The Egyptian Health ministry passed a law banning the practice of FGM on June 28, 2007 after the death of 12-year-old Badour Shaker, an Egyptian girl who died during her "circumcision" in an illegal clinic. She died due to the result of an overdose of anesthesia. Her mother, Zeniab Abdel Ghani paid 50 Egyptian pounds (appprox. $9 US dollars) to a female doctor to perform the procedure. After the death of Badour, the female doctor later tried to pay Ms. Ghani 15,000 Egyptian pounds (approx. $3,000 US dollars) to withdraw the lawsuit, but she refused.
The Egyptian Health Ministry also issued a decree on female circumcision, stating that it is "prohibited for any doctors, nurses, or any other person to carry out any cut of, flattening or modification of any natural part of the female reproductive system, either in government hospitals, non government or any other places" (International Herald Tribune). The decree that the Egyptian Health Ministry issued is another powerful force for the eradication of the practice of FGM.
Eventhough this practice has been banned, it is still happening and now in secret. Please see video clip on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEe5hgrVti0
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Powerful videos!!! Hopefully Egypt's decision to ban the practice will carry to many other countries where FGM currently legal.
ReplyDeleteI must say that I find the whole issue of FGM very disturbing. After watching the videos it really infuriates me that these practices are still taking place. How sad it is for these innocent children to be subjected to such multilation. I hope and pray that other countries will follow Egypt's decision to ban this practice.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see it was band. While watching this one I saw another posting about another country banning them but the listing changed and I couldn't find it again so couldn't post it here.
ReplyDeleteIt took a while but I found it. Unfortunatley it's not in english so I can't understand it. Maybe someone else seeing it can translate some of it for us.
ReplyDelete"ERIETINET TV Eritrea Bans Female Circumcision"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWUjNIxe2hs
Eritica: Eritrea = Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Thank you for the website. I wish it would have had the sub-titles like most of them but I guess we get the point of the message they are sending.
ReplyDeleteAny time I can help. Besides I need to make three entries a week in each blog, I might as well make them useful and productive :)
ReplyDeletePlease don't think I condone FGM because I don't, but could the fact that the Egyptian government made this procedure illegal make it even more of a health risk? One of the arguments for legal abortion is the point that women will do it any way. So if it is legal than the government can regulate it and control the safety of the environment in which the procedure is done.
ReplyDeleteBill,
ReplyDeleteYou are correct. The practice is banned but people will continue to do it, but in secret. If the government steps in, it should educate the people on why it is not healthy to perform FGM and give other alternatives. When you take things away from people, they will find other ways to do that same thing; often times the consequences are final. The point that I am trying to get across with the Blog is that there are severe consequences to the practice of FGM. We need to educate society on this practice and why it should be banned. Give examples of other methods of celebrating girls into adulthood since this practice is not a religious statement.
The whole topic is very disturbing to me as well. It's curious that Egypt banned this after this particular girl died. There must have been others. Is it that they no longer condone the practice or that they are concerned that other may die of similar causes? There is a big difference.
ReplyDelete