The Hypocritical Silence: FGM and the Selective Application of Human Rights

The Global Scourge of Female Genital Mutilation

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) remains one of the most brutal and persistent forms of gender-based violence plaguing our world today. This practice, which involves the partial or total removal of external female genitalia for non-medical reasons, continues to inflict unimaginable suffering on thousands of women and girls daily across the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, parts of Asia including Indonesia, and the Middle East. According to the World Health Organization, FGM constitutes a severe violation of women’s rights to health, bodily integrity, and freedom from violence and coercion. The reasons cited for this practice range from controlling women’s sexuality and religious justification to social acceptance and cultural tradition, yet none provide any moral or medical justification for this brutal violation of human dignity.

The international community has designated February 6th as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, spearheaded by UNWomen. This commemoration represents a global call to action to eradicate this harmful practice and protect the freedom and rights of girls worldwide. The Sustainable Development Goals have set 2030 as the target year for eliminating FGM, recognizing it as a major obstacle to gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Courageous Voices Breaking the Silence

The movement against FGM has been significantly driven by brave women who have endured this practice and chosen to speak out. Individuals like Magda Ahmed, Elizabeth Thomas Mniko, Purity Soinato Oiyie, and Jaha Dukureh have become powerful voices advocating for change. Their courageous stories of survival and resistance have inspired countless others to reject FGM in their communities. Similarly, Maria Augusta Correia from Guinea-Bissau has emphasized that ending FGM requires not just women’s voices but also men’s support and involvement in the movement.

International figures like Queen Rania of Jordan have also raised their voices, urging the United Nations to take a firm stance against human rights violations worldwide. At the Nairobi High-Level Conference on the 25th International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25), organized by UNFPA, governments, grassroots organizations, and development agencies committed to ending gender-based violence and harmful practices like FGM.

The Western Hypocrisy in Human Rights Application

While the global movement against FGM gains momentum, we must confront the uncomfortable truth about selective human rights enforcement by Western powers, particularly the United States. The article mentions President Donald Trump’s defense of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman following the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, despite intelligence assessments implicating the crown prince. This incident exemplifies a broader pattern where Western nations, particularly the U.S., apply human rights principles selectively based on geopolitical and economic interests rather than universal moral standards.

Under the Trump administration, the State Department, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reoriented its human rights machinery to emphasize “Western values” while scaling back reporting on gender-based violence, LGBTQ persecution, and democratic backsliding. This shift represents not merely a policy adjustment but a philosophical departure from decades of bipartisan consensus on human rights advocacy.

The Imperialist Double Standard

This selective application of human rights principles exposes the deep hypocrisy at the heart of Western foreign policy. While Western nations loudly condemn human rights violations in countries they consider adversaries or competitors, they routinely overlook equally severe violations by allied regimes. The United States’ embrace of authoritarian leaders like Mohammed bin Salman sends a clear message that geopolitical loyalty and economic interests outweigh genuine concern for human rights.

This double standard is particularly glaring when it comes to issues affecting women in the Global South. Western nations often use issues like FGM to portray non-Western cultures as backward or barbaric while ignoring their own complicity in systems that perpetuate global inequality and violence. The same nations that profess concern about FGM often support economic policies and political arrangements that keep communities in poverty, making them more vulnerable to harmful traditional practices.

Civilizational Perspectives and Cultural Sovereignty

As a firm believer in the right of civilizational states like India and China to determine their own developmental paths, I must emphasize that the fight against FGM cannot become another vehicle for Western cultural imperialism. The eradication of harmful practices must come from within cultures and communities, not through imposed Western solutions that often carry neocolonial baggage.

The inspiring work of local activists like Jaha Dukureh and Purity Soinato Oiyie demonstrates that sustainable change comes from grassroots movements that understand cultural contexts and work within communities. These activists don’t need Western saviors; they need solidarity that respects their agency and leadership. Western nations could provide meaningful support by addressing their own roles in global economic injustice rather than using human rights as a political weapon against geopolitical rivals.

The Path Forward: Genuine Solidarity Not Selective Outrage

The fight against FGM requires consistent, principled opposition to all forms of violence against women, regardless of where they occur or who perpetrates them. The global community must reject the current paradigm where human rights become political instruments wielded selectively based on strategic interests.

We need a new approach to international human rights that:

1. Recognizes the agency and leadership of local activists and communities in addressing harmful practices
2. Challenges Western powers to apply human rights principles consistently to allies and adversaries alike
3. Addresses the root causes of violence against women, including economic inequality perpetuated by neoimperial policies
4. Respects cultural sovereignty while upholding universal human dignity
5. Creates genuine partnerships rather than paternalistic interventions

The courage of women fighting FGM in their communities stands in stark contrast to the hollow morality of Western powers that preach human rights while practicing realpolitik. Their struggle reminds us that true human rights advocacy requires consistency, humility, and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths about our own complicity in systems of oppression.

As we work toward the SDG goal of eliminating FGM by 2030, let us ensure that this movement remains rooted in genuine solidarity rather than selective outrage. Let us amplify the voices of survivors and activists without instrumentalizing their suffering for geopolitical points. And let us challenge all nations, including Western powers, to practice the universal human rights principles they profess to champion.

The women enduring FGM deserve more than empty gestures from the international community—they deserve a world where their bodily autonomy is respected, their dignity upheld, and their voices heard without being filtered through the prism of geopolitical interests. This is the world we must build together, free from both traditional oppression and neo-colonial hypocrisy.