FGM a human right violation - WHO

In a message to mark the recent World Day against Female Genital Mutilation, the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Africa office said the practice exposed women to irreversible health risks, including HIV/AIDS. Female genital mutilation (FGM), or female circumcision or excision, is a deeply rooted cultural tradition intended to preserve a woman's chastity, and is usually performed with no anaesthesia. The WHO called on African countries to recognise FGM as a violation of women's rights, saying that over 100 million women in the continent were victims of the practice. In an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP), Malick Samba, the head of the Brazzaville-based WHO regional office, said: "Female genital mutilation has serious and often irreversible consequences on the health and survival of girls and women. These can include haemorrhage, difficulties urinating and giving birth, as well as infections like HIV/AIDS."