Multiculturalism and human rights

Abstract

Female Genital Mutilation, also referred as excision, female genital cutting or female circumcision, is a harmful traditional practice with strong ancestral and socio-cultural roots. According to UNICEF data, it violates, at present, the rights of more than 200 million women and girls around the world. Usually practiced in 29 countries in the central strip of Africa and some Middle Eastern and Asian countries, Female Genital Mutilation / Cutting (FGM/C) has spread within hosting countries where migrants or refugees travel with their cultural background. Its increasing prevalence in Europe during the last two decades has been perceived with concern by professionals and public administrations, due to the lack of knowledge they generally show about the practice, its cultural meanings, its consequences, and the most efficient ways to prevent or protect as well as to support women and girls who have undergone FGM/C. Little or no attention paid to FGM/C in national policies on eliminating gender-based violence, due to the lack of an intersectional approach to its 26 Multisectoral academic training guide on female genital mutilation/cutting development, has sparked an alarmism which is not exempt of subtexts that stigmatize the practicing communities as a whole. Therefore it is essential to promote a comprehensive approach, culturally contextualized and with the necessary gender perspective, that puts emphasis on the prevention and adequate care. Only then can the re-victimization and/or discrimination of the survivors be avoided.