Report On Female Genital Mutilation In Russia Provokes Commentary From A Mufti, A Priest, A Rabbi

It started with a report and erupted into a controversy involving a mufti, a Russian Orthodox priest and a rabbi. The subject: female genital mutilation.

On Aug. 15, the Russian Justice Initiative issued a report called "Production of Genital Mutilation of Girls in the Republic of Dagestan." Female genital mutilation, or FGM, is the practice of cutting away all or part of the clitoris and sometimes the labia. It's usually done in the belief that it will reduce female sexual desire and therefore, promiscuity. The report said that the mutilations were being performed in remote mountain villages in predominantly Muslim regions of Dagestan on girls as young as 3 and as old as 11.

Although FGM has been condemned by the U.N. and the World Health Organization, the report says it's not banned by Russian law. The report marks the first systematic documentation of FGM in the region. Human rights activists in Russia called for an investigation of the findings.

Then came the controversy....
http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2016/08/23/491055905/controvery-erupts-in-russia-over-report-on-female-genital-mutilation?ft=nprml&f=1001