Dagestani native's story reveals problems with victims of female circumcision

A woman from a small village in Dagestan has learned, only at the age of 42, that she had been circumcised in childhood, since it is not customary to discuss such topics, says the "AfishaDaily". Russia should introduce a new article in the Criminal Code, criminalizing all types of mutilation, Yulia Antonova, a lawyer with the "Legal Initiative" Project, believes.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in May, a woman from Chechnya succeeding in seeking an institution of a criminal case in Ingushetia on the deliberate infliction of slight harm to the health of her nine-year-old daughter.

Djavgarat (the name has been changed), a native of the Charodinsky District of Dagestan, was circumcised in early childhood; and she remembers nothing about the procedure itself. Only when she turned 42, she learned that she had a clitorectomy; at that time she was married and had three children, says the material of the "AfishaDaily" entitled "Women Surviving 'Circumcision': Story of Djavgarat". Her monologue was published as part of the "Violence Is Not a Tradition" Project dedicated to the problems of female genital mutilation.

In Russia, it is reasonable to introduce a new article in the Criminal Code, criminalizing all types of mutilations, based on existing international experience, says Yulia Antonova, a lawyer for the "Legal Initiative" Project.

"Everyone should be punished: perpetrators, accomplices and helpers of such practices. Political will is important here. The introduction of a new article would stress that the state condemns and criminalizes mutilations. Then you can work towards its improvement," the edition quotes the lawyer as saying.

The absence of criminal liability for mutilating surgeries generates impunity among parents and doctors who agree to such operations, Saida Sirazhudinova, President of the "Caucasus. World. Development" Centre for Studies of Global Issues of Contemporaneity and Regional Problems, believes.

"I faced my own helplessness in dealing with mothers who were planning such surgeries on their daughters. In response to my arguments that this is a criminal offense, they said that they live in a society with such traditions, and so far such surgeries had not been prosecuted by law. "If the law prohibits this, why has not a single person been punished so far?" they asked," the edition quotes Ms Sirazhudinova as stating.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 13, 2020 at 05:29 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.