She Chooses Change: Ending FGM from Within

The classroom of Kenyan teacher Veline Momanyi is still empty. It is a Friday morning in January, and we have agreed to meet for a remote interview. We talk about what Veline devotes a large portion of her free time to: activism against female genital mutilation (FGM).

Veline, 30, calls herself a changemaker. She knows that FGM is harmful—unfortunately, also through her own experience.

In 2019, Veline’s friends had launched an anti-FGM campaign, a so-called youth caravan that traveled from village to village explaining the harms of the practice. They invited Veline to join, as she had already been active with the youth in her church and had spoken there about the dangers of FGM. Today, Veline travels with another locally led organization to different communities. She meets children in schools, young adults in churches, and older women in their communities.

At the beginning of the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, Veline and her friends visited one village. The residents made a promise that no girl’s genitals would be cut anymore. A year ago, Veline visited the village again and was assured that the promise had been kept. However, achieving this goal has not been simple.

“We have national challenges”

Attitudes toward FGM vary across age groups. According to Veline, people are generally receptive, but it is easier to work with young people than with older generations. “Older people are somewhat ambivalent about FGM,” Veline explains. She hopes that they, too, will come to understand that there is no benefit to the practice. Some still believe that continuing the tradition is good for the girl who undergoes it. At the same time, there are also some young people who think FGM is a good thing.

The secrecy surrounding FGM creates difficulties. The practice is illegal in Kenya, and people are well aware of this. “Communities have received a lot of education about FGM and understand the legal consequences of practicing it. If a girl says that her genitals have been cut, her parents could end up in prison,” Veline notes.

Addressing root causes and related issues

According to Veline Momanyi, FGM is closely linked to child marriage. She says that it is impossible to talk about anti-FGM work without also discussing child marriage and sexual and reproductive health. “These issues are closely intertwined. Sometimes a girl may be taken for the procedure so that she will be considered marriageable.” The myth that girls who have not undergone FGM are “promiscuous” persists stubbornly, and those who continue the tradition believe they are doing the girl a favor.

In Veline’s hometown, people have questioned where the desire for change comes from. She says she has been asked whether opposing FGM is about “European influence.” She has encountered people who completely question whether FGM is problematic, and even among women who have undergone the procedure, there are some who do not see it as a problem or feel that it has harmed them.

The phenomenon of FGM is complex, and the operating environment for those who oppose it is particularly challenging: it is a deeply rooted tradition that may be defended in communities as normal or even necessary. This became evident in a discussion Veline had with an educated woman who said she herself had undergone FGM and was doing just fine. “I don’t know why it’s a problem for you,” the woman said. On an individual level, FGM may be experienced as acceptable and an important part of culture, even though it is a serious human rights violation whose harms extend beyond individual experiences.

Change must be taken into one’s own hands

Veline Momanyi hopes that people in communities will take ownership of change—that is, of abandoning FGM. “When I say that people should own the change, I mean that they should not stop practising FGM just because there is a law banning it or activists opposing it, but because they understand that there is no benefit from genital cutting for girls.” She notes that these harmful acts have continued in communities for far too long.

International Solidarity Foundation works best when we remember that changing attitudes succeeds most effectively when it is locally driven. Local opinion leaders are best positioned to do the work—they know their own culture best and are listened to.

Activism makes a difference

Veline’s activism has spared countless girls from pain, fear, and complications. The activism of local anti-FGM advocates opens up discussion and challenges the continuation of a harmful tradition.

As a concrete example of the results of activism, Veline mentions its positive impact on girls’ education. “When you can prevent FGM, a girl can continue her educational path. Education strengthens girls’ voices so that later she can speak to other girls. In this way, she can help future generations—one girl helps the next.”

We also know that a girl who herself has been spared FGM is likely to spare her own daughters from the procedure. The impact of activism multiplies, and more and more girls’ voices are heard.

Veline continues her morning by teaching a history lesson to her students. She says she hopes that communities will take action and that, in the future, female genital mutilation will be found only in history books. “That communities would recognize the tradition as harmful and move forward with actions that benefit their communities.”