Female Genital Mutilation in Tanzania: Re-examining Women’s Position in Society

Öz

Much discussion has been raised worldwide on Female Genital Mutilation and/or Cutting FGM/C , however, there is a need to understand the impact of FGM/C for girls and women. This paper focuses on the practice, and experiences, of FGM/C in Tanzania. This paper uses Tanzania’s 2016 Demographic and Health Survey to analyse two key objectives: 1 who is at risk of FGM and potentially why; and 2 what are the future outcomes if one conducts FGM: what relationships do they enter into and what socio-economic status is obtained? The results show 10.48% of women interviewed had experienced FGM/C. The majority of these cases are conducted at a young age 51% below eight years old ; and by traditional circumcisers 65% . Secondly, the experience of FGM was highest for women residing in rural areas; with no education; from the poorest socio-economic group; and from the Central-Northern regions including Manyara, Arusha, Singida, Dodoma and Mara. A key contribution made by this paper is identifying the associations to future life outcomes: FGM/C experience was associated to particular relationships later in life, and with particular partners. The findings raise the need for engagement of practitioners, policy makers and community members, of different levels to engage in the movement to stopping FGM

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Female genital mutilation,Tanzania Demographic Health Survey,Life-course approach,women,girls,violence

Tanzanya'da Kadın Sünneti: Kadınların Toplumdaki Konumunun Yeniden Değerlendirilmesi

Öz

Kadın Sünneti hakkında birçok küresel tartışma yapılmıştır; ancak, kadın sünnetinin kadınlar ve kızlar üzerindeki etkilerine bakmak gereklidir. Bu makale, Tanzanya’da kadın sünneti pratiğine ve deneyimlerine odaklanır. Makale, Tanzanya’nın 2016 Demografi ve Sağlık Anketi’ni iki amaç çerçevesinde analiz etmektedir: 1 Kimler kadın sünneti açısından risk altındadır ve neden?; ve 2 kadın sünneti pratiği sonrasında gelecek sonuçlar nelerdir?: Bu kadınlar ne gibi ilişkilere girerler ve ne gibi sosyo-ekonomik statüler kazanırlar? Sonuçlar, görüşülen kadınlardan %10,48’nin kadın sünneti deneyimine sahip olduğunu göstermiştir. Bu vakaların çoğunluğu genç yaşta gerçekleşmiş %51’i sekiz yaşın altında ; ve geleneksel sünnetçiler tarafında yapılmıştır %65 . İkinci olarak, kadın sünneti deneyimi kırsal bölgelerde yaşayan kadınlarda ve Manyara, Arusha, Singida, Dodoma ve Mara’yı da kapsayan, Orta ve Kuzey bölgelerinde en yüksektir. Bu makalenin Temel katkılarından birisi, kadın sünnetinin gelecek hayat açısından sonuçlarının belirlenmesi hususundadır: kadın sünneti deneyimi sünnetten sonraki hayatta vuku bulan belirli ilişkiler, özellikle de belirli partnerlerle olan ilişkiler ile bağdaştırılmaktadır. Sonuçlar, uzmanların, politika yapıcıların ve farklı düzeylerdeki toplum üyelerinin kadın sünnettini engelemek için hareket etmeleri gerekliliğini işaret etmektedir

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Kadın sünneti,Tanzanya Demografi ve Sağlık Anketi,yaşam seyri yaklaşımı,kadın, kızlar , şiddet

Kaynakça

1. tooMany, 2017. 28 Too Many, FGM… Let’s End it. Accessed [Online]: http://28toomany.org/
2. Child Reach International, 2016. FGM/C in Tanzania, Child Reach International FGM/C Policy Position, Online.
3. Birditt, S, K., Tighe, A, L., Fingerman, L, K., and Zarit, H, S. 2012. ‘Intergenerational Relationship Quality Across Three Generations’, Journal of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences, Social Sciences, 67:5, pp 627- 638.
4. Boyle, H, E., Songora, F., and Foss, G. 2001. ‘International Discourse and Local Politics: Anti-Female-Genital-Cutting Laws in Egypt, Tanzania and the United States’, Social Problems, 48:4, pp 524-544.
5. Bulman, H, K., and McCourt, C. 2002. ‘Somali Refugee Women’s Experiences of Maternity Care in West London: A Case Study’, Critical Public Health, 12:4, pp 365-380.
6. Bustreo, F. 2014. ‘Empowering Girls: Ending the Cycle of Violence’, WHO Media Centre, Commentary by Assistance Director-General of Family, Women’s and Children’s Health, 10th October 2014, Accessed [Online]: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/commentaries/empowering-girls/en/
7. Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), 2017. The Demographic and Health Survey Program: DHS Overview, USAID, Accessed [Online]: http://www.dhsprogram.com/What-We-Do/Survey-Types/DHS.cfm
8. DHS, 2017. ‘Wealth Index’, The Demographic and Health Survey Program: DHS Overview, USAID, Accessed [Online]: http://www.dhsprogram.com/topics/wealth-index/Index.cfm

9. Dorkenoo, E. 1996. ‘Combating Female Genital Mutilation: An Agenda for the Next Decade’, World Health Statistics Quarterly, 49:2, pp 142-147.
10. GIZ, 2011. ‘Country Fact Sheet: Ending Female Genital Mutilation in Tanzania’, in Country Department Africa – Western Africa, Angola and Pan-African Organisations and Programmes, September 2011, pp 1-2, Germany, Accessed [Online]: https://www.giz.de/fachexpertise/downloads/giz2011-en-fgm-tansania.pdf
11. Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, 2017. Pathfinder Roadmap: Tanzania, Accessed [Online]: http://www.end-violence.org/tanzania.html
12. Hammen, C., Hazel, A, N., Brennan, A, P., and Najman, J. 2011. ‘Intergenerational Transmission and Continuity of Stress and Depression: Depressed Women and their Offspring in 20 years of Follow-up’, Psychological Medicine, 42:5, pp 931-942.
13. Ibrahim, M., and Mahmoud, H. 2016. ‘Effect of Female Genital Mutilation on Female Sexual Function, Alexandria, Egypt’, Alexandria Journal of Medicine, 52:1, pp 55-59.
14. Institute of Health Equity (IHE), 2017. Resource Page: Working towards Health Equity, Accessed [Online]: http://www.instituteofhealthequity.org/about-our-work/working-toward-heath-equity
15. Kapiga, S., Harvey, S., Muhammed, K, A., Stockl, H., Mshana, G., Hashim, R., Hansen, C., Lees, S., and Watts, C. 2017. ‘Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse and Associated Factors among women enrolled into a Cluster Randomised Trial in North-western Tanzania’, BMC Public Health, 17:190.
16. Mare, D, R., and Maralani, V. 2006. ‘The Intergenerational effects of changes in Women’s Educational Attainments’, American Sociology Rev., 71:4, pp 5542-556.
17. Msuya, E, S., Mbizvo, E., Hussain, A., Sundby, J., Sam, E, N., and Stray-Pedersen, B. 2002. ‘Female Genital Cutting in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania: Changing Attitudes?’, Tropical Medicine and International Health, 7:2, pp 159-165.
18. Mustafa, A. 2009. ‘Women’s Empowerment and the Intention to Continue the Practice of Female Genital Cutting in Egypt’, Archives of Iranian Medicine (AIM), 12:2, pp 154-160.
19. Nypan, A. 1991. ‘Revival of Female Circumcision: A Case of Neo-Traditionalism’, in Stolen, K., A., and Mariken, V. (Eds.) Gender and Change in Developing Countries, Oslo: Norwegian University Press.
20. Onuzo, U., Garcia, F, A., Hernandez, A., Peng, Y.,and Lecoq, T. 2013. Intergenerational Equity: Understanding the Linkages between Parents and Children: A Systematic Review, London School of Economic and Political Science, London, UK., UNICEF, April 2013.
21. Rada, C. ‘Violence against women by male partners and against children within the family: Prevalence, associated factors and intergenerational transmission in Romania, a cross-sectional study’, BMC Public Health, 14:129
22. Rutsein, O, S., and Johnson, K. 2004. The DHS Wealth Index: DHS Comparative Reports, No. 6, Maryland, USA, Accessed [Online],: http://www.dhsprogram.com/publications/publication-cr6-comparative-reports.cfm
23. Sanghani, R. 2015. ‘Meet the Amazing Woman Running a Safe House for Girls Fleeing FGM’, The Telegraph, Accessed [Online]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-health/11509843/FGM-Meet-the-amazing- woman-saving-girls-in-Tanzania.html
24. Silvermann, C, R., and Lieberman, F, A. 2009. ‘Negative Maternal Attributions, Projective Identification and the Intergenerational Transmission of Violent Relational Patterns’, Psychoanalytic Dialogues: The International Journal of Relational Perspectives, 9:2, pp 161-186.
25. Sekhri, S., and Debnath, S. 2014. ‘Intergenerational Consequences of Early Age Marriages of Girls: Effect on Children’s Human Capital’, The Journal of Development Studies, 50:12, pp 1670-1686.
26. Su, C. 2016. ‘Breaking the Cycle: How Increasing Access to Female-Controlled Contraception Can Empower Low- Income https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/expose/book/breaking-cycle Families’, Expose Magazine, Accessed [Online]
27. Tanzania Demographic Health Surveillance (TDHS), (2004). Chapter 13: Female Genital Cutting, pp 247-256, Accessed [Online]: http://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FR173/13Chapter13.pdf
28. UNICEF, 2015 http://data.unicef.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/FGMC_Lo_res_Final_26.pdf
29. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), 2015. Empowering Women to Lead the Change: One Woman’s Fight Against FGM, Accessed [Online]: http://www.unfpa.org/news/empowering-women-lead-change-one-woman %E2%80%99s-fight-against-fgm
30. United Republic of Tanzania (URT), 1998. Sexual Offences Special Provisions Act, No 4 of 1998, Accessed [Online]: http://parliament.go.tz/polis/uploads/bills/acts/1457516075-ActNo-4-1998.pdf
31. URT, 2016. Tanzania Demographic Health Survey and Malaria Indicators (2015-2016): Final Report December 2016, Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Ministry of Health Zanzibar, National Bureau of Statistics, Office of Chief Government Statistician Zanzibar, ICF; Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Maryland USA.
32. WHO, 2017. Sexual and Reproductive Health: Classification of Female Genital Mutilation, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, 1997, Accessed [Online]: http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/fgm/overview/en/
33. Winterbottom, A., Koomen, J., and Burford, G. 2009. ‘Female Genital Cutting: Cultural Rights and Rites of Defiance in Tanzania’, African Studies Review, 52:1, pp 47-71.
34. Yusuf, C., and Fessha, Y. 2013 ‘Female Genital Mutilation as a Human Rights issue: Examining the effectiveness of the Law against Female Genital Mutilation in Tanzania’, African Human Rights Law Journal, 13:2.