Firstly, let’s say a few words about Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the celebrity apostate who is in town for the Sydney Writers’ Festival, to spruik her book amid what I’m sure she and her publicists hope will be a suitably outraged reaction from the local Muslim community. There. That’s about all that needs to be said (nothing).
Sadly, after viewing a few of her interviews, we must conclude that her commentary is on an entirely different intellectual plane to more worthy and thoughtful opponents such as Richard Dawkins, Daniel Pipes or, say, the octogenarian caller to talkback radio complaining about the smell of “Moslem cooking”. In other words, nothing to see here. Let’s move on.
And so we come to The Age who, in covering Hirsi Ali’s story, report:
AS A small girl, Ayaan Hirsi Ali was forcibly circumcised with a pair of scissors. She was then sewn up with a piece of twine “to keep her chaste”.
In the world in which she then lived, Ali was not alone: according to a 2000 World Health Organisation fact sheet, the number of Muslim girls and women who underwent genital mutilation was estimated to be between 100 million and 140 million.
The practice is widespread in the predominantly Islamic countries of Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia — her homeland — but does not occur universally throughout the Islamic world.
100 million to 140 million Muslim girls and women? That’s quite a number. Let’s see: there are, approximately, 1.4 billion Muslims in the world. If half of them are women, then we have 700,000,000 Muslim women. If we then take The Age’s figure of 140 million genitally mutilated Muslim women, it means that 20% of Muslim women in this world have undergone the awful procedure.
If that is true, it’s no wonder some people think there is a causal connection to Islam. However, the fact is it isn’t true and, contrary to the Age report, the World Health Organisation’s fact sheet doesn’t say this at all.
Most of the girls and women who have undergone genital mutilation live in 28 African countries, although some live in Asia and the Middle East. They are also increasingly found in Europe, Australia, Canada and the USA, primarily among immigrants from these countries.
Today, the number of girls and women who have been undergone female genital mutilation is estimated at between 100 and 140 million. It is estimated that each year, a further 2 million girls are at risk of undergoing FGM.
Hirsi Ali is here to flog her book, but what’s The Age’s excuse?
16 comments ↓
They are all flogging something, surely, and Muslim flogging being newsworthy, what better? Islamophobia and neoliberalism are locked in a sordidly newsworthy embrace. Camera, anyone?
Interestingly, The Sydney Morning Herald had the following:
I’m not sure about the accuracy of the figures, but here there’s no specific reference to Muslims in the figures.
It’s a shame the SWF is featuring her so heavily. I think its integrity fell a few notches when it took the sensationalist approach. Judging by her interviews, she doesn’t have anything of substance to say except to bang on about how much he hates Islam and in other interviews talk about how vacuous Muslim women are for following their religion.
[…] (Update: Austrolabe has a post on Hirsi-Ali, and I think Amir is spot on, when he writes: I’m sure she and her publicists hope will be a suitably outraged reaction from the local Muslim community. There. That’s about all that needs to be said (nothing). […]
Hanifa has written a good reply in the Age today. I think you’re right, that if we avoid jumping up and down about Hirsi-Ali, it is better than having a predictably “outraged” response (even though her comments about the world’s second largest religion ARE outrageous.)
The other feature about the ali saga, is how obsequious “our dear friends” on the left have been. Phillip Adams (black is slimming, but only up to a point) gave the most groveling interview since he interviewed Irshad Manji.
Her slurred monologue on SBS news was another low point.
The Age piece was another example, even the Guardian by the Yarra lapped her every cliche.
I suppose Muslims should learn that the habitual and continual brown-nosing that they do to the left really pays no dividends.
How many inter-faith meetings, unity in diversity, Simba circle of life love ins, did Muslims have to sit through for them to crap on us the moment some bimbo comes along?
Statler, it’s not just some people on the Left who are fawning over her but also the usual suspects on the ostensible Right too.
Here is a great example of how not to respond to the issue.
Actually, Hirsi Ali’s biggest backers are from the Lunar Right. She currently works for an allegedly conservative thinktank. Her documentary “Submission” was made with the far-Right Ducth film maker Theo Van Gogh.
Check this out …
[…] Amir at australabe catches yellow journalism-red handed. Powered by Gregarious (21) […]
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Amir
Why aren’t you guys pushing more strongly the obvious response that FGM is actually an example of Islam tolerating a *pre-Islamic* custom?
See this for instance - it’s more or less correct yes? As a libertarian atheist I’d say there are more than enough things to criticise in Islam without blaming it for something it doesn’t actually decree
http://www.minaret.org/fgm-pamphlet.htm
That’s a good point, Jason. I know Islamic law doesn’t allow FGM to be carried out, but clearly it seems to be allowed under animist ‘law’ etc. The fact that it continues to be practiced by those communities even though they fell under Islamic rule would seem to support the idea that Islamic law is a lot more tolerant of religious and cultural differences than some critics (and Islamists) would suggest.
I know, for example, some early Islamic jurists ruled that each community is entitled to live according to its own laws even though the practices of that community (such as incestuous marriage to give one real example) might be against Islamic law. The state couldn’t interfere provided the people didn’t seek judgement according to Islamic law (by willfully applying to a court for judgement) and provided the behaviour was in accordance with the laws of that community. It was, therefore, a legally pluralistic society with law being viewed, to some extent, as a private good.
Jason,
we covered it here:
http://austrolabe.com/2007/02/.....ern-women/
I’m not certain, but I think that many of the things that you take exception to in “Islam”, are in fact Islamism; a 20th century romantic modernism.
[…] at Austrolabe try to explain where Muslims actually stood on the issue (in a post intelligently critical of Ayaan Hirsi Ali), made Irfan Yusuf decide to get out an extra large wooden spoon, and even produced some overseas […]
PREACHING THE SOMALI CULTURE AS ISLAM {III}
Ayaan Hirsi Ali continues to cash on the ignorance of the West about Islam, Muslims and their traditions. At the moment she is in Australia, the land of Howard stoking the embers of fire and pushing Australian Muslims against the wall and instigating the Islamophobes and other accomplices of evil against them. A Somali man who was a habitual liar was one day asked: “Ali, when will you stop lying?” He retorted: “As long as the truth doesn’t cath up with me.” Now, Ayaan will continue capitalising on naked lies and mere fabricated stories till she is mowned by the truth. …. Continue reading in the blo provided…
Also have a look at the following entries
Ayaan Hirsi Ali {the forgery part1, 2, 3, 4 and also Europe in Stampede for modern FGM”. Thanks
Ayaan Hirsi Ali continues to cash on the ignorance of the West about Islam, Muslims and their traditions. At the moment she is in Australia, the land of Howard stoking the embers of fire and pushing Australian Muslims against the wall and instigating the Islamophobes and other accomplices of evil against them. A Somali man who was a habitual liar was one day asked: “Ali, when will you stop lying?” He retorted: “As long as the truth doesn’t cath up with me.” Now, Ayaan will continue capitalising on naked lies and mere fabricated stories till she is mowned by the truth. …. Continue reading in the blo provided…
Also have a look at the following entries
Ayaan Hirsi Ali {the forgery part1, 2, 3, 4 and also Europe in Stampede for modern FGM”. Thanks
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