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ByeByeToe® against female genital mutilation

The organization Plan International is committed to abolishing female genital mutilation in both the countries of origin and in Germany. ByeByeToe® has decided to support this project and donate a portion of its sales revenue to Plan International.



Image source: Plan International

What is female genital mutilation?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 200 million women and girls worldwide are affected by female genital mutilation/cutting. Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) includes all procedures that involve the partial or complete removal of the female external genitalia or their injury, whether for cultural or other non-therapeutic reasons. The age of the girls varies greatly. Most are between six and 13 years old, but infants and adult women are also affected by Female Genital Mutilation. The practice of FGM/C has been practiced for millennia and is still performed on all continents today. It is mainly prevalent in Africa. The countries with the highest proportion of 15- to 49-year-old girls and women who have been cut are: Somalia (98%), Guinea (97%), Djibouti (93%), Sierra Leone (90%), Mali (89%), Egypt, Sudan (87% each) and Eritrea (83%). To a lesser extent, genital mutilation also occurs in Asia. Due to migration, the number of women affected by FGM/C in Europe is increasing. The 2009 European Parliament resolution on combating female genital mutilation estimates the number of women and girls with mutilated/cut genitalia living in Europe to be 500,000.




Data source: UNICEF

Reasons for female cutting

There are numerous reasons given to justify female genital mutilation. In practicing communities, female genital mutilation/cutting is a deeply rooted tradition and embedded in a culturally shaped understanding of women's roles, sexuality, family, and marriage. The justifications for FGM/C vary depending on the cultural context. In most Muslim-majority countries where this practice occurs, it is often presented as a religious duty. FGM/C was practiced even before the spread of monotheistic religions. This is evidenced, among other things, by mummified bodies of pharaonic princesses. No religion worldwide recommends FGM/C. There are other reasons mothers and circumcisers give to explain the cutting of girls in society. In Egypt, for example, the removal of the external genitalia is a sign of beauty. The clitoris, on the other hand, is considered a symbol of masculinity in Mali, Burkina Faso, and West Africa, and is therefore removed.

Consequences and effects of female genital mutilation

FGM/C is painful and traumatizing, as it is performed without anesthesia in most cases, so that those affected feel all the pain during the practice, and it is not infrequently fatal. All forms of Female Genital Mutilation are irreversible. I would like to spare you further cruel details about the procedures and consequences at this point, because everyone can imagine what all this means for the affected women.

For this reason, it is important to finally abolish this method! And ByeByeToe® wants to support this project and drive it forward with donations that you make possible through your purchase.


Plan International
















Data source: Plan International

 

 

 

 

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