આ આર્ટિકલ પહેલા સહિયો દ્વારા તારીખ 24 એપ્રિલ 2017ના રોજ અંગ્રેજીમાં પ્રકાશિત કરવામાં આવ્યો હતો. Read the English version here.

લેખક: અનામી

દેશ : અમેરિકા
ઉંમર : 34

મારા સાતમાં જન્મદિવસ પછી તુરત જ હું મારી દાદીને મળવા ન્યૂયોર્ક ગઈ. મારી માંએ મને કહ્યું કે આ એક ખાસ મુલાકાત બની જશે અને મારી સાથે એક “મહત્વની પ્રક્રિયા” કરવાની હતી. મને કેહવામાં આવ્યું કે “દરેક દીકરી સાત વર્ષની થાય ત્યારે તેણી પર આ પ્રક્રિયા કરવાની હોય છે” જેમ, મારા પહેલા મારી મોટી બહેને કરાવી હતી તેમ. મારી માંએ કહ્યું કે હું જ્યારે મોટી થાવ ત્યારે મારા “સુખી લગ્ન જીવન” માટે આ પ્રક્રિયા કરવામાં આવે છે. સાત વર્ષની ઉંમરે આ સફાઈ મારા માટે સંતોષપૂર્ણ હતી. આ સફાઈને મેં સર્વસામાન્ય માની અને એવું માની લીધું કે બધા ધર્મો અને સંસ્કૃતિઓના બૈરાઓમાં આવી પ્રક્રિયા કરવાનો રીવાજ હશે. ત્યારે મને એ વાતનો ખ્યાલ નહોતો કે એ દિવસ ઘણી બધી રીતે મારી જીંદગીને બદલી નાખશે.

એ પ્રક્રિયાથી મને ઈજા થઈ. સ્વાભાવિક રીતે જ, આ પ્રક્રિયા અમારા સમાજની મેડિકલ ટ્રેનિંગ લીધા વિના ની એક વૃદ્ધ બૈરી દ્વારા બેસમેન્ટ ફ્લોર પર બેદરકારીપૂર્વક કરવામાં આવી હતી. પંરતુ, તે દિવસે મને એવો મેસેજ આપવામાં આવ્યો કે “આના કારણે તારૂં લગ્ન જીવન સુખી થશે” અને ત્યારબાદ મારા સંપૂર્ણ જીવન દરમિયાન મને એવા મેસેજો આપવામાં આવ્યા કે “બૈરી તેની ઉત્તેજનાને નિયંત્રણમાં રાખી શકે એટલા માટે આ પ્રક્રિયા કરવામાં આવે છે”, “તમે તામારા પતિ પ્રત્યે વફાદાર રહો તેની ખાતરી માટે આવી પ્રક્રિયા કરવામાં આવે છે”, “બૈરાઓએ તેમના પતિઓને ખુશ રાખવા જરૂરી છે”. ખરેખર, આવા મેસેજોએ સૌથી વધુ માનસિક ત્રાસ આપ્યો. આવા મેસેજો ને કારણે હું એવું જીવન જીવી જેમાં, હું મને મારા જીવનસાથી સામે નીચલા દરજ્જાની મહેસુસ કરતી હતી અને આવું જ મેં મારી કુદરતી ઉત્તેજનાઓ/લાગણીઓ પ્રત્યે પણ મહેસુસ કર્યું.

જેમ હું મોટી થઈ તેમ મને સમજાયું કે એ દિવસની મારાપર કેવી અસર પડી, હું અસ્વસ્થ અને ખૂબ જ ગુસ્સે થઈ ગઈ. મને જે પ્રક્રિયા કરવા માટે ફરજ પાડવામાં આવી એ બાબતને લઈ હું ખૂબ જ ગુસ્સા માં હતી અને સતત વિચાર કરતી કે જો એ દિવસ મારી જીંદગીમાં ક્યારેય ના આવ્યો હોત તો કેટલુ સારૂં હોત. બેશક, આ પ્રક્રિયા હેઠળથી પસાર થવું પડશે તેવી અન્ય નાનકડી દીકરીઓનો જ્યારે હું વિચાર કરું છું ત્યારે મારૂં મન ગુસ્સો, દુઃખ અને અસહાયતાની લાગણીથી ભરાઈ જાય છે. મેં આશા રાખી કે આપણા સમાજના લોકો, નિર્દોષ દીકરીઓને આ પ્રથાનો ભોગ બનતા અટકાવશે. મેં આશા રાખી કે લોકો જાગશે અને મહેસુસ કરશે કે તેઓ દીકરીના જીવનને સુખી નહિં પરંતુ વધારે દુખી બનાવી રહ્યાં છે. તેઓ મેહસુસ કરશે કે આ પ્રથા અપનાવી તેમણે કોઈ સારૂં કાર્ય કર્યું નથી.

થોડા દિવસો પહેલા, ડેટ્રોઈટની એક મહિલા ડૉક્ટરના સમાચાર આવ્યા, જેના પર ગેરકાયદેસર રીતે બે જુવાન દીકરીઓ પર એફ.જી.એમ. ની પ્રક્રિયા કરવાનો આરોપ લગાવવામાં આવ્યો છે. આ પ્રથાનો વિરોધ કરતા અન્ય લોકોની જેમ, મારી પણ પહેલી પ્રતિક્રિયા “ન્યાય મળ્યો” એવી હતી. અંતે આ પ્રથા માટે કોઈને તો જવાબદાર માનવામાં આવ્યા હતા. આ એક ગંભીર સમસ્યા છે, એ બાબતથી ફક્ત વિદેશોના જ નહિં પરંતુ કદાચ અહીં અમેરિકાના લોકો પણ માહિતગાર થશે. મેં એમ પણ વિચાર્યું કે જે લોકો એફ.સી.જી.ની પ્રક્રિયા કરાવવાનું વિચારી રહ્યાં છે તેવા લોકોમાં આ કેસને કારણે ડર પેદા થશે.

આ સમાચાર પરની લોકોની પ્રતિક્રિયા જોઈ મારૂં સમર્થન નિરાશામાં પરિવર્તિત થઈ ગયું. લોકો કઠોરતાપૂર્વક આ પ્રથા અને ઈસ્લામનો વિરોધ કરવા લાગ્યા, લોકોએ આ ડૉક્ટરને એક ક્રૂર નિર્દય સેક્સ્યૂઅલ પ્રિડેટર તરીકે બદનામ કરવા લાગ્યા. પરંતુ, મને તેણીમાં એવુ કંઈ દેખાયુ નહિં. મને તેણી, મારી માં, માસી અથવા દાદીમાં જેવી ફ્કત એક સામાન્ય બૈરી દેખાઈ. એક બૈરી, એક માંને, જે બાબત શ્રેષ્ઠ લાગી રહી હતી તે કરવાનો પ્રયત્ન કરી રહી હતી.

મારી માં મને નુક્શાન પહોંચાડવાના ખરાબ ઈરાદા સાથે મને આ પ્રક્રિયા કરાવવા માટે નહોતી લઈ ગઈ. જે રીતે આપણે આપણા બચ્ચાઓને રસી મુકાવવા, જરૂરી શસ્ત્રક્રિયા કરાવવા અથવા છોકરાની સુન્નત કરાવવા લઈ જઈએ છીએ, તેવા ઈરાદા સાથે તેણી મને આ પ્રક્રિયા કરાવવા લઈ ગઈ હતી. આપણા બચ્ચાઓપર કોઈપણ પીડાકરક પ્રક્રિયા કરવામાં આવે તેનું આપણને દુઃખ થાય છે પરંતુ, એ તેમના સારા માટે કરવામાં આવતુ હોવાનું માની આપણે આવુ કાર્ય કરીએ છીએ. આપણે આપણા તબીબી વ્યાવસાયિકોના માર્ગદર્શન પર વિશ્વાસ મુકીએ છીએ કારણ કે, તે ક્ષેત્રના નિષ્ણાત રૂપે તેમનું સન્માન અને વિશ્વાસ કરવામાં આવે છે. તેજ રીતે, બોહરા સમાજના લોકો – ખાસ કરી સાથે રહેતા એક સમાન આસ્થાવાળા લોકો – તેમના ધાર્મિક આગેવાનોના માર્ગદર્શન પર વિશ્વાસ મુકે છે. તેમની દુનિયામાં, આવા આગેવાનોને વિશ્વાસપાત્ર “નિષ્ણાતો” તરીકે સ્વીકારવામાં આવે છે, જે આપણા દરેક ઈન્સાન માટે શું શ્રેષ્ઠ છે તે જાણે છે. તેમના માટે, આવા આગેવાનો દ્વારા નક્કી કરવામાં આવેલા પવિત્ર નિયમો તબીબી સમુદાયો અથવા રાજકારણીઓ દ્વારા નિર્ધારીત ધોરણોથી ઉપર હોય છે.

તેથી હું જ્યારે આ મહિલા ડૉક્ટરને જોઉં છું ત્યારે મને તેણીમાં ખલનાયિકા નહિં પરંતુ એક વિક્ટિમ દેખાય છે. મારા પોતાના જેવી એક વિક્ટિમ, જેણે નાનપણમાં ગેરકાયદેસર રીતે આ પ્રક્રિયા કરાવી છે. એવી બૈરી જેનો ભૂતકાળમાં શારિરીક ગેર ઉપયોગ કરવામાં આવ્યો એટલું જ નહિં પરંતુ, સારા ઈરાદા સાથે પ્રક્રિયા કરવા માટે આજે પણ તેણીને માનસિક ત્રાસ આપવામાં આવી રહ્યો છે. તેણીએ કરેલા કાર્યમાટે હું તેણીને સંપૂર્ણપણે દોષમુક્ત નથી કરતી પરંતુ, જો દરેક ઈન્સાને તેમના કાર્યોની જવાબદારી લીધી હોત તો તેણીએ કદાચ આવું કાર્ય ના કર્યું હોત. હું ફક્ત તેણીનો પક્ષ રાખવાનો પ્રયત્ન કરી રહી છું, તેણીની દ્રષ્ટિથી જોઈએ તો એમ લાગે છે કે કદાચ તેણી પાસે અન્ય કોઈ ચોઈસ નહોતી.

તેથી, તેણીને ખલનાયિકા બનાવી અને દંડ આપી તમે બીજા થોડા ડૉક્ટરોને આવી પ્રક્રિયા ના કરવા માટે ડરાવી શકો. તેમના બચ્ચાઓ પર આવી પ્રક્રિયા ના કરાવવા માટે તમે અન્ય થોડી માંઓને રોકી શકો છો પંરતુ, તેણીને દંડ આપવાથી, દુરૂપયોગ કરતા લોકોને દંડ મળશે નહિં. જ્યાંસુધી આ મરદ આગેવાનો આવી પ્રથાનું સમર્થન કરતા રહેશે અને તેમના ધાર્મિક ઉપદેશનું મહત્વ જાળવી રાખશે ત્યાંસુધી સમર્થકો તેમના આદરણીય આગેવાનોના માર્ગદર્શનને અનુસરતા રહેશે. મને વધારે ડર એ બાબતનો છે કે આપણા સમાજ માંથી એફ.જી.સી.ના સમર્થનમાં આવતા સતત મેસેજની સાથે-સાથે આ જાહેર કેસ, આ પ્રથાને છૂપી રીતે વધારે અનુસરવા તરફ લઈ જશે. તેથી, ડૉક્ટરોના સ્વચ્છ ક્લિનીકોમાં કલાકો સુધી ગેરકાયદેસર પ્રક્રિયા કરવાના બદલે, મારી સાથે થયુ તેમ, આપણી દીકરીઓ પર ગંદા અને ઠંડા બેસમેન્ટ ફ્લોર પર આ પ્રક્રિયા કરવામાં આવશે.

In February 2017, Sahiyo released the findings of the first ever large scale global study on Female Genital Cutting in the Bohra community in order to gain insight into how and why this harmful practice continued. A year later, this February 2018 saw the release of a second large-scale research study entitled “The Clitoral Hood – A Contested Site”, conducted by Lakshmi Anantnarayan, Shabana Diler and Natasha Menon in collaboration with WeSpeakOut and Nari Samata Manch. The study explored the practice of FGM/C in the Bohra community specifically in India and added findings about the sexual impact of FGC on Bohra women. Substantial overlap between the two studies can be found and parallels can be drawn.

Firstly, both studies explored the type of FGM/C that was carried out on the participants. The study by Sahiyo discovered that out of the 109 participants who were aware of the procedure that was carried out on them, 23 reported having undergone Type 1a – the removal of the clitoral hood. Research carried out by Anantnarayan et. al. found that although proponents of FGM/C in India claim that Bohras only practice Type 1a and Type 4 FGM/C (pricking, piercing or cauterization of the clitoral hood), participants reported that both Types 1a and 1b (partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or clitoral hood) are most often practiced.

Sahiyo and Anantnarayan et. al. both found that the majority of participants had undergone FGM/C and therefore, among both samples, FGM/C was widely practiced. Sahiyo found that 80% of 385 female participants had undergone the practice, whereas Anantnarayan et. al. found that of the 83 female participants in the study, 75% reported that their daughters had undergone FGC. Both studies found that FGM/C was performed at around the age of seven.

The impact of FGM/C on participants was also reported to be similar among participants of both studies. In exploring this further, Anantnarayan et. al. found that 97% of participants remembered FGM/C as a painful experience. Participants who had undergone the practice reported painful urination, physical discomfort, difficulty walking, and bleeding to be the immediate effects after having undergone FGM/C. In the long-term, some women reported that they suffered from recurring Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) and incontinence, which they suspect could be linked to their khatna.

Both studies also explored the effect of FGM/C on participants’ sex lives. Anantnarayan et. al. found that approximately 33% of participants believe that FGM/C has negatively impacted their sex life. Similarly, Sahiyo reported findings of 35% of participants who believed that FGM/C has negatively impacted their sex lives. Some of the problems identified by several participants included low sex drive, the inability to feel sexual pleasure, difficulty trusting sexual partners, and over-sensitivity in the clitoral area.

Physical consequences of FGM/C in both studies also revealed psychological consequences. Similar to Sahiyo’s findings, Anantnarayan et. al. found that many participants reported feelings of fear, anxiety, shame, anger, depression, low self-esteem, and difficulty trusting people as some of the psychological repercussions of their FGM/C experience. Sahiyo found that 48% of participants in their study reported that FGM/C had left them with a lasting psychological impact.

Both Sahiyo and Anantnarayan et. al. also explored the main reasons for the the continuation of FGM/C within the Bohra community. Several common reasons were found, including the continuation of an old traditional practice, the adherence to religious edicts, and to control women’s promiscuity and sexual behaviour.

Interestingly, Sahiyo’s study found that 80% of women had earned at least a Bachelor’s degree, no relationship could be determined between education level and having undergone FGC. Meanwhile, the study by Anantnarayan et. al found that a strong connection existed between a mother’s education level and her decision to continue FGC on her daughter.

Sahiyo’s study, however, did note that more important than education level was the question of a person’s ideological preference (stated religion) as it might influence a person’s decision to continue FGC on their daughter. In fact, Sahiyo’s survey found that those who were most likely to continue ‘khatna’ were also more likely to still identify as Dawoodi Bohra in their adult life. Anantnarayan et. al also determined that the more diverse personal networks and economic independence from the Bohra religious community a woman had, the more likely they were to discontinue FGM/C and renounce it.

Finally, both studies examined the relationship between men and the decision/involvement for a girl to undergo FGC. Both studies did allude to the idea that the decision leading to a girl undergoing FGM/C may not strictly be confined to women. Sahiyo’s study revealed that 72% of respondents believed that men were aware of the practice, but only 27% believed that men were told of the practice when the girl underwent it in their family. Anantnarayan et. al. concluded that men played an integral role in the maintenance and propagation of the practice, both at the personal and political level, whether passively or more actively. However, Sahiyo’s data collection was completed in 2016, prior to the large-scale movement to end FGC in the Bohra community. The last few years have shown that with an increase in awareness of FGC amongst the public, Bohra men’s own knowledge of FGC has also naturally increased, and thus the traditional idea that men are unaware of FGC may in fact be changing with the current generation, as pointed out by Anantnarayan et. al.

By Hina Javed

(This is the third part in a series of essays by Hina Javed on her experience of reporting on FGC in Pakistan. Read the whole series here: Pakistan Journal.)

The time had come to pick up that phone. Little did I know that my conversation with an FGC survivor would be more harrowing for me than the talk which revealed its existence to me in Pakistan.  

I picked up the phone and made contact with my second survivor, 37-year-old Sophia. The woman narrated the time when she, just a girl of seven, was led into a dimly-lit room, full of strange odors and even stranger people. This was not the shopping trip the minor had in mind when she was told earlier in the day that her aunt was taking her out. As if the surroundings were not distressing enough, the girl was forced to lie down on the floor and soon a complete stranger was reaching between her legs.

The moment she was ‘cut’, she let out a loud scream and tears started rolling down her face. When it was over and done with, the matter was hushed up and never spoken of again.

Three decades on, a now grown woman remembers vividly the day her freedom of choice was taken away:

I still remember it distinctly. I feel slighted, even to this day, at how they held me down despite my attempts to push them [the strangers] away. But most of all, I feel angry at how they buried the matter under blankets of silence and pretended like it never happened.

The day I walked out of the dingy apartment, I thought I was punished for being ‘bad’. I was mortified to look even look at the cut. I wanted to lie down in my mother’s lap and forget everything; to assume, for a split second, that what existed between my legs wasn’t shameful.

When I grew up, I was finally able to connect the dots. The ‘cut’ was a symbol of my sexual submissiveness. Just like vaccinated animals, I was now wearing an imaginary ear tag signifying the death of the ‘parasite’ [or bug] driving my sexuality. From then on, I was to be categorised as a woman of ‘decent’ character.

The truth is, I was just another offering to a centuries old tradition. The decisions made about my body came from a group of elderly women who believed it was a necessary rite of passage. And the cherry on top was that I was made to kiss my hostess’s hands as a gesture of respect.

I didn’t speak about the incident for the longest time. I feared it would be considered rude and impolite. But there came a point when it became difficult to contain my angst and disappointment and I ended up asking my mother.

I now realize that it wasn’t her fault either. I wonder if my anger towards my mother was even justified. Without a shadow of doubt, she was under immense pressure from family elders. If she tried to get away with it, they would have found out and ostracised her from the community.

I am now a happily married woman with two beautiful children, but I feel a sense of deep remorse when I engage in sexual activity. I feel immoral, sinful and unclean. The trauma is so deep that the act itself becomes an unpleasant experience. It is difficult to be psychologically scarred and feel completely at ease.

Sadly enough, our generation still believes sex is a dirty, reproductive act. We are trained to associate sexuality with immorality. We grow up with warnings that if we express our desires, we are deviant and dirty.

We have spent our entire lives in the absence of this conversation, but we need to have it anyway. This avoidance has robbed several women of their identities.

I have tried to bring this up many times with little progress. I am already estranged from my family over disagreements. What is surprising is that these decisions are made by women. The misogyny is so deeply internalized that they are unable to look squarely at the sexist world around them.

Upon hearing Sophia’s story, I recognized the extent of psychological and physical damage the ‘cut’ had on her. She was in perpetual dilemma: on the one hand she wanted to speak up about her experience, but was also overcome with guilt and fear. It was evident that she was unable to shake off the impact of the incident to this day.

As she finished speaking, there was a momentary pause as I struggled to thank her for speaking up about her experience.

“I wish I could allow you to quote my name. There is a dire need to elevate this conversation in every country, especially Pakistan. However, there is immense pressure from my community due to which I want to remain anonymous,” she said.

“I understand,” I replied.

“I hope your story stirs a conversation and becomes a movement in this country. We need to put an end to this contested practice.”

(*Sophia is a pseudonym. The person’s original name has been changed to protect her identity.)

(Hina Javed is an investigative journalist based in Pakistan, driven by the ambition of tackling difficult, often untouched topics. Her focus is on stories related to human rights, health and gender.)

By: Shabana Feroze

Every year, Feb 6 is International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation by the United Nations. Being a survivor of FGC myself, I’m an active volunteer with Sahiyo, and as such, I shared a post about the day and about Sahiyo on my Facebook profile page. I got a few likes but after a few hours, one of my male cousins commented on the post with a link to femalecircumcision.org. The article on that website spoke about how FGC is necessary and a good thing.

When I saw that comment, I was naturally affronted. The first thought that ran through my head towards my male cousin was – no vagina, no opinion, sweetheart. It bothers me so much that MEN think they can make decisions on what needs to be done to women’s bodies. You are not a woman. You are not entitled to tell women what we can or cannot do with our bodies. I underwent FGC when I was seven. I’m the one who was traumatized. Not you. I’m the one who has to deal with the pain that part of my body is missing because of a traditional ritual, not you. How dare you tell me that what happened to me was necessary and a good thing and that it should continue happening.

I had a long argument with him through Facebook comments, telling him the thoughts I listed above. I even said that if he thinks the practice is good and necessary, then the girl should be able to grow up and decide to do it for herself. His response, “My Body, My Rights is a cheesy line”. His lack of acknowledging my personal experience in having undergone FGC said to me that he believed the larger society could do anything to my body or to any one else’s body. He then posted another link from the same website on consent and parental rights. The article claims

“Although regulated, a parent’s right to make decisions on behalf of a child is acknowledged as fundamental and universal, even for practices which can cause harm to the child and carry no medical benefit.”

Yes, the article acknowledged that FGC is harmful, but the article lessened the pain, and compared FGC to practices such as ear piercing and vaccinations. These procedures are legal and harmless. The article also claimed that Prophet Muhammad said FGC should be done, and gave a few spiritual and religious reasons like ‘taharah’ for doing so. His recurring point was that KHAFZ IS NOT FGM (written in caps).

Throughout the conversation of me refuting his points with science and hard fact and telling him that the World Health Organisation recognizes all forms of cutting of the female genitalia as FGM, I found that his counter points were always mired in spirituality and religion (this cousin of mine is a mulla or a sheik in the Bohra community).

I find the entire notion that ‘khafz is not FGC’ as preposterous. It’s the same thing, no matter what name you give it. Medical research has shown that FGC is harmful. FGC is opposed by the United Nations and the World Health Organization. So please don’t tell me that FGC is a good thing. Further what really, truly angers me is that my cousin, this MAN is fighting me on and issue that affects the woman’s body, my body! My cousin’s attitude reminded me of his male privilege, and his inability to understand that he has no ability to control my body or to think he knows what is best for me as a woman. And this reality scares and saddens me the most because my cousin is also the father of two girls, who if they undergo FGC, will forever be reminded that they too, just like me, had no control over our own bodies.

By Alifya Sulemanji

Sahiyo organized a retreat for FGM survivors and activists in January 2018. I attended the retreat because I am a survivor and I was interested in learning about different views, challenges and perspectives of other survivors and activists who were planning to attend as well.

The retreat was very beneficial in many ways. I was able to meet other survivors and listen to their experiences and learn how they can contribute towards putting an end to this atrocity. It was good to meet people who I could relate to regarding the many aspects of life for a Bohra who is against FGM/C (Khatna), but who still bears a Bohra identity.

I have a very vivid memory of being cut at the tender age of seven. It felt like my body was being violated. Even when I was just 7 years of age, I knew something wrong had been done to me as I was told that this thing was a dark secret I was not supposed to tell anyone about. As I grew up I found out that none of my other friends had this religious ritual done, and it confirmed that what had been done to me was wrong. In the past few years, I learned that many other women like me felt the same way. I was encouraged to speak about it through the medium of Sahiyo and WeSpeakOut, groups who are working to end this cruel practice done in the name of religion.

This Sahiyo Activist Retreat gave me insight into how I can talk to other pro-FGM/C people and how I can convey my thoughts on FGM/C to them in a positive way. I also learned that in conversations with them, it is important to try not to make stereotypical judgments about people, based on my own past experiences.

The contributions I have made towards creating awareness about the harm of FGM/C (Khatna) have been through storytelling, which at the Activist Retreat we discussed was a powerful method for creating social change. Already, I have written about my own experience of FGC (Khatna) for Sahiyo. I have given interviews to the Detroit Press during the arrest of Jumana Nagarwala, the doctor in the U.S. who in April 2017 was first charged with performing FGM/C on minor girls. The interviews I have given reflected on the reactions of, and repercussions for the Bohra community after her arrest. I also participated in a research study by Laxmi Anantnarayan. Another research study on FGC and survivors’ experiences that I participated in was conducted by a student in India from Manipal college. I also told my story to an Author/writer Firos in India who is writing a book on this subject.

I also worked with Owanto, a famous artist, and her daughter Katya Berger, a journalist and graduate from Columbia University who are creating a documentary ‘Thousand Voices’ to depict the effects of FGM/C by sharing the voices of girls who were affected by it. Lastly, I work with the New York Coalition to End FGM and meet with them every 2 to 3 months to work on creating awareness on FGC and to take measures to stop FGM/C and aid survivors.

To learn more about the U.S. Bohra Activist Retreat, read the report!