Salwa Samir in AL Monitor reports on an appalling subject in Egypt – female genital mutilation (FGM):
FGM was banned in the country in 2008, and in 2016 it was criminalized. Nevertheless, a 2016 survey by the UN Children’s Fund revealed that 87% of women and girls ages 15-49 in Egypt have undergone the procedure. Even after the criminalization, families in poor villages in Upper Egypt force their girls to undergo FGM, because they believe it promotes chastity.
A distressingly high percentage, given that it was banned a decade ago, and it’s beginning to look like it’s going to point up that in clashes between the law and tradition, the latter is often the victor.
Not being religious myself, I am sure I’m missing a lot of nuance, yet I’m left with this question running through my head for those who would advocate for FGM and happen to be religious: It should be clear that the human body is a gift from your deity(s), and mutilation that destroys the sources of pleasure in an often bitter life would seem to be an insult to that deity. How can you possibly hope to reside with your deity when you die after committing such a terrible crime against them?
For those wondering about circumcision, yep, it also applies. Sure, some will point at the Bible and claim it was commanded by Jehovah, but this merely underlines the question of the authenticity of the Bible.
If you feel like you’re stumbling into the spider’s web, that’s one good reason to discard divinities and look for better explanations.
Also noted in Samir’s article was the increase in the Egyptian population:
The population of Egypt has nearly doubled since 1985, which is a serious headache for the Egyptian government. In May, the government earmarked 100 million Egyptian pounds ($5.5 million) to bolster a family planning program entitled “Two is Enough.”
“Simply imparting information and increasing knowledge is not sufficient: The messaging must target the beliefs, ideas and feelings that drive behavior and that can remove social barriers and empower people to act. If we can shift these ideational factors — for example, if we can shift perceptions of what people believe other people will think of them if they use contraception or shift an individual’s belief that their peers are using contraception — then the behavior will subsequently change,” Bodiroza said.
The general thrust of Samir’s article was the use of celebrities and songs in influencing the sexual mores of the Egyptian state, which I should think should have been employed a decade ago.
