Determining if Female Genital Cutting (FGC) is an Islamic Practice

“I knew that I didn’t want my daughter to go through that. I also knew that there are millions of girls out there that are just like my daughter and no one was speaking up for them. ” 1 : Determining if Female Genital Cutting (FGC) is an Islamic Practice & its Influence on Muslim Communities in North America Allison Brown Middle Eastern Religions Dr. Ward 6 December, 2020 Contents Introductory Components 2-3 i. Abstract/Thesis ii. Author’s Bio iii. Choice with Wordage of FGC iv. Classifications of FGC 1.0 Is FGC an Islamic Practice? 4-8 1.1 Assumption of an Islamic Problem 1.2 Notion of FGC Predating Islam 1.3 Sunan Abu Dawud (43:499) 1.4 Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (5:75) 1.5 FGC Rates outside of Islam 1.6 Concluding Thoughts 2.0 FGC in Muslim Communities in North America 8 - 11 2.1 Prevalence and Policy of FGC in Canadian Muslim Communities 2.2 Prevalence and Policy of FGC in United States Muslim Communities 2.3 Why (or why not) are women undergoing FGC in these communities? 2.4 Concluding thoughts 3.0 Conclusion 11 - 12 3.1 Western Thoughts 3.2 Importance of researching FGC 1 Introductory Components i. Abstract/Thesis With a known-estimate of over 200 million women having undergone FGC or Female Genital Cutting, the practice continues to be a major cause of contention regarding its origins and potential human rights violations in global society. Of these 200 million women, about 125 million have undergone the practice in 29 countries in Africa and the Middle2 where East FGC occurs with the highest prevalence rates. FGC is an incredibly dynamic and layered issue with deep historic and religious roots. With the practice, many facets can be taken to examine FGC’s history, modern existence and the debate around the issue. Using a combination of statistical, geographical, testimonial, and Quran passages, this paper will convey how FGC is not an Islamic practice, but one that predates the religion itself and still exists through collective communities and traditions. Additionally, this paper will analyse the prevalence of FGC in refugee communities in the United States and Canada, and both why and how women in these communities are choosing to either relinquish FGC or continue the practice. ii. Author’s Bio Allison Brown is currently in her second year at the University of Wyoming with junior standing. The author is in the dual degree program pursuing bachelors in International Studies and Modern Political History, along with minors in the Honors Program and Spanish. After college, she plans to pursue a term in the Peace Corps abroad and then looks to continue her education in a graduate program. The author actively acknowledges her bias and potential prejudices as an individual of Western ideals and mindset, and additionally the ideas she has developed in Western education regarding Feminism, Islamic issues, and her limited teachings on FGC. Author’s past research with Middle Eastern and Western Religious Issues includes: → FGC in a Middle Eastern/African context → Freewill in religious texts, focusing heavily on the Torah → LGBTQIIA+ acceptance/affirmation in both Middle Eastern and West Christianity, with touches on Judaism → Current research with Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s religious affiliations and 2 potential impartiality on the United States Supreme Court iii. Choice with Wordage of FGC A myriad of terms can refer to the practice of Female Genital Cutting including (but not limited to): Female Genital Mutilation, Female Circumcision, Female Cutting, the “cut”, the Sunnah Cut, and halalays. These different terms to refer to the practice were all found through the author’s research. The author uses the term Female Genital Cutting throughout this paper. Using this term eliminates any implicit bias on the practice (i.e. Female Genital Mutilation) and also refrains from using terms that may suggest FGC as a medical practice (i.e. Female Circumcision). iv. Classifications of FGC To start, the United Nations defines FGC as a practice that involves altering or injuring 3 the female genitalia for non-medical reasons. It is also important to note that the U.N. recognizes FGC as a global human rights violation. 4 The following descriptions are compiled from the World Health Organization : Type I (can also be known as the Sunnah type): “This is the partial or total removal of the clitoral glans (the external and visible part of the clitoris which is a sensitive part of the female genitals), and/or the prepuce/ clitoral hood (the fold of skin surrounding the clitoral glans).” Type II: “The partial or total removal of the clitoral glans and the labia minora (the inner folds of the vulva), with or without removal of the labia majora (the outer folds of skin of the vulva).” Type III: “Also known as infibulation, this is the narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the labia minora, or labia majora, sometimes through stitching, with or without removal of the clitoral prepuce/clitoral hood and glans (Type I FGM).” Type IV: “This includes all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, e.g. pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area.” 3 1.0 Is FGC an Islamic Practice? 1.1 Assumption of an Islamic Problem FGC is typically assumed by many as an “African or Middle Eastern problem”, which statistically has some value, but FGC practices are not limited to these regions and over the past two decades have seen an increase both in Asian countries and more prevalence in Western countries as refugees continue to seek sanctuary. Data compiled by UNICEF (updated February 2020) lists states with prevalence percentages over 70% among documented (by government health systems) or self-reported cases in girls/women (estimated by UNICEF these percentages are expressed by thirty-eight percent or less of the populations): “Burkina Faso (76%, 2010), Djibouti (94%, 2012), Egypt (87%, 2015), Eritrea (83%, 2010), Gambia (76%, 2018), Guinea (95%, 2018), Mali (89%, 2018), Sierra Leone (86%, 2017), Somalia (98%, 2006), Sudan (87%, 2014)”. 5 Countries such as Chad, Mauritania, Iraq, Senegal, and Yemen fall in the next category between the range of 14% to 67% prevalence. However, formal declarations from the Islamic Research Council and other religious groups impact some Islamic countries and may explain why the following states have had no officially reported data since 2007-2011: “Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Jordan, 6 Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Qatar, Syria, Tunisia, and Turke Be y”.cause of the lack of comprehensive and verified numbers from these countries, it can be projected that FGC occurs within the second category of prevalence mentioned above or less. Therefore, FGC is mainly practiced in these Northern African and Middle Eastern countries, again with the exception of outside refugee populations. An association that is often made with the previous information, based on geography and state practiced religions, is that FGC is purely an Islamic issue. The fact that FGC or no related issue with female circumcision is mentioned in the Quran is a clear indication that this practice is not isolated to Muslim women. This assumption cannot be made that FGC is a practice of Islamic descent only affecting Islamic communities, although a correlation can be made, it is 4 clear with the range of prevalence in Middle Eastern and African countries that FGC is not explicitly tied to Islam. As will be further examined in this portion of the paper, FGC is a practice that predates Islam itself, and was not created as an Islamic rite. 1.2 Notion of FGC Predating Islam An association has been drawn by many that the lack of mention of FGC in the Quran shows the practice predates organized Islam itself and have built in recent years that “...the association between Islam and the practice of female genital cutting does not result from a universally applicable religious belief; rather, it exists and persists in part because of culturally 7 specific interpretations of religious identity”. Contention exists within Islamic beliefs on the Hadiths role in relation to the precedent set in the Quran. With FGC, the practice was not mentioned in the Quran, but do the same general pillars and ideas of Islam not apply to FGC? The value and solemnity of the body and the right of the human being, whether male or female, to enjoy sound physical and mental health are among the ordinance and principles of Islam and all divine religions and is advocated by the credible hadith; “Do not harm yourself or others”. This Hadith encourages every Muslim to avoid any practice that would “harm him or others”. And although FGC is practiced for cultural reasons, the practice, especially when carried out in illegal settings, can cause serious harm. 1.3 Sunan Abu Dawud (43:499) The following translation is from (Arabic script following) General Behavior (Kitab Al-Adab) 8 Book 43, Hadith 499 : “A woman used to perform circumcision in Medina. The Prophet said to her: Do not cut severely as that is better for a woman and more desirable for a husband.” 5 In this excerpt, it is understood that the practice of FGC already existed. A woman was already performing female circumcision in Medina, FGC was not created in this Hadith, merely a suggestion on the practice that pre-dates Islam This portion of the Hadith is why the Sunnah population suggests and is more likely to carry out less invasive cuts on women who have FGC practiced on them, cuts such as those that fall into Category I. The notion of this cut being “...better for a woman” is linked to the removal of the prepuce/clitoral hood exposing the clitoris, therefore increasing the likelihood that sexual relations between a couple is more pleasurable for the woman. This Hadith also has led to the cultural implications of men expecting women to have undergone FGC for their married life, which again can cause contention, and even aggression, for women who have not undergone FGC in their communities. 1.4 Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (5:75) “Abu al- Malih ibn `Usama's father relates that the Prophet said: "Circumcision is a law for men and a preservation of honour for women." 9 Religious contention exists with Type 1I0aof FGC, a minimal, external variation of FGC which has been characterized as the “Sunnah cut”. This form of FGC is practiced by the Sunnah with their religious notions that“ [they must live] under the specific words, habits, practices, and 11 silent approvals of the Prophet Mohamme dT”.his notion of the 1a form of FGC is derived from two different excerpts of Hadiths. The first from hmad ibn Hanbal (5:75) states, “Circumcision 12 is a law for men and a preservation of honor for wome F nGC ”. being a “female-circumcision” has been discredited because of its invasive and harmful procedures, unlike male-circumcision. However, the implications of FGC being the “preservation of honor for women” persists in many communities where FGC is practiced today. Women who do not undergo the cut are often displaced from their communities, considered unsuitable for marriage, and even may be the victims of acts of FGC-related aggression for their decision to remain u13ncut. 6 1.5 FGC Rates Outside of Islam trend can be seen with the Islamic religion and FGM in most practicing countries with high rates of prevalence, however, Muslim women alone are not the only groups with rates of FGM. Looking at Ethiopia as an example, “ [in Ethiopia] FGM is prevalent in 92% of Muslim women and with a lower prevalence in other religions; 65.8% Protestants, 58.2% Catholics, and 55% Traditional Religions1”.4 Most women who are Muslim have undergone FGM, however, so have many women who are not of the Islamic following. case study compiled in Burkina Faso provides useful insights on the religious differences that exist with those who practice FGC. Burkina Faso is used in this study because of its religious and ethnical diversity, where approximately 75.2% of women have undergone FGC. In 1996, a law was made criminalizing the practice along with public education and NGO outreach campaigns through schools, community and religious leaders, and th1e5med s seiae.n with the country’s rate of prevalence though, these policy measures and efforts at public education haven’t yet fulfilled the measures at reduction the government and NGOs involved hoped for. The findings of the case study acknowledge the diverse, and different development both Islam and Christianity has had in frican countries. This case study concludes that out of a random sample population of over seven-thousand women who have undergone FGC, 56.3% identify as Muslim, 27.8% as Christian, 13.8% identifying with “traditional relations”, and the remaining 0.02% claiming no religious affiliation. This suggests that although FGC has a higher prevalence in Muslim women, however, ties cannot so easily be drawn, “...the connection is context-specific, and variation in the connection, like variation in female circumcision more generally, is not well understood16 .I.n.”. stead the study suggests that FGC is practiced out of cultural norms/traditions and the “collective” community around women, both Muslim, Christian, and those who follow traditional religions. The study found that between Christians, Muslims, and adherents of traditional religions no correlation could be found linking the practice of FGC with education, wealth, and other socio-demographic characteristics. gain suggesting that the practice is collective and compounded in communities in Burkina Faso. 7 1.6 Concluding Thoughts Through geographical understanding, passages from the Quran, and a case study from Burkina Faso, it can be determined that FGC is not a practice created for Muslim women, nor is it a requirement for Islam. Instead, the practice is one that predates Islam itself, as is clear by culturally specific 17 interpretations of religious identity” and an acknowledgement of the aforementioned “cutting” practice in Book 43, Hadith 499. Additionally, it can be determined that FGC is practiced outside of Muslim, with prevalence rates in Christian, traditional adherents, and non-religious women especially in African countries, such as Burkina Faso or Ethiopia. Instead, scholars suggest FGC is a collective practice, not influenced by sociodemographics or religious affiliations, instead by what is deemed “tradition” in the individual society and the collective community’s prevalence rates of FGC. 8 2.0 FGC in Muslim Communities in North America 2.1 Prevalence and Policy of FGC in Canadian Muslim Communities FGC was outlawed nationally in Canada in 1997 through an amendment to the Criminal Code of Canada to prohibit all forms of FGC. Under this code, “...it is prohibited to aid, abet or counsel such assault and to interfere with genitalia for nonmedical reas1o8ns”d.ditionally, the amendment clearly prohibits the transport of a minor outside of Canada for the purpose of carrying out the practice in another country where the practice is legal or less regulated. pproaching 24 years since the amendment, not a single charge of FGC has been convicted in Canada. However, The Ontario Human Rights Commission states that “...because FGM is gender-specific discrimination, internationally condemned and proscribed in international instruments to which Canada is a party ... would be in compliance with its obligations by taking steps to eradicate this practi19 ce”. s of 2015, Canada has a high rate of immigration with the highest proportion of foreign-born populations among all G8 countries. Canada has received high populations of refugees from: Somalia, Egypt, Eritrea, and Sierra Leone. Countries with some of the highest prevalence rates of FGC recorded globally. Dr. Packer et al. asserts that Canada in a way is failing prone to FGC girls and women and that “... it would be naive to assume that Canadian girls are safe from the practice of genital mu2t0ilation”. dditionally, Packer believes that prosecutions for FGC are less common because often they require a minor to implicate her own parents in a crime, and a difficulty occurs while obtaining reliable evidence if FGC was to have been carried out abroad. s FGC is illegal in Canada, and unlike other countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark, and other European nation21swho during health screenings inquire if a woman has undergone FGC, there is 9 no public count of women either entering Canada having undergone FGC or who have had the practice performed on22them either in state or internationally while under refugee status in Canada. Packer and other national advocates for greater monitoring and restrictions of FGC in Canada continue to see Canada’s documentation and services for their “victims” of FGC as “failing”. 2.2 Prevalence and Policy of FGC in United States Muslim Communities 23 The United States in 1996 passed House Resolution 9 in4o 1rder to take similar measures similar to Canada in order to outlaw FGC federally. The legislation directed the Secretary of health and Human Services to compile data on the number of women living in the United States who have been subjected to FGC (regardless if that was outside or inside of the U.S.), identify U.S. communities where FGC may occur and educate individuals in said community, and to develop recommendations for the education of both youth and adults regarding FGC and its potential complications. Later in 2013, the United States passed an additional law making it illegal to knowingly transport a girl under the age of 18 for the purpose of undergoing FGC. State legislation for criminal and child endangerment charges exist in 39 states, and the District of Columbia. Sentencing differs ranging from one year to a life sentence for the “acting party” and monetary fines up to 25,0204 0S.tate legislation and policies also work to prohibit the transportation of minors outside of the US to undergo the practice. In 2013 (the last sweeping survey/data compiled), there were at least an estimated 507,000 women in the United States who had undergone 2F5,GoCften with surveyed counts such as these, many women will not self-report either themselves or their daughters. Therefore, it can be assumed that the numbers in the United States of women who have undergone FGC are substantially higher because of larger refugee populations and under-reporting. Out of these some 500,000 women, they found that Egypt, Ethiopia, and Somalia accounted for 55% of all U.S. women and girls having undergone FGC. dditionally, this survey finds that the states with the highest prevalence of FGC also have the highest “risk factor” for youth. In 2013, three-fifths of all women and girls more prone to FGC lived in only eight states. California with the largest prone population (57,000), followed by New York (48,000), and Minnesota (44,000). Minnesota has a disproportionate number of women and girls prone to experience FGC because of its large Somani immigrant population, estimated to be over 31,00206 in 2013 27 and over 52,000 as of 201 9. gain, these public statistics pulled from 2013 have only increased in the seven-year period, raising the number of women and girls who fall into the “at-risk” population for FGC. Minors prone to experience FGC in the United States are expected to increase with the rise of international migration in upcoming years as first and second generation refugee children are born in the United States. However, with this expectation of growth, a chance to decrease rates of FGC is still in 10 play. Both in North merica and the Middle East/ frica, increasingly over previous years the impacts of education have had an impact on prevalence rates of FGC, and generation by generation (especially with more time in the United States), mothers are becoming less likely to have their daughters undergo FGC. 2.3 Why (or why not) are women undergoing FGC in these communities? s previously mentioned, education both in the usual sense (primary and post secondary) and in North merica to educate about issues regarding FGC correlate to a substantial decrease specifically in a 28 mother’s likelihood to subject her daughter to FG C T.ake Kenya, for example, a country that has been praised in recent years for its reduction of FCE and efforts to educate women about the practice. With the mother having no education (formal, in school), the daughter is 13% likely to undergo FGC, with primary school she is only 2%, and with a secondary education, only 1% of Kenyan girls ages 0-14 are susceptible to FGC. This trend is also evident in Egypt with education (a country with 87% of prevalence of FGC in 2015). With no education, the mother is 20% likely to have her daughter undergo FGM, with primary, 16%. nd with a secondary education, the changes fall to 10%, half of the initial likelihood. These trends are followed in other frican countries: Nigeria, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Côte d.Ivoire, and Chad. dditionally, this same type of education in North merica or government and community health classes are found to be just as effective at reducing a mother’s likelihood of having her daughter undergo FGC. lso combatting FGM, with more documentation in North merica, but presumably prevalent in the Middle East/ frica, is the mother experiencing FGC for herself and not wanting her daughter to undergo the procedure. Different psychologists analyze this as the mothers acting on their own trauma with the procedure and not wanting their daughters to have the same experience29as tdhieffe mr.ent preventative trauma also exists, especially in frica, if a family member or someone known in the mother’s life witnessed another girl or woman undergo F30GC. Testimonials of refugee women who have themselves experienced the practice or witnessed it usually have unobstructed views on the practice, “... I knew that I didn’t want my daughter to go through that. I also knew that there are millions of girls out there that are just like my daughter and no one was speaking up for them”3.1 2.4 Concluding thoughts In both the United States and Canada, measures of federal policy and education have been made in order to prevent and educate immigrant refugee populations on FGC and its potential medical aftereffects. dditionally, both the U.S. and Canada have rising numbers of refugees from countries with right prevalence rates of FGM, such as Somalia, and seem to be proactively taking measures to prevent FGC to occur in state or internationally. However, contention exists in both Canada and the United States on whether FGC is being monitored and prevented enough, with Canada having no court-convictions with FGC since 1997 and the U.S. having its first and only trial drop charges on the first appearance in court. 11 Many continue to ask whether these two countries with obligations to their refugee populations are doing enough to prevent FGC and educate. However, the question also exists of whether or not these populations, such as the Somali, have the right to practice FGC as a “tradition”. And if their “right” can still be practiced even though it places minors in dangerous situations, and from the Western viewpoint, have no benefit. Questions such as these still circulate in North America, and will continue to do so for generations to come. Both education and personal experiences are known to be combatting FGC in the United States and Canada, and presumably can be affecting women’s decisions in the Middle East and Africa when given the choice to themselves undergo the practice or subject their daughters to it. 3.0 Conclusion 3.1 Western Thoughts Still lacking in Western research is the direct impacts of Western policy and influence on the practice of FGC, viewing the practice through the lens of FGM (mutilation), the global West is predisposed with notions of the practice as a harmful, unwarranted, and gruesome practice. Whereas in reality, FGC is not a black-and-white issue, and as examined in this paper, can be viewed through many different facets and is an issue which has developed drastically over its existence. Dr. Boyle acknowledges these developments and Western influences, and the duality of international actions: “While some link FGC to patriarchal family, religion, and political structures that exploit women, others link Western pressures regarding FGC to post-colonial imperialism. Regardless, although Western pressure forced Southern nation-states to adopt anti-FGC policies, many would characterize international mobilization against FGC as empowering local women who did not want to undergo the practice. Thus, whether the international system stripped away power or provided power is an open question. In fact, it appears to have done both.”32 3.2 Importance of researching FGC FGC is a contentious topic that has always been at the forefront of womens’ and societies’ attention, most especially in the Middle East, frica, and now sia. s FGC both contracts, with 12 decreasing rates of prevalence in younger generations both in the Middle East/ frica and North merican 33 countries, it also seems to expand, with growing practice in Southeast nsidaa . n entirely different practice of FGC within the Embera Indegineous group in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama, and Peru (unlinked to modern transfers of practic34e, )only further forming questions about the practice and its existence in different global regions. With these developments in why and how FGC is performed, it is more crucial than ever to understand why FGC is practiced and its complex history with Islam. Global efforts to curb the practice, including (but not limited to) public policy, education efforts, and alternative “coming-of-age” practices are attempting to eradicate the practice, with much success in younger generations. However, again situations where FGC is practiced outside of the cultural understanding and “collective community/norms” it has been established in continues to break out of the research models on FGC and confuse researchers. Which is why research and understanding of FGC as not only a practice, but a cultural tradition and phenomenon is essential to understand how FGC is evolving with globalization and in global society. 13