring and keloids, painful intercourse, decreased sexual satisfaction, childbirth complications (dystocia, hemorrhage, cesarean section, etc.), increased risk of neonatal death; later surgical risks like vaginal closure or narrowing, psychological issues like anxiety and low self-esteem.
Warda Hassan Mahmoud (pictured above) is a survivor of FGM, having undergone it at the age of 6: “It was the most painful experience of my life. The trauma lingers to this day… That’s why I am actively involved in the work and advocacy to stop female genital mutilation.”
Therefore, internationally, FGM is recognized as a severe violation of the human rights of girls and women, a manifestation of deeply rooted gender inequality, and an extreme form of discrimination against girls and women.
FGM violates the rights of women and girls to personal health, safety, and bodily integrity; the right not to be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment; and in cases where it leads to death, the right to life.
Global Efforts to Eradicate FGM
In 2008, the World Health Assembly passed a resolution on the eradication of FGM practices (WHA61.16), emphasizing the need for concerted action across all departments including health, education, finance, justice, and women’s affairs.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) jointly lead the world’s largest program to end FGM.
Interventions are being carried out in 17 countries, with a plan to end the history of FGM through 30 years of work.
The program, launched in 2008, works with communities and governments to raise awareness of the harms caused by FGM, shift social norms to collective abandonment, enact laws and policies to ban FGM, and provide medical and psychological care to victims.
According to the UNICEF report “Female Genital Mutilation: Global Concerns” released on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2024:
Thirteen countries have now passed national legislation banning FGM, helping over 6 million girls and women gain access to prevention, protection, and treatment services related to FGM. Approximately 45 million people in communities across 15 countries/regions have publicly declared their abandonment of this practice.
The report also indicates that progress is accelerating. Half of the progress made in the past 30 years has occurred in the last 10 years. Countries like Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Egypt are seeing a rapid decline in FGM rates.
Attitudes towards FGM are also changing. The report states that about 400 million people (two-thirds of the population) in Africa and the Middle East now oppose FGM.
However, data also show that the pace of eliminating FGM lags behind population growth, especially in regions where FGM is most common.
The global rate of decline needs to be 27 times faster to end the practice of FGM by 2030.
