Butter knife or sharp blade? Either way, FGM survivors in Sri Lanka want it to stop – Reuters
When her daughter turned seven, and it was time for the “khatna” – a female genital mutilation (FGM) ritual – a close friend advised Naqiyah to try the butter knife method.
A trusted doctor in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo would simply run a blunt knife against little Tanzeem’s vagina, and Naqiyah could tell her relatives that the ceremony had been carried out. There would be no bleeding, no pain.
FGM, which can cause serious physical and psychological problems, is more commonly linked to African countries which have led international efforts to end the practice.