Type:	Journal Article
Title:	Local rites and body politics : tensions between cultural diversity and human rights
Other Titles:	International feminist journal of politics
Authors:	Manderson, Lenore
Keywords:	Representations of women;Refugee communities;Human rights;Cross-cultural
Year:	2004
Publisher:	Routledge
Citation:	6 (2), June 2004
Notes:	General overview: This Australian article discusses the issue of violence against women in the context of female genital mutilation (FGM). Objective: It explores how popular representation and activism against FGM are confounded by sex and race, and how prohibition against this practice is understood by immigrant women in Australia. Methods: Findings from research conducted with 150 women immigrants from North Africa (the Sahel areas such as Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia) and the Middle East (mostly Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Syria) are looked at, and supplemented by focus groups with a further 105 women. Discussion: These women are frustrated by what they see as contradictions in hospital policy and cultural practice. They perceive contradictions with other permissible practices of the body, such as hymen reconstruction, and the commodification of bodies through genital surgery for cosmetic and cultural purposes, with other adult women having autonomy over their own bodies, and related issues of age and agency, the individual and the community. African women find the discourse on rights as discriminatory, racist and informed by sensationalised portrayals of traditional practices. Conclusions: It argues the literature and discourse on human rights, universalism, cultural relativism and women’s rights deserve to be critically analysed. It also suggests that the importance of allowing community women themselves to take the roles of education and advocacy.
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/15661
ISSN:	14616742
Appears in Collections:	Journal Articles

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