According to Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) 2014 religion has been alluded to as one of the main reasons for FGM/C among the Muslim communities. The majority of Somali women (82 percent) and men (83 percent) believe FGM/C is a religious requirement. The national prevalence of FGM/C among the Somali community which is predominantly Muslim stands at 94% the highest in Kenya against a national prevalence of 21%. The figures from the UNICEF report 2016 paint a similar picture across the world with Muslim-predominant countries leading in terms of FGM/C prevalence.
Deputy chief Kadhi of Kenya Rashid Ali Omar third left is joined for a photo by members of Dayaa Women Group after the press conference where they declared FGM is not a religious requirement
Photo credit Fardosa Hussein
Nairobi 7th May 2018 ‘Cease fire’ from unlikely quarters has been declared by the intervention of a little-known FGM/C (survivors-led) Dayaa Women group from one of the remotest Counties (Tana River) in Kenya. How they single-handedly managed to convince Deputy Chief Kadhi of Kenya and other Muslim scholars to issue a press statement delinking FGM/C from Islam is a story to be told another day. 
Tony Mwebia Far left and Diana Kendi far right with Dayaa group Members
Photo credit Fardosa Hussein
The wind is now blowing from Kenya it’s time for the owners of the ships and boats to join the owners of dhows and build on this momentum. This should mark the beginning of a new wave of campaigns targeting religious leaders from all folks of life. The message should resonate in every corner of Kenya and overflow to the rest of the world that FGM/C is a harmful cultural practice that violates the rights of girls and women and has no place in the 21st century.
#FGMNotMyReligion Is a rallying call to face the controversy shrouding FGM and religion head-on and spread the end FGM message to every Church, Shrine, Mosque, and Synagogue. Join the conversation online and share your views, comments, and work engaging religious leaders in the fight against FGM.
Ships – International NGOs and UN Bodies
Boats – National NGOs and Government Agencies
Dhows – CBOs and other community led organizations (Dayaa Women Group)
FGM is composed of FGM Type I, II, III, IV; see: WHO, Classification of female genital mutilation. So there’s no such thing as ‘mild’ FGM; even the least invasive form of FGM should never be allowed.
Khatna / Khitan al-inath (FGM) is religion (Sharia and Fiqh; Islam). For the Shafii madhhab of Sunni Islam and also for the Shia Bohra (see criminal case against Dr Jumana Nagarwala, Michigan, US) FGM is wajib (obligatory, a religious duty).
Sheikh Rashid Ali Omar and the other Kenyan Muslim leaders should clearly oppose any form of FGM, including the girl’s Sunna circumcision (khatna, or: khitan al-inath) or the so-called mild Sunna (FGM Type Ia or FGM Type IV).
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