Photography by Belinda Mason
ENGLISH
‘As a woman and as an activist I will continue all my life-long to lead this combat for the promotion and the protection of rights in general and mainly women’s rights. Maybe at my age many women are already grandmothers and even great grandmothers as in Mali the marriage age for a girl is from 15-years and already at 30 she is grandmother and at 45 she is great grandmother. Despite I will continue to fight till the end of my life if God allows it. This is the goal of my life, I have managed my family life, I studied, and also my children got married. The main goal of my life is to fight for women right’s till we have them in Mali. A law forbidding FGM, all the violations against women, early marriage, nutritional taboo, violence based on gender in general and many other things that exist here but are not normal in our day. These practices must not exist. Thank you’
-Adame, Mali 2015
‘This year three million very young girls will suffer lifetime damage through ‘cutting’ – shockingly painful removal of parts of their genitals. “The Rights of Girls Initiative Ltd” was started after I returned from volunteering at a number of schools and medical clinics in Africa in 2012. Like most people I had heard about female genital circumcision but had no idea of the horror of what was really involved. In Africa it is estimated that 86 per cent of young girls will be ‘cut’. Why? So that when they marry, their family can be paid a bride price…generally a farm animal. Having paid, the new husband has the right to cut open his bride on their wedding night so they can have sex.”
– Toni Fitzgerald, Director -The Rights of Girls Initiative Ltd Australia www.rightsofgirls.com
“Female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) includes all surgical interventions consisting of totally or partially removal of external genitalia of girl/woman or cause to the genitalia other damage for cultural or other reasons nontherapeutic. In Mali, this practice became cultural and religious. Commonly called “Excision” it is strongly practiced by communities since immemorial times. By its extent and its consequences on the health and integrity of women, FGM in Mali constitutes a real public health problem.
Let’s fight together for the abandonment of this abominable practice and make communities know and believe that:
- FGM is harmful to girls/women health;
- It is not a religious requirement;
- We must not remove that God has given;
- Girl/woman must keep her entire body;
- And if God gave this organ, this means that it has a specific function in the operation of woman’s body. “