Harmful traditional practices, (male circumcision - Electronic Thesis ...

35
taboos or negative or judgmental attitudes to sexual activity of girls, as this can limit their
access to preventative measures and other services (para 6).” 106
It is submitted that in South Africa, there is a close link between HIV/AIDS and
harmful cultural practices. As explained in chapter 1, the use of the same pair of
gloves in the case of virginity testing and the same knife, in the case of
circumcisions facilitates the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases as the HIV
virus is transmitted through bodily fluids and can therefore be passed on from
one infected person to another. In South Africa, the practice of virginity testing
is predominantly practiced upon young girls. As such, the burden of sexual
responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of girls to the exclusion of boys.
The comment contained in General Comment No. 3 above therefore highlights
the potential harmful impact of gender-based discrimination on the human rights
of girl children.
Traditional practices violate international law if they are prejudicial to the health
of children and/or are discriminatory to the child on the basis of gender or any
other status. 107 It is further stated that traditional practices have to be
evaluated according to whether they conflict with any other provisions or rights
in the CRC. 108
In response to South Africa’s Initial Country Report, the Committee on the Rights
of the Child recommended that South Africa maximize its efforts to ensure the
implementation of the principle of non-discrimination in article 2 of the CRC,
106 Sloth-Nielsen J, “Of Newborns and Nubiles: Some Critical Challenges to Children’s Rights in
Africa in the Era of HIV/Aids,” The International Journal of Children’s Rights, 13: 73-85, 2005 at p
74.
107 Van Bueren G, “Children’s Rights: Balancing Traditional Values and Cultural Plurality” in
Children’s Rights and Traditional Values, edited by Douglas G & Sebba L, Ashgate Publishing
Company, 1998, at 19.
108 Ibid at 19.