Linked to male virility, a significant increase in the rates of (female circumcision) in Sudan

Sudanese Echoes: Al-Taj Osman

An investigation conducted by (Sudanese Echoes) revealed a tragic reality for women in Sudan due to the continued practice of female genital mutilation, known as (female circumcision) among Sudanese women.

The investigation, on the occasion of the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, showed that 86 percent of Sudanese women are subjected to the dangerous type of circumcision (Pharaonic circumcision), according to the latest UNICEF statistics.

The Unit for Combating Violence Against Women and Children said that female circumcision is one of the major challenges facing Sudanese society.

In contrast, the Secretary of the Child Welfare Council in Sennar State, Aida Ali Al-Faki, confirmed to (Sudanese Echoes) that the state has an ancient and important legacy in campaigns to abandon the crime of female circumcision through the (Saleema) Initiative among the state’s communities and tribes, and because of it, crime rates in some areas of the state have decreased to (zero circumcision).

At the same time, the investigation disclosed the existence of Sudanese tribes that refuse to abandon the custom of circumcision because it is associated with proving male virility during marriage. In the same context, a number of voluntary organizations working in the field of female circumcision unveiled the existence of dozens of women who were forced to circumcise their genitals after marriage because their husbands refused to consummate the marriage after discovering that they were not circumcised and were threatened with divorce.