FGM......Who's to blame

[Gediid]

Ok before you all start,lemme just say this, take a deep breath,read my post carefully and then respond.

 

Hows to blame,is it Somali men or Somali women.I have read so much about it yet have never really determined where the blame lies.I have seen many who feel that the blame lies on the woman who fervently follows this practice in the hope that it makes their daughters less promiscous sexually.Yet I have seen many who say that its the men but can't quite understand where the man fits in this.

 

Lets ask each other who's to blame.Men or women?

[LuCkY]

NIce topic, i would like to know the answer as well. However i believe its the culture that is to blame-thats how i see.*i could be wrong*

[Xafsa]

The way I see it...Society dictates what is right and what is wrong for most people. If you follow teh culture blindly then you loose all rational thought. Its up to the individual to figure out exactly what he will follow and he will not. I have found that when it comes to such things as culture uts mostly the women that follow blindly...maybe because they don;t know better or maybe because in that generation the women are less educated.

In the cases that i've come across where a girl has gone through FGM, Its the mother who is pushing for it. Which is kind of ironic considering the fact that she knows how much pain is involved in such a process. But as education has become more wide spread the pratice of FGM has mostly died off.

 

I hope that made some sort of sense.

 

1luv

[Blessed]

Women, it is advocated by and practiced by women. Most Somali men are quiet obliviouse to the whole idea.

[Abdinuur]

I thought this was part of our SUNNA!

 

I could be wrong, but I doubt it's part of our CULTURE...b/c the Arab culture also has a similar practice.

 

But definitely....I think it's part of the Sunna that we as Muslims follow everyday.

 

Some people practice it and some don't.

 

I haven't read any hadith that pertains to this issue, but I heard it from many people...that it's Sunna.

[Faheema.]

I thought this was part of our SUNNA!

Did I read that right??... Kaafi.. Which part of FGM is "Sunna" the part the woman gets tortured or is it the part where she suffers throughout her life span?

[Changed]

I AGREE WITH AMEENAH.....IT THE WOMEN..MEN COULD CARELESS THEY CONSIDER IT WOMEN BIZNIS

[Abdinuur]

Shayma,

 

Like I said, I haven't read this anywhere. I only heard from different people (grown-ups).

 

Besides, how it is done could be different now than when it was first practiced. I mean a lot of these people who does these procedures on these poor women might not be knowledgable as they should be and might not even have any formal education. Most of it, as I see it, is carried out tradition...

 

It could of have been manipulated and changed; taking it to the other extreme and that's why it causes death to some.

 

Anyway, I don't know anything about the subject matter and I shouldn't be arguing about stuff I don't know about...I was just trying say what I said...

 

Peace.

[bilan]

salaam

i think both, men and women , mothers let their daughters go through FGM even though they were well aware its pain because simply in old somali culture men would not marry woman who are not circumcised(FGM way), so in my opinion large portion of the blame lies on men, women did it because that was what men wanted.

[Gediid]

Originally posted by bulo:

salaam

i think both, men and women , mothers let their daughters go through FGM even though they were well aware its pain because simply in old somali culture men would not marry woman who are not circumcised(FGM way), so in my opinion large portion of the blame lies on men, women did it because that was what men wanted.

That was the same impression I had till I discovered women would sneak away with their daughters to have them circumcised while the father slept.

Kaafi by the way the Sunna way greatly differs from the practiced FGM.

[Ladiif]

ahhahah^^^^^bulo waxaad tiri women did it b/c that is what men wanted, could somali women do it now b/c we still want it.lol!

 

On a serious note thou, there are many bad elements in the somali dhaqan and I think its time we stop praising such as this kind of act and get rid of this evil practice. I dont think we can blame neither men nor women b/c society dictates what is considered right or wrong and parents are/were just trying to fit in the society u know. In otherwords, there are many shareholders to this blame but the biggest share goes to the Society as a whole then comes aabo,hooyo, culumaa u diinka oo gabay kaalintoodii xaqiina qariyey!!

 

All of u, just promise it will never be done to ur daughters, sisters, nieces and any girl u care abt and Insha Allah, this practicce will b over soon.Aamiin dhaha

[Abdinuur]

Gediid,

 

It might be true...and that's why humans are known for manipulating everything that they touch (in a bad way)!

 

Subxaanalaah!

[- diamond princess -]

Whoz to blame?!

 

Blame only causes more problems. I suggest what Latiif said. Whats done in the past is done. Women now a days here in the west don't go through circumcison (well most I believe). If we try to make sure FGM doesnt happen to our daughters, sisters, cuzins, and so on, the faster it will stop.

 

.:peace n luv:.

[LuCkY]

E_B_N good point but what about the women back home-who still perform this cruel ritual?Most of these women do it because they are not aware of the health complications that come along with FGM. Believe me i have seen and heard some women here in the U.S. saying that they will take their daughters back home so that they can be circumsized.Some of the doctors of these girls said if that occurred the parents-esp.the mom would be behind bars. I dont know but FGM is alive and well and the first step to getting rid of it is by educating our people about the dangerous that arise due to FGM.

[Gediid]

Originally posted by exceptional_by_nature:

Whoz to blame?!

 

Blame only causes more problems. I suggest what Latiif said. Whats done in the past is done. Women now a days here in the west don't go through circumcison (well most I believe). If we try to make sure FGM doesnt happen to our daughters, sisters, cuzins, and so on, the faster it will stop.

 

.:peace n luv:.

Walaalo Somalis in the west only constitute 3 or 4% of the overall Somali population making them such a minute and minority.Saying that it doesn't happen here does not bring an end to the problem since this practice still affects millions of young girls every year back home.