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→Not all Muslims practice FGM
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'modern revisionist perspectives say this, and critics respond' -->{{anchor|equivocation}} | 'modern revisionist perspectives say this, and critics respond' -->{{anchor|equivocation}} | ||
====FGM is not required by Islam==== | ====FGM is not required by Islam==== | ||
Probably the most cited instance of this argument is a fatwa issued by Dr Ahmed Talib, the former Dean of the Faculty of Sharia at Al-Azhar University, the most prestigious university for Sunni Islamic learning.{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/6142789/Egypts_Villages_Fight_Female_Genital_Mutilation_WFS_NEWS Dr Ahmed Talib, Dean of the Faculty of Sharia at Al-Azhar University]|“All practices of female circumcision and mutilation are crimes and have no relationship with Islam. Whether it involves the removal of the skin or the cutting of the flesh of the female genital organs… it is not an obligation in Islam.”}}In this fatwa Dr Talib so emphatically condemns FGM that the implication of his final phrase could pass unnoticed. If one assumes Dr Talib to have weighed his words and meant what his words mean, then FGM’s legitimacy stops short of ‘obligatory’. ''<nowiki/>'Not an obligation'<nowiki/>'' includes everything from '<nowiki/>''forbidden''<nowiki/>' to '<nowiki/>''highly recommended'<nowiki/>'', and the fact something is '<nowiki/>''not obligatory''’ in no way implies that it is forbidden or even undesirable. Examples of acts that are '''not obligatory''<nowiki/>' include owning a dog, giving to charity, child sexual abuse and murder. For Dr Talib to conclude that ''‘FGM is not obligatory under Islam’'' suggests that he was unable to state that ''‘FGM is forbidden under Islam’''. And 'not obligatory', 'allowed' or 'tolerated' are no more acceptable legal or ethical positions for a practice such as FGM than they would be for murder, child sexual abuse or rape. | Probably the most cited instance of this argument is a fatwa issued by Dr Ahmed Talib, the former Dean of the Faculty of Sharia at Al-Azhar University, the most prestigious university for Sunni Islamic learning.{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/6142789/Egypts_Villages_Fight_Female_Genital_Mutilation_WFS_NEWS Dr Ahmed Talib, Dean of the Faculty of Sharia at Al-Azhar University]|“All practices of female circumcision and mutilation are crimes and have no relationship with Islam. Whether it involves the removal of the skin or the cutting of the flesh of the female genital organs… it is not an obligation in Islam.”}}In this fatwa Dr Talib so emphatically condemns FGM that the implication of his final phrase could pass unnoticed. If one assumes Dr Talib to have weighed his words and meant what his words mean, then FGM’s legitimacy stops short of ‘obligatory’. ''<nowiki/>'Not an obligation'<nowiki/>'' includes everything from '<nowiki/>''forbidden''<nowiki/>' to '<nowiki/>''highly recommended'<nowiki/>'', and the fact something is '<nowiki/>''not obligatory''’ in no way implies that it is forbidden or even undesirable. Examples of acts that are '''not obligatory''<nowiki/>' include owning a dog, giving to charity, child sexual abuse and murder. For Dr Talib to conclude that ''‘FGM is not obligatory under Islam’'' suggests that he was unable to state that ''‘FGM is forbidden under Islam’''. And 'not obligatory', 'allowed' or 'tolerated' are no more acceptable legal or ethical positions for a practice such as FGM than they would be for murder, child sexual abuse or rape. | ||
<nowiki/>''<nowiki/>''<nowiki/>''<nowiki/><nowiki/><nowiki/>'' | <nowiki/>''<nowiki/>''<nowiki/>''<nowiki/><nowiki/><nowiki/>'' | ||
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#most of Africa does not practice FGM, | #most of Africa does not practice FGM, | ||
#about 40% of FGM happens outside of Africa, in South Asia in particular.<ref name=":2" /> | #about 40% of FGM happens outside of Africa, in South Asia in particular.<ref name=":2" /> | ||
#It appears to have been the Islam's plundering of Africa for sex slaves that spread FGM to its current extent (which closely coincides with that of Islam). | #It appears to have been the Islam's plundering of Africa for sex slaves that spread FGM to its current extent (which closely coincides with that of Islam). | ||
It is also well documented that FGM was brought to Indonesia by Muslim traders and conquerors in the 13<sup>th</sup> Century. Indonesia is of the Shaafi school (the madhab that makes FGM obligatory) and has +90% rates of FGM amongst its Muslims. This suggests that FGM is not so much an African practice as an Islamic one. {{Quote|William G. Clarence-Smith (Professor of the Economic History of Asia and Africa at SOAS, University of London) in ‘Self-Determination and Women’s Rights in Muslim Societies’ Ed. Chitra Raghavan and James P. Levine|'The Southeast Asian case undermines a widespread notion that female circumcision is a pre-Islamic custom that has merely been tolerated by the newer faith. In contrast to other regions, female circumcision seems to have been introduced into Southeast Asia as part of the inhabitants’ conversion to Islam from the thirteenth century on. Indeed, for Tomás Ortiz, writing about the southern Philippines in the early eighteenth century, female circumcision was not only a Muslim innovation, but also one that had spread to some degree to non-Muslims.'}} | It is also well documented that FGM was brought to Indonesia by Muslim traders and conquerors in the 13<sup>th</sup> Century. Indonesia is of the Shaafi school (the madhab that makes FGM obligatory) and has +90% rates of FGM amongst its Muslims. This suggests that FGM is not so much an African practice as an Islamic one. {{Quote|William G. Clarence-Smith (Professor of the Economic History of Asia and Africa at SOAS, University of London) in ‘Self-Determination and Women’s Rights in Muslim Societies’ Ed. Chitra Raghavan and James P. Levine|'The Southeast Asian case undermines a widespread notion that female circumcision is a pre-Islamic custom that has merely been tolerated by the newer faith. In contrast to other regions, female circumcision seems to have been introduced into Southeast Asia as part of the inhabitants’ conversion to Islam from the thirteenth century on. Indeed, for Tomás Ortiz, writing about the southern Philippines in the early eighteenth century, female circumcision was not only a Muslim innovation, but also one that had spread to some degree to non-Muslims.'}} | ||
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''This argument assumes that only those practices which all Muslims engage in can be Islamic''. | ''This argument assumes that only those practices which all Muslims engage in can be Islamic''. | ||
This is, in turn, based on an underlying assumptions that religions are defined only by that which they make universally obligatory. But religions are also defined by (and responsible for) what they recommend, encourage, allow, and discourage and forbid; and also the ''consequences'' of what they recommend, allow, discourage and forbid - whether those consequences are intended or unintended. | This is, in turn, based on an underlying assumptions that religions are defined only by that which they make universally obligatory. But religions are also defined by (and responsible for) what they recommend, encourage, allow, and discourage and forbid; and also the ''consequences'' of what they recommend, allow, discourage and forbid - whether those consequences are intended or unintended. For example, | ||
. But religions are also defined by what they encourage and discourage, by what they allow and tolerate. For example, no one would question that the Eucharist (Holy Communion) is Christian, but it is recommended, not obligatory. | |||
The fact that FGM is not universally obligatory under Islam does not mean that Islam is not responsible for any FGM it has brought about - or failed to prevent. | The fact that FGM is not universally obligatory under Islam does not mean that Islam is not responsible for any FGM it has brought about - or failed to prevent. | ||
Not all Islamic practices are obligatory: whilst a Muslim must complete 5 prayers a day, there are optional (nawafil) prayers which confer additional rewards. Fasting outside of the month of Ramadhan, or giving sadaqah (voluntary charity) are also optional. The Shafi'i school makes FGM obligatory, the Maliki school recommends it, and the Hanafi school allows it. The schools' different levels of obligation are reflected in the incidence of FGM. And where it is merely 'allowed' or 'tolerated' are we surprised that parents abstain from an act that goes against parents deepest instincts? | |||
We're not talking about an ethically neutral act, such as the Eucharist - swallowing a wafer - or Baptism - sprinkling water on a baby's head - we're talking about a serious crime, an act of mutilation and torture carried out on a child, a grave violation of the child's human rights. | We're not talking about an ethically neutral act, such as the Eucharist - swallowing a wafer - or Baptism - sprinkling water on a baby's head - we're talking about a serious crime, an act of mutilation and torture carried out on a child, a grave violation of the child's human rights. | ||