tagged w/ Mutilation
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SULTAN ZAWYIT, Egypt - In this small Nile River farming village, Maha Mohammed has started to doubt whether she should circumcise her two daughters.
A year ago, she had few qualms about female genital mutilation, the practice of cutting a girl's clitoris and sometimes other genitalia. She herself was cut two decades ago, and she fears her daughters will not find husbands otherwise.
But Mohammed also has heard that circumcision can be medically risky and emotionally painful. And a strong-willed neighbor, another woman, has been dropping by her house regularly to persuade her to say no.
"I hear that girls suffer not just physically but psychologically," the 31-year-old Mohammed said. "But I am afraid. I don't want my daughters to have uncontrollable demands for sex."
Such doubts are significant. With vigorous grass-roots campaigns and the passage of tough laws against circumcision, Egypt seems to be making a dent in this deeply ingrained practice, which is thousands of years old. The number of young girls circumcised is now steadily declining in a country where an estimated 96 percent of married Egyptian women have had their genitals cut.
The most recent comprehensive study predicts about 63 percent of Egyptian girls 9 years old and under will be circumcised over the next decade. The numbers are lower in urban areas like Cairo - about 40 percent - but higher for rural areas in the south - about 78 percent, the government's 2005 demographic and health survey predicts.
SULTAN ZAWYIT, Egypt - In this small Nile River farming village, Maha Mohammed has... more
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Escambia County (Pensacola, Florida) officials may let a no-kill shelter or similar organization adopt a severely injured dog that was rescued earlier this week and remains at the county’s animal shelter.
Escambia County spokeswoman Sonya Daniel said it is not known what caused the injuries, which removed most of the skin from a large portion of the dog’s back.
“Animal Control took the dog to an emergency clinic where it was treated,” she said. “The vet said the dog was friendly and had a good demeanor. And it was transported to the shelter on Monday.”
“There is no way to know for sure what happened to the dog,” she said. “It was found with no collar or tag, so finding the owner will be difficult.”
Escambia County Sheriff’s spokesman Glenn Austin said the extent of the dog’s injuries would warrant felony charges of animal cruelty against those responsible.
Article:
http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805301556/NEWS01/80530047
Escambia County (Pensacola, Florida) officials may let a no-kill shelter or similar... more
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A Tyler, TX man is in jail tonite after police found remains of his 21 y/o girlfriend simmering away on his stoveA Tyler, TX man is in jail tonite after police found remains of his 21 y/o girlfriend... more
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