New York, Feb 28 2012 1:10PM
The United Nations advocate and renowned singer-songwriter Angélique Kidjo today urged all UN Member States to outlaw female genital mutilation (FGM), describing it as a tradition that diminishes women and seeks to destroy their identity.
"What I want to try to do… is to pledge and to convince all nations of the United Nations to sign a resolution to ban the practice of female genital mutilation," said Ms. Kidjo, a Grammy-winning artist who was born in the West African country of Benin. "We can't live in a modern society with FGM still around," she told UN Radio in an interview.
Ms. Kidjo, a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), and a passionate advocate for girls' education, said social traditions that condone FGM need to be "tackled at the core" through making entire communities aware of the harmful consequences of the practice.
"For us to be able to prevent [FGM]… it not only talking to girls that went through FGM that matters – it is talking to their parents, their families, their communities, the leaders of communities, religious leaders… women that practise FMG and the men, who, even if they do not say a word, by their silence they give their agreement to [FGM].
"If we can really succeed to completely eradicate FGM and try to give a sense of life to the women who have been through it already, it would be worth trying," she said.
The UN World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 140 million girls and women worldwide are currently living with the consequences of FGM. In Africa, an estimated 92 million girls aged 10 years or older have undergone FGM, which is also practised in some countries in the Middle East and Asia.
The practice includes procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.
The practice is mostly carried out by traditional circumcisers, who often play other central roles in communities, such as attending childbirths. However, more than 18 per cent of all acts of FGM are performed by health-care providers, and that trend has been on the rise, according to WHO.
Feb 28 2012 1:10PM
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