Patterns of Female Genital Cutting in Sierra Leone - Unicef

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UNICEF: Patterns of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in Sierra Leone
In addition to such organizational efforts, our research found several instances of change
occurring that deserve review.
In some cases, daughters have refused to undergo circumcision/initiation, and their
parents have not forced them to do it. One example of this came from an educated
woman, a teacher, who otherwise seemed to be supportive to the secret societies and the
initiations. But after we spent an hour with her and talked about many issues concerning
girls’ education, when we returned to the topic of female genital cutting she revealed that
her own daughter had not wanted to be circumcised. She revealed that she had allowed
them to make the choice, and now, as uncircumcised, educated women, they intend not to
circumcise their future daughters, and they may be in a position to influence others to
abandon the practices.
Secondly, in some cases, it was the experience of living in another culture as migrants or
refugees that contributed to some Sierra Leonean women deciding not to have anything
to do with the initiations. For example, one Member of Parliament I interviewed had
spent many years living abroad in a country where female genital cutting is not practiced.
Although she was initiated as a child and is therefore considered a member of the secret
society, she did not circumcise her daughter and is firmly opposed to the practices for her
own family. Now that she has returned to Sierra Leone, she is very open in telling people
that her own daughter is not circumcised and that she does not support the continuation of
FGC, but she also is not actively working against the tradition since there is still such
widespread support for it. She reported that during the election, a political opponent had
donated materials for new roofs for the Bondo ritual houses in the constituency, in an
effort to gain political support, presumably as a defender of traditional values and
institutions. However, the candidate who did not cater to the Bondo society leaders was
nevertheless successful in winning the election, despite her opposition—albeit somewhat
passive—to the custom.
A third sort of opposition comes from activists involved in the movement, people like
Rugi Turay and Anne-Marie Caulker, whose traumatic personal experiences and
convictions about women’s rights have led them to become activists against female
genital cutting. Although some of the activists have lived abroad as refugees during the
war and may have on-going international support for anti-FGM/C work, in our
experience with these activists, their intense commitments to working against initiation
practices are genuine and personal, not a matter of transplanted Western ideas.
Finally, another major influence on those abandoning the practices comes from the
churches that have taken a stand against FGC for theological reasons. The Pentecostal
churches, or those referred to as “Bible-believing” churches, “spirit-filled” congregations,
or “born-again” Christians, are the ones that are most active in opposing FGC. Several of
the opponents of FGC who we interviewed are members of such churches (Assembly of
God, God is Our Light, New Testament Church, and others). Under the influence of
ministers whose biblical interpretations have led them to argue against practicing
witchcraft and the circumcision of girls, some of these women have said they have
“resigned” from membership in the secret societies and have protected their daughters