Pakistani
schoolgirl shot by Taliban praises campaign calling for better education on
female genital mutilation in UK schools
theguardian.com,
Alexandra Topping, Monday 24 February 2014
 |
| Malala Yousafzai with the anti-FGM campaigner Muna Hasan. Photograph: David Levene |
MalalaYousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl who has spearheaded the campaign for
universal education for children, has backed a campaign led by the 17-year-old British student Fahma Mohamed to get education about female genital mutilation
into all schools in the UK.
In an
exclusive interview with the Guardian, Malala praised Fahma's campaign, and joined
her in calling for better education in schools about FGM. "I've watched
every step of Fahma's campaign and I think she is on the edge of something
huge," she said. "Over 140 million girls and women are mutilated –
but like keeping girls out of school in Pakistan, we can come out together and
be strong and change things for the next generation. I am her sister and I am
at her side and I want her to be listened to I as I was."
Fahma is to
meet the education secretary, Michael Gove, on Tuesday in an attempt to
convince him to play a role in ending the practice of FGM in the UK. Gove
agreed to a meeting after a Guardian-backed petition – which is supported by a
range of FGM campaigners and groups – attracted hundreds of thousands of
signatures since launching at the beginning of February.
Malala –
who was shot at close range by the Taliban for her campaign for girls'
education and went on to become the youngest ever nominee for the Nobel peace
prize – urged Fahma to keep up pressure on the education secretary to write to
every school in the UK telling them to train teachers and parents about the
risks and impact of FGM on women and girls.
"I
think it is very important that we make people aware of this issue because if
no one knows, if no one wants to know, then we can never highlight it in front
of responsible people and we can never find a solution," said Malala, who
is 16. "It's good that … girls like Fahma – so active and with a passion –
are continuing this campaign. I truly support you."
 |
| Fahma Mohamed is to meet Michael Gove on Tuesday. Photograph: Patrick Hoeschler |
Following
sustained public pressure which has seen the Guardian petition attract almost a
quarter of a million signatures on Change.org, the Scottish government has agreed to write to every teacher in Scotland about FGM, while an early day
motion led by the Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron in support of the campaign has
received the backing of 33 MPs.
The UN
secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, supported the campaign, calling it "deeply inspiring" and praising Mohamed.
The Kent
police and crime commissioner, Ann Barnes, also signed the petition and, with
the backing of the not-for-profit lobbying group Policing for All, urged all 41
PCCs to sign the campaign before Fahma meets Gove.
Malala, who
has recovered well in the UK after receiving specialised treatment at the Queen
Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham, compared the work done by Fahma and other
members of the anti-FGM charity Integrate Bristol to her own battle for
universal education. "I'm also trying to work for women's rights and
girls' education and I think the campaign that you are doing is a part of my
campaign as well," she said. "[W]hen you talk about education you
talk about quality education and it should be [known] all over the world about
FGM – what it is and how can it affect the life of a girl. So I think it should
be a part of education and we both will struggle for this. Because we can never
achieve our goals unless we struggle for it, so I think this is the time to start
it."
Malala, who
now lives in Birmingham with her family, took time from revising for her GCSEs
to meet representatives of Integrate Bristol, including Lisa Zimmermann, a
teacher at City Academy Bristol who set up the project seven years ago, and 20-year-old
Muna Hasan, one of the group's original members. City Academy Bristol is one of
only two schools in the country to have a dedicated project on the practice,
which is thought to affect 140 million women and girls worldwide, and is
practiced in 28 African countries as well as some parts of Asia and the Middle
East.
Hasan said
when she joined the campaign the group had to overcome prejudice and opposition
from those who did not want FGM to be discussed. "I faced, and quite a few
of the girls in the community faced, hardship," she said. "It wasn't
just certain people in our communities who didn't want to know – teachers
didn't, politicians didn't want to know, some doctors didn't know what it
was."
She said it
was now time for politicians such as Gove to play their part in eradicating the
practice of FGM, which is believed to affect 66,000 women in England and Wales,
while 24,000 girls under the age of 15 are thought to be at risk. "For
this to have got so big and to have so many signatures shows people do care,
but it is politicians' time – it's their turn to start caring and do something
active to stop FGM in this country," she said.
Malala, who
will share a platform with other women's rights campaigners, including FGM
activists, at the Southbank centre in London next month as part of the Women of
the World festival, said the struggle for women's and girls' right must
continue. "I totally support you in your campaign for girls' rights
because it should be the right of a girl how she wants her body," she
said. "I'm truly surprised to hear that 140 million women are affected by
FGM. I think we should start a campaign and we should struggle for it because
if we remain silent we will never achieve our goals and we will never achieve
change. The only way to fight against it is to speak."
Related Articles:
Michael Gove agrees to write to schools over female genital mutilation
British girl leads Guardian campaign to end female genital mutilation
British girl leads Guardian campaign to end female genital mutilation
Question: Dear and beloved Kryon: What should we know about "Brit-Mila" (Jewish circumcision)?
Answer: All circumcision was based on commonsense health issues of the day, which manifested itself in religious-based teaching. That basically is what made people keep doing it. This eighth-day-from-birth ritual is no more religious today than trimming your fingernails (except that Brit-Mila is only done once, and it hurts a bit more).
It's time to start seeing these things for what they are. Common sense is not static. It's dynamic, and related to the culture of the time. Yesterday's common sense about health changed greatly with the discovery of germs. It changed again with practices of cleanliness due to the discovery of germs, and so on. Therefore, we would say that it really doesn't make a lot of difference in today's health practices. It's done almost totally for cultural historic and traditional purposes and holds no energy around it other than the obvious intent of the tradition.
This is also true for a great deal of the admonishments of the Old Testament regarding food and cleanliness, and even the rules of the neighborhood (such as taking your neighbor's life if he steals your goat, or selling your daughter in slavery if you really need the money... all found in scripture). The times are gone where these things matter anymore, yet they're still treated with reverence and even practiced religiously in some places. They're now only relics of tradition, and that's all. If you feel that you should honor a tradition, then do it. If not, then don't. It's not a spiritual or health issue any longer.
Be the boss of your own body and your own traditions. Follow what your spiritual intuition tells you is appropriate for your own spiritual path and health.
It's time to start seeing these things for what they are. Common sense is not static. It's dynamic, and related to the culture of the time. Yesterday's common sense about health changed greatly with the discovery of germs. It changed again with practices of cleanliness due to the discovery of germs, and so on. Therefore, we would say that it really doesn't make a lot of difference in today's health practices. It's done almost totally for cultural historic and traditional purposes and holds no energy around it other than the obvious intent of the tradition.
This is also true for a great deal of the admonishments of the Old Testament regarding food and cleanliness, and even the rules of the neighborhood (such as taking your neighbor's life if he steals your goat, or selling your daughter in slavery if you really need the money... all found in scripture). The times are gone where these things matter anymore, yet they're still treated with reverence and even practiced religiously in some places. They're now only relics of tradition, and that's all. If you feel that you should honor a tradition, then do it. If not, then don't. It's not a spiritual or health issue any longer.
Be the boss of your own body and your own traditions. Follow what your spiritual intuition tells you is appropriate for your own spiritual path and health.
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