Cover design by Natalia Arranz©
Permission to use images and text
should be directed to Spinifex Press
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Kim Manresa and
Isabel Ramos Rioja
The Day Kadi Lost Part of Her Life
SHORTLISTED! The Australian's Awards
for Excellence in Educational Publishing 1999
Secondary Teacher Reference Section
The Day Kadi Lost Part of Her Life is the moving photostory of a 4 year old African girl named Kadi, who is subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) in accordance with the traditions of her community. Black and white photographs document the activities of the day in which she undergoes this operation and an explanatory text details exactly what FGM entails.
This is a unique book, being the first photodocumentation of the practice. The story is personal and emotive, and the photographs, although confronting, depict the events with delicacy and are of very high quality. Significantly, the book focuses on the immediate experience of a child undergoing FGM, separating it from other recent accounts which have been written from the perspective of adult females looking back on their childhood.
The extremity of FGM varies widely between different countries and cultures. However, the term FGM describes practices where actual cutting and removal of sexual organs takes place and the various procedures can be classified as follows:
Clitoridectomy (Type I): amputation of sections of, or all of the clitoris.
Excision (Type II): amputation of the clitoris and the labia minora.
Infibulation (Type III): as in type II, with further cuts being made to the labia majora to cause raw surfaces which are then either sewn or clipped together or held together by tying of the legs to cause the two flaps to join together to form a thick seal over the vaginal opening. A small opening is left for the purposes of urination, menstruation and intercourse.
It is our intention that the book will bring a wider awareness of this practice and encourage readers to speak out against it. Part proceeds of profits will go to the London based non-government organisation FORWARD (the Foundation for Women's Health, Research and Development) who work internationally with the primary objective of campaigning for the elimination of female genital mutilation worldwide and promoting awareness to counter traditional practices prejudicial to the health of women and children.
