I want to share my story with. You about why I've devoted life to ending female genital cutting now. I used to have an entirely normal life. I used to be in the corporate world. I spent 15 years involved in transport and infrastructure and I worked on projects like congestion charging cross rail the Olympics but in 2007.
I decided to press ctrl Alt Delete for myself and I ended up volunteering in Ethiopia and I went with VSO and VSO takes professionals and it says to them this is the world of development so. I learned over nights about poverty HIV and AIDS malnutrition but no. One told that seventy-five percent of all women in Ethiopia undergo female genital cutting no. One told that 3 million girls a year are at risk of being cut in Africa alone and certainly. One told that the average age of girl is cut at is under five years old and I'll be perfectly honest with.
You my first instinct was to look away. This is too difficult it's too hard to even comprehend and you know. I did quite well with. That strategy for a few months and then. Something shifted for me I found myself in Lalibela which is up in the north of Ethiopia and if. Anyone wants to go on a holiday it's the most incredible place it's very spiritual and I spent the day wandering around the ruins and the ruined churches and there were two little girls and they were playing with. Me and they were holding on to my fingers as.
We walked around and they were trying to sell knucklebones of saints 2000 year-old knuckle bones and I bonded with. These girls make Dez and Tina Bob and here. They are and I had a moment. I thought okay I'm gonna go and beg their parents not to cut them I'm gonna say I'll pay for their education I'll do. Whatever I can and in that moment. I had no language no rights no legitimacy and I walked away from them but also in that moment. I made a vow to myself I didn't know what I could do but I would do.
Whatever I could to end female genital cutting so. I came back to London and I knocked on lots of doors and I said to everyone why does. This happen. How does it end those are my two questions and what I got was. This huge outpouring of this is barbaric. This is mutilation. These parents are torturing their children but what I knew. Because I'd lived with an Ethiopian family is they're just like. Any of us they love their daughters and I couldn't reconcile. These two very different discourses within myself on the one hand torture on the other hand love.
I also found out. More about female genital cutting it is the forcible removal of a girl's external genitals it's everything from cutting out the clitoris to cutting out the labia no anaesthetic in the most extreme case the external genitals are completely cut out and the wound that's left is sewn closed there's a tiny hole that's left for urine and menses but the scar tissue heals and basically seals the entire vaginal orifice.
I decided to press ctrl Alt Delete for myself and I ended up volunteering in Ethiopia and I went with VSO and VSO takes professionals and it says to them this is the world of development so. I learned over nights about poverty HIV and AIDS malnutrition but no. One told that seventy-five percent of all women in Ethiopia undergo female genital cutting no. One told that 3 million girls a year are at risk of being cut in Africa alone and certainly. One told that the average age of girl is cut at is under five years old and I'll be perfectly honest with.
You my first instinct was to look away. This is too difficult it's too hard to even comprehend and you know. I did quite well with. That strategy for a few months and then. Something shifted for me I found myself in Lalibela which is up in the north of Ethiopia and if. Anyone wants to go on a holiday it's the most incredible place it's very spiritual and I spent the day wandering around the ruins and the ruined churches and there were two little girls and they were playing with. Me and they were holding on to my fingers as.
We walked around and they were trying to sell knucklebones of saints 2000 year-old knuckle bones and I bonded with. These girls make Dez and Tina Bob and here. They are and I had a moment. I thought okay I'm gonna go and beg their parents not to cut them I'm gonna say I'll pay for their education I'll do. Whatever I can and in that moment. I had no language no rights no legitimacy and I walked away from them but also in that moment. I made a vow to myself I didn't know what I could do but I would do.
Whatever I could to end female genital cutting so. I came back to London and I knocked on lots of doors and I said to everyone why does. This happen. How does it end those are my two questions and what I got was. This huge outpouring of this is barbaric. This is mutilation. These parents are torturing their children but what I knew. Because I'd lived with an Ethiopian family is they're just like. Any of us they love their daughters and I couldn't reconcile. These two very different discourses within myself on the one hand torture on the other hand love.
I also found out. More about female genital cutting it is the forcible removal of a girl's external genitals it's everything from cutting out the clitoris to cutting out the labia no anaesthetic in the most extreme case the external genitals are completely cut out and the wound that's left is sewn closed there's a tiny hole that's left for urine and menses but the scar tissue heals and basically seals the entire vaginal orifice.
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