19. 9m women in Nigeria have been mutilated – Specialist

Nkiru Igbelina-Igbokwe is a gender specialist with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In this interview she speaks about the prevalence of FGM in Nigeria and why the practice must stop.   Why do you think women practice Female Genital Mutilation/female circumcision? It’s some people’s belief and tradition. They believe if they don’t do it […]

Nkiru Igbelina-Igbokwe is a gender specialist with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In this interview she speaks about the prevalence of FGM in Nigeria and why the practice must stop.
 
Why do you think women practice Female Genital Mutilation/female circumcision?
It’s some people’s belief and tradition. They believe if they don’t do it something bad will happen. For instance, in Osun State, where this practice is highest, mutilation happens because they believe that if the head of the baby touches the clitoris of the mother when he/she is being born, the mother will die or the baby will die, or something evil will happen to them. So, it’s better to cut the clitoris. We need to debunk such beliefs which some people have. One way we do that is to use role models. Women who were not cut and who have successfully had babies, and they and their babies are living. This is what we need to do. It’s not like those people don’t want to change, but Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) practice is so strong and entrenched in the cultural systems of those communities in Nigeria.
On the issue of promiscuity, there is no basis for us to believe that FGM reduces the risk of a woman being promiscuous. Like I have said, I have not been mutilated and I am not promiscuous. Part of why FGM is done for the girl is to preserve the chastity of the girl. To preserve the virginity of the girl before marriage to make sure that when the girl marries, she is not unfaithful. But you find out what happens is the opposite.
On the side of the man, when a man consistently does not get satisfaction, the clitoris enables the man get an erection, so when it is not there the man may not get satisfaction and it can force the man out. The man begins to seek for that which he cannot find at home elsewhere. I have heard men say they did not know FGM was done to their wives. So, we need to really debunk these myths.
Do think with the implementation of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act we can stop FGM?
It can only reduce it because if you know that if you commit FGM, you may go to jail or be asked to pay a fine, it will be a deterrent but it will not stop it. There are laws in all those places where FGM is taking place but people go underground to practice it.
How can FGM be totally eliminated?
We need to go down to the communities and get community consensus to stop the behaviour that promotes FGM. It’s only with the communities, if we talk to them and the communities come to an agreement that they don’t want to do FGM again, that is the only time we are able to discourage  FGM.
We work with traditional rulers, religious leaders, fathers, mothers-in-law and all. Assessment has shown that it is mothers, mothers-in-law and others that do this practice. When a child is born, it’s the mother-in-law that comes to do the omugwu. If they are bathing the baby and she is crying, the fathers don’t know. They think it’s the sphere of the woman. But we want men to be interested. Men are the major decision makers, so when they get interested in what is happening to their girl-child and they show their displeasure, it will stop.
What we discovered in Ebonyi is that men don’t want FGM, but women are doing it because they think men want it. They do not talk to each other . So, we have to foster inter gender dialogue so men can say ‘we don’t want this. It’s unnecessary. This is the impact.’
 We want to achieve high level of abandonment in the communities we are working. We have a target of reaching 40 communities in Osun, Ebonyi and other states.
Is there any medical implication of FGM?
FGM can cause difficulty in childbirth. It can cause haemorrhage. It can block the birth canal. It can cause urine and menstrual blood to be retained which can cause problems for the woman. It can cause keliods and  VVF in some cases. It’s the violation of the human rights of a girl and it causes pains. FGM is aimed at controlling the sexuality of the woman. When you do anything on the private part of the woman, you are controlling the sexuality of the woman. 19. 9 million women in Nigeria have been mutilated. That is 25% of women in Nigeria. That is a quarter of the women population in Nigeria.