Desert Flower, Waris Dirie

Feb. 6, 2011, marks the ninth International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting.
It is held every year in order to raise the awareness of people around the world about FGM. To commemorate this special day, i had an interview with Waris Dirie, a former top model, a human rights activist, and a best- selling author via e-mail.

                                                             (Photo: sandrarose.com)

 From despair to hope…

  From darkness to light…

     From a nomadic life in the deserts of Somalia to the world’s most famous catwalks…

 

Desert Flower is a flower that can bloom even in the roughest climate. The life of Waris Dirie is like that of a desert flower. Waris Dirie, born in 1965 in the region of Gallcaio, in the Somali desert, underwent the cruel practice, female genital mutilation, at the age of five and fled from a forced marriage to an old man, at the age of 13.
She overcame all the hardships with her strong determination and climbed the ladder of success.

Q1)What detrimental impacts that FGM has on young girls?

-      Female genital mutilation (FGM) has numerous detrimental effects on a young girl’s physical and psychological health and will affect her all her life. Some of the health implications are shock and loss of blood, infections and death in the short time, and chronic pain, problems urinating, pain during sex, complications during childbirth as well as psychological problems in the long term.

Q2) Other than FGM, have you suffered from any terrible practice?

-      FGM is the most cruel, but it is certainly not the only violation of human rights that women in many parts of the world have to endure. In my case, another violation of my rights was my fathers attempt to marry me to an old man for money. My own father was selling me to another man. As you know, I refused to accept this and decided to run away, but there are millions of girls and women that are being married based on the decision of their fathers.

Q3) I have always wondered what encouraged and enabled you to overcome all the hardships that are described in your novel. What acted as an impetus for your huge success as a human rights activist, a supermodel, and a best-selling author?

-      I became a model because it was a huge chance for me to earn a living. Once I was famous and had a chance to make statements that people would notice and listen to, I took that chance to tell the world about the cruel crime of FGM. I have often said that I always knew that I would one day fight against FGM. Even when I was just a little girl living on the desert of Somalia, I knew that I would fight against this cruel crime that happened to me. Years later, many years after I had left Somalia, I continued and still continue to fight for all the girls that still have to live through this every day. I promised myself that I would not stop fighting before FGM has ceased to exist and I am determined to keep going!

Q4) What are your goals for the rest of your life as the leader of the Desert Flower Foundation?

-      I am working on many interesting projects at the moment. I am convinced that FGM will only be eradicated if the role of women in society changes substantially, and in order for this to happen, women need independence, both financially and mentally. Financial and independence are necessary for women to take decisions concerning themselves and their daughters. They will gain this independence through education and through gaining their own income. This is why my foundation works on supporting projects that help create jobs and provide training and education for women.

Q5) Can you give a message to young teenagers who are not aware of FGM issue? Can you tell me why more people should be involved to put an end cruel crime, FGM?

-      FGM is not something that happens somewhere far away from us. It is an issue that affects each and every one of us, because we cannot accept to live in a world where millions of innocent girls, of innocent children become victims of such a cruel crime.

 

 

Her story has inspired people all over the world and gave a hope to African women who still severely suffer from female genital mutilation (FGM).

 

At the peak of her life as a model in New York, she decided to tell the world about her childhood and to end her career in order to dedicate her life to abolish the brutal, obsolete ritual, FGM.                                                                                                                      

                                                                                               

                                                                              (Photo:sicilygianni.com)                                                                                     

 In 1997, Waris Dirie wrote a biography ‘Desert Flower’ in New York and the film was made based on the book in 2010.  In 2002, she established ‘Waris Dirie Foundation’ which was re-named as ‘Desert Flower Foundation'                                                         

 She is the first African woman to reveal the severity of FGM in African nations to the world and she climbed the ladder of success to make FGM the worldwide controversial issue in modern times,

 

“I just pray that one day no woman will have to experience this pain. It will become a thing of the past. People will say "Did you hear, female genital mutilation has been outlawed in Somalia?" Then the next country, and the next, and so on, until the world is safe for all women. What a happy day that will be, and that's what I'm working toward. In'shallah, if God is willing, it will happen. "                                                                           

- Waris Dirie (Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey Of A Desert Nomad)”

 

                                           

What is FGM?

Female Genital Mutilation means the removal of parts of the female genitalia. For over 3000 years, African communities and especially the male have believed what exists between women’s legs is not clean, so it must be removed as a proof of virginity and virtue.

                                                                          (Photo:bbc.co.uk)         

It has been continued even tough it is not written in Koran. Thus, it is not a religious ritual but a cultural practice. It happens in Africa, the Middle East and in South-East Asia and carries out on girls between 2 to 12 years old.

(Photo: nemopan.com)

(Photo:Nemopan.com)

Although a lot of countries officially prohibited FGM, the practice still has been performed.

6000 girls per day in Africa are sacrificed.
A great portion of them bleed to death or die in the childbirth due to various complications of FGM later in their  life.                                                                                                                        

Female Genital Mutilation is an evident violation of human rights so we must not neglect this issue.

It was my honor to have an interview with Waris Dirie. I wish this article acts as an impetus for many more people, especially the youth who will lead the world, to be more aware of FGM and its detrimental impacts on women.

How much knowledge do people have about
                                              the rite of death, FGM?

 

How to help?

            Do you want to make a difference?
 1) Make a donation!
    - desertflowerfoundation.org
    - peacefriend.or.kr
 2) Join the campaign!

    - Anti-FGM campaign (held annually by Peacefriend org.)

                                                                                                                                                 

(Photo: Warisdirie.wordpress.com)