U.S. Court’s dismissal of FGM/C charge in Michigan case is disappointing, but does not condone genital cutting
By Mariya TaherCo-founder, Sahiyo I was sitting in my office, reading a blog post submitted to Sahiyo by a woman doing research on Female Genital Cutting in India, when I received a phone call. I answered it, not thinking twice, not knowing that what I was to hear next would leave me dumbstruck. The call […]
બધા નુક્શાનો શારીરિક નથી હોતા અને દરેક ધર્મ સંપૂર્ણ રીતે નૈતિક નથી હોતો
(This essay was originally published in English on September 21, 2018. Read the English version here.) લેખક : ઝીનોબીયા ઉંમર : 27 વર્ષ દેશ : ભારત આજે સોશિયલ મીડિયા પર અન્ય બાબતોની સાથે-સાથે મહિલાઓને સશક્ત કરવા, પોતાનો નિર્ણય પોતે જ લેવા, વ્યક્તિની ગોપનીયતાના અને તેના શરીરના ઉલ્લંઘન વિષે અને સંમતિની ભૂમિકા વિષેના વિચારો અને અભિપ્રાયો […]
Thaal Pe Charcha Launches in California
On Oct 21st in Berkeley, CA, a team of Sahiyo activists organized the first California Bay Area Thaal Pe Charcha (TPC). This Sahiyo flagship program allows Bohra women to come together in a private, informal setting so that they can bond over food and discuss issues that affect their lives, like Female Genital Cutting or […]
Aarefa Johari and Masooma Ranalvi discuss FGC at We the Women Bangalore
On October 7, Sahiyo co-founder Aarefa Johari and We Speak Out founder Masooma Ranalvi participated in a panel discussion on Female Genital Cutting in India, at the We the Women summit organised by veteran journalist Barkha Dutt in Bangalore. Prominent human rights activist Srilatha Batliwala moderated the discussion. The event was attended by more than […]
Sign the #EndFGM petition on change.org
A new change.org petition calling for an end to Female Genital Cutting in the Bohra community was started in September by Ranjana Sehgal and Umi Saran. The petition is addressed to Dr. Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, the spiritual leader of the Bohra community, and was started in response to the Syedna’s visit to Indore to give sermons during […]
Is the Dawoodi Bohra community truly as progressive as it claims to be?
By Saleha Country of Residence: CanadaAge: 45 Having lived in South-East Asia, and being exposed to multiple races and cultures, I grew up in a very open-minded family. As a child, my family and I occasionally went to the local Bohra mosque to socialize with others in the community. I loved going to the “masjid” […]
Introducing Sahiyo’s inaugural U.S. Advisory Board
Sahiyo is pleased to introduce our inaugural U.S. Advisory Board. As our U.S. operations and programs have grown, the advisory board will provide strategic advice to the management of our organization, and ensure that we continue fulfilling our mission to empower communities to end Female Genital Cutting and create positive social change through dialogue, education, and […]
Moving Beyond Cultural Relativism to a Call for Action to End Female Genital Cutting
By Brionna Wiggins Earlier this year I had no idea about female genital cutting (FGC). None whatsoever. I mean, events happen all the time around the world and I’m not aware of the dozens of happenings that occur day-to-day. But for FGC to go on without so much as a whisper of this harmful practice, […]
Trauma and Female Genital Cutting, Part 6: Effects of FGM/C on the Lower Urinary Tract System
(This article is Part 6 of a six-part series on trauma related to Female Genital Cutting. To read the complete series, click here. These articles should NOT be used in lieu of seeking professional mental health and counseling services when needed.) By Julia Geynisman-Tan, MD Background FGM/C has no known health benefits, but does have […]
To ban or medicalise? Sri Lanka grapples with debates on Female Genital Cutting
(Please note that a version of this article appears on LankaWeb.com. It has been republished here with permission from the author.) By Fatima Yasmin Country: Sri Lanka Muslim religious organisations in Sri Lanka have called on the government to medicalise female circumcision to ensure the procedure is done under hygienic conditions. In their submission […]