The Intersection of Gender, Culture and Education: Jamaica: The Next 50 Years!

We are almost at D day-well, E day for the alphabet-conscious. The pollsters are busy and the major political parties are caught up in the last days of election campaigning from Morant to Negril Points as the nation goes to the polls on February 25 to elect a new government; a government which will be responsible for chartering the future of Jamaica.   Election is oftentimes referred to as the silly season; however, an election is a serious exercise of citizen engagement and participation in the political process in which a selected number of candidates are given the task making legislation to govern the wider society. Disturbingly, over the years more and more Jamaicans have become disengaged and have been turned off by the divisive nature of politics in Jamaica. As a result the base support of both major political parties continues to dwindle while conversely the percentage of the swinger voters continues to increase. Recently, a number of critical issues have come to the fore whic

February 6, is the International Day for Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation. Female Genital Mutilation is the ritual removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. This procedure differs according to the ethnic group and is most prevalent between ages 0-14 years. however, female genital mutilation is also done to women up to age 49.  This procedure is typically carried out by a traditional circumciser using a blade, with or without anesthesia. A t least 200 million women and girls alive today have undergone female genital mutilation, with half of them living in Indonesia, Egypt and Ethiopia. The latest figures, provided by UNICEF, show nearly 70 million more girls than previously thought have been subjected to ritual cutting. Female Genital Mutilation is a creation by males to keep women subjugated and powerless. Men have no rights to tell women what they should do to their bodies. While I understand that female genital mutilation is steeped in cultural norms and pra