Activists say mothers should speak out to protect themselves and their
daughters.
More than
140 million women worldwide have experienced female genital mutilation, but not
everybody knows that many of them live in Indonesia, where over
half of girls under 11 are subjected to the dangerous
practice that is widely condemned internationally.
Now, with research indicating that
government regulations and religious decrees have little to no impact on the
prevalence of FGM, activists and officials are making themselves heard once
more, to call for a comprehensive solution.
Religious background
Former Indonesian first lady and longtime
women's rights activist Sinta Nuriyah says the tradition -- which she stresses
has no beneficial effects at all -- “causes health problems, violates women's
rights … and hurts their dignity.”
Sinta, who raised four daughters with the
late fourth president of Indonesia, Abdurrahman 'Gus Dur' Wahid, spoke at a
seminar hosted by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Jakarta on
Thursday.
She described how her children grew up in
a traditional pesantren (Islamic boarding school) environment. Their
grandfather, Wahid Hasyim, was a religious affairs minister in the Sukarno era
and their great-grandfather, Hasyim Asy'ari, founded Nahdlatul Ulama, currently
the biggest religious organization in the country.
Yet none of Sinta's daughters or six
granddaughters was subjected to the treatment, which many in Indonesia strongly
believe is an integral part of the faith.
“There really is no religious postulate
for female circumcision, neither from the Koran nor from the prophet's
sayings,” Sinta said, with various religious experts at the meeting concurring.
“That is why I am confident that the nahdliyin [followers of NU] will
not circumcize their daughters.”
Dearth
of knowledge
Research suggests, however, that many
Indonesian parents continue to do just that – in various degrees of
severity.
At the seminar in Jakarta, Yarsi
University professor Jurnalis Uddin presented findings of his research on the
issue. He looked at the effects of a 2008 Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) fatwa
challenging a ban on FGM issued by Indonesia's Health Ministry in 2006, and at
the effects of a 2010 guideline issued by the ministry that overturned its own
ban and instead explained in detail how the procedure should be carried out.
The 2010 ministerial guideline was
withdrawn last year, meaning that the 2006 ban now stands. But the practice
continues.
Jurnalis' research – conducted in Bandung
and Indramayu in West Java and Makassar and Maros in South Sulawesi – suggests
a dearth of knowledge on FGM on the part of both practitioners and girls
undergoing the procedure.
None of the study's respondents were aware
of the existence of the 2008 MUI fatwa or of the 2010 Health Ministry
guideline. Perhaps not surprisingly, the professor said there was no measurable
impact of either on the prevalence of FGM.
Health Ministry
data from 2013 suggest 51.2 percent of Indonesian girls have
undergone some form of FGM, with the highest prevalence in Gorontalo (83.7 percent)
and the lowest in East Nusa Tenggara (2.7 percent).
'Indonesia
is lagging behind'
Gunilla Olsson, Unicef's representative in
Indonesia, said that people often point out that there are various degrees of
damage done to women's genitalia as part of traditional FGM practices – with
some having a relatively minor impact – but that the time had come for zero
tolerance.
“They're all violations of girls' rights,”
Olsson said, pointing out that Indonesia is failing to meet its obligations
based on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW) and Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which it
has both ratified.
“Indonesia is lagging behind,” she
stressed.
The chief of Unicef's child protection
unit, Loren Rumble, concurred. “Is it still mutilation if it is only a
scratch?” she said. “Absolutely, yes.”
Pointing at the high prevalence of FGM in
Indonesia, Rumble said it is about time people stop associating the practice
solely with nations in Africa.
“We need to think about what's happening
right here at home,” she said, urging Indonesian women to speak out to protect
themselves and their daughters.
Holistic
approach
Nafissatou J. Diop, the New York-based
coordinator of the UNFPA-UNICEF joint program on FGM, stressed the need for a
holistic approach.
According to Diop, even when most people
in a given region want the practice to stop that doesn't necessarily mean it
will, because of the strength of social norms.
When other people continue to carry out FGM,
“the stigma attached to not doing it remains,” she told the seminar, calling
for a culturally sensitive approach focused on human rights and the empowerment
of girls and women, and centered around positive, shared values.
But for such an approach to be successful,
women do need to be open about their rejection of the tradition and there needs
to be explicit, public affirmation of a collective commitment to abandon FGM at
the community level, Diop said.
Access to information
In Indonesia, the Health Ministry says
society's demand for female circumcision remains high, regardless of official
decrees.
Muchtaruddin Mansyur, director general for
children's health, said the ministry is acutely aware of the negative
consequences of FGM, but that it is primarily a problem rooted in traditional
beliefs.
As female circumcision is not a medical
procedure, he argued, there is little the Health Ministry can do in terms of
rules and regulations.
But Maria Ulfah Anshor, a member of the
Indonesian Commission for Child Protection (KPAI), called on the government to
do more against FGM by finally taking a clear stance on the matter.
The commissioner pointed out that FGM is a
violation of Indonesia's child protection law and
also breaches a host of international conventions and human rights
principles.
While also calling on parents to take
their responsibility in protecting their children, Maria Ulfah said the
government should act quickly and decisively.
What is needed, she said, is “complete, honest and
accurate information about opinions on and the effects of female
circumcision, so that people can steer clear from this dangerous practice.” By : Bastiaan Scherpen
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