The Silent Harm of FGM : Not a Women's Issue but a Human Rights Concern

Sammanfattning

This thesis explores how humanitarian and civil society actors understand and respond to the persistence of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Puntland and Somaliland. Despite national and international efforts ongoing for decades to eliminate the practice, FGM stays widely accepted and performed in Somalia/Somaliland including the two focus regions. The study seeks to understand the perception of humanitarian and civil society actors on the key social norms and institutional factors sustaining FGM, what challenges it presents and what strategies are applied to address it. The research study is grounded in a qualitative methodology; semi-structured interviews were conducted with five professionals working in the humanitarian and civil society organisations. A thematic analysis was applied to identify reoccurring themes and patters across the collected data. The findings and discussions were informed by the theoretical framework of Social Convention Theory, it incorporated secondary data and three conceptual lenses: the role of religion in FGM, gender and power dynamics and cross-cultural approaches. The findings presented five central themes: religious misinterpretation and division; intergenerational norms and social pressure; legal gaps and weak enforcement; the need for holistic and community led approaches; challenges within humanitarian response. The findings indicated that the lack of legal accountability, local interpretations of religion (Islam) and fragmented program strategies to hinder abandonment efforts. Additionally, secondary data indicated similar challenges and gaps on the national level. However, the study’s findings empathised that community led interventions that involve influential leaders such as local religious leaders, empowerment of local networks and linking FGM efforts in broader humanitarian and development programs are seen as more effective and sustainable. This thesis contributes to the study of FGM practice within the Somali context by providing a narrowed and comparative lens focusing on the regional level. This presents efforts implemented by humanitarian and civil society actors on regional level and underscores the importance of understanding the influence of gendered norms and religious legitimacy in FGM practice. The study concludes by recommending the need for engagement with religious leaders, need for consistent policy and enforcement mechanisms. Lastly, the study suggests focus of future research on updated national data on FGM prevalence.