Ahmed is a family support worker with the Agency for Culture and Change Management in Sheffield, an international charity dedicated to improving the health of African women and girls. She raises awareness of FGM among communities in the UK who still practice it, mainly Somalian and Sudanese.
Female genital mutilation is an age-old practice that is deeply embedded in the culture of the practising communities. Its origins are unknown and it involves the partial or total removal of the external parts of the female genital organs. Reasons given include maintaining family honour, hygiene, protecting virginity, preventing promiscuity and increasing marriage opportunities.
Ahmed works to stop the practice by talking to families about UK law, about the health problems caused by FGM and about religion. "We tell them it is not in the Koran and that it is a baseless culture created by men and there is no need for it now," she says. "We also tell them that it is child abuse and against human rights. In that way we hope it will stop."
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