La mutilación genital femenina desde la perspectiva de supervivientes subsaharianas residentes en España

Abstract

Introduction Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a violent, painful and traumatic custom that violates the physical integrity of women and girls. Moreover, it has no health benefits and is highly harmful. From a socio-critical paradigm, it could be useful to study the phenomenon of FGM in-depth and holistically, taking into account survivors' perceptions of the persistence of the practice, their experiences of the consequences, and the importance of genital reconstruction Aim The overall objective of this study was to explore, describe and understand the experiences and perceptions of sub-Saharan women living in Spain in relation to female genital mutilation. Method Design: Qualitative research within the socio-critical paradigm. Two phenomenological studies and a descriptive qualitative study were designed within the framework of a research project and a knowledge transfer project funded by competitive tendering processes. Participants and setting: A total of 13 sub-Saharan women, who have undergone female genital mutilation and are currently living in Spain, participated in the study. The study was carried out in two provinces in southeastern Spain, where many jobs in the agricultural and service industries are carried out by African immigrants from ethnic groups where FGM is still prevalent. Data collection: Individual in-depth interviews were conducted following a pre-rehearsed script. The interviews were recorded in an audio file. Data analysis: First, the interviews were transcribed into a text file. Then, the transcripts were read twice. They were subsequently entered into an ATLAS.ti software project for line-by-line analysis and coding with the aim of developing the main themes, themes and sub-themes. Ethical considerations: The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (EFM-03/20). The research was conducted in compliance with the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Results Three main themes were extracted from the analysis. Each one corresponds to a specific objective and is presented in a separate article: Main theme of study 1. Persistence of Female Genital Mutilation, whit the themes: (1) “A family ritual symbolic of purification” (Subthemes ‘The Symbolic Character of Female Genital Mutilation’ and ‘Female Genital Mutilation as a Family Matter’). (2) “A system of false beliefs and deception in favour of FGM” (Subthemes ‘A Social and Cultural Substrate That Pushes Girls to Female Genital Mutilation’ and ‘Tricking Girls into Female Genital Mutilation’). Main theme of study 2. Lived experiences of women subvivors of female genital mutilation, whit the themes: (1) “The traumatic experience of female circumcision” with the subthemes ‘Female mutilation is a physical and psychological torture procedure’ and ‘recognising and coping with negative emotions’. (2) “The fight for the eradication of female genital mutilation” which contains the subthemes ‘the need for a real sociocultural change at the origin’ and ‘“I want to be the last”: Personal development leads to sociocultural change’. Main theme of study 3. Living the consequences of female genital mutilation, whit the themes: (1) “The impact of FGM: Hijacked sexual health”, with subthemes ‘Mutilation that transcends the physical body and reaches a psycho-sexual level’ and ‘Beyond the sexual: Obstetrical complications during birth’. (2) “Overcoming the aftereffects and regaining integrity. The difficult process of genital reconstruction”, with subthemes ‘The tortuous decision to undergo genital reconstruction’ and ‘The joy of returning to one's prior self’. Conclusions 1. The FGM survivors living in Europe are aware that FGM is a practice that violates human rights yet persists due to a system of false beliefs rooted in family traditions and deception that hides the reality of FGM from young girls or forces them to undergo the practice. The ritualistic nature of FGM and the threat of social exclusion faced by women who have not had it performed on them contributes to its persistence nowadays. 2. FGM was experienced by women as a very aggressive and traumatic event. It causes considerable negative emotions that last over time 3. The mutilated women experienced serious consequences in their sexual, psychological and obstetrical health. Genital reconstruction was a difficult decision but contributed to regaining their sexual health and identity.