Support for female circumcision declining in Egypt
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The current government in Egypt banned female circumcision in the 1990s and strengthened the restriction in 2007 after a high-profile case where a 12-year-old girl died after the ritual.
However, female circumcision is still widespread, says Ann Way, a researcher with the organization Measure DHS, which has been collecting information on the practice since 1995.
Measure DHS helps countries calculate vital statistics by doing large surveys, often repeated over the course of years. Way and her colleagues asked women about female circumcision again in 2000, and most recently, last year. She says they are starting to see a reduction in the number of young women who have been circumcised.
The government ban, along with the well-publicized deaths, led some people – most importantly women and religious leaders – to start questioning the practice.
Interestingly, fewer wealthy girls and women currently have the practice performed on them. Only about a third of girls in the wealthiest 20 percent of Egypt’s population will be circumcised by the time they’re 18. In contrast, in the poorest 20 percent, about three-quarters of the girls will end up circumcised.
Way says attitudes and practices change slowly. She says even if fewer girls are circumcised, it will take time for the total number of adult women who have been circumcised to drop.
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