NAFGEM

NAFGEM: Network Against Female Genital Mutilation

This week, we visited the NAFGEM office in Moshi. I really didn’t know what to expect when I first walked in, but I really learned a lot, and it also broke my heart to hear the stories of FGM (female genital mutilation) in East Africa, including Tanzania.

NAFGEM was found in 1999 and is a legally registered NGO (non-government organization). Their vision is the total elimination of all forms of sexual abuse of women, specifically FGM. Their mission is to bring information and awareness.

FGM is a major problem in African tribes. World wide over 130 million women and girls are victims and over 2 million girls undergo the ritual annually. Tanzania is estimated that over 18 million women are victims per year.

These tribes that perform FGM strongly believe in female circumcision.  They feel that without it, women are viewed as prostitutes and they are not considered to be clean. The main reason (and most terrible) for FGM in these tribes is that it is used to make fear and teach the women how to respect her husband.

A lot of tribal women want their young daughters to be circumcised because they want them to be married. In these tribes, marriages bring gifts like cows and goats to families so if a girl is to be married, it will also help her family. Some girls even run away to avoid being circumcised if they have learned that they are about to endure it.

There are no shelters for these girls that do run away. Sometimes, even when it is completely obvious what has happened, it is ignored (including by local police). In Tanzania, if the police do catch someone performing FGM, they will go to jail for a short period and then have to pay a fine of $300 USD – and then they are free to go.

Not only did we learn about all of the reasons and why, but we were even shown videos of FGM being performed on women, teenagers, and even babies. A dull knife is used so it is not easy to cut. This is done because it helps better “teach” the women respect. The knives are also not clean at all. In one video, the knife was used to kill a chicken and then was used (without washing it) to circumcise a little girl. Another video showed a tribal ceremony of about six women who were displayed in front of the whole tribe being circumcised, one right after the other, with the same knife. 

For these tribes, this is tradition. It’s the only way they know of how to treat women. It is now our job to teach them new ways. FGM is not ok. It is torture, as well as beating women. It is a violation of human rights that must be stopped. It is also a major health concern, including the transmission of HIV.

For me, the hardest part of visiting NAFGEM was realizing that the biggest thing that I can do to help stop FGM, and really the only thing anyone can do, is bring awareness to others. Organizations like NAFGEM rely on donations that help them get knew tools to bring better awareness.

To learn more, please visit www.nafgem.or.tz and start bringing awareness to others. FGM must come to an end.