There are many reasons why Violence Against Women is possibly the most widespread and intractable human rights violations in human history: It is embedded in social structures; It is part of cultural customs; It is due to gender inequality; It is due to gender-based economic inequality; It is due to patriarchal strictures… the list of factors goes on and on and many have expounded on it.

Yet even while it is so entrenched an issue, many people have problems recognising gender-based violence even when they are come face-to-face with it simply because:

This publication contains rich research findings concerning global trends and the prevalence of female genital mutilation/cutting and its linkages with maternal and newborn health. It describes changing patterns and practices, including medicalization, and analyzes the threat FGM/C poses to the achievement of Millennium Development Goals as well as its economic and health costs. It identifies important lessons and discusses in detail case studies as well as the application of theories as a basis for accelerating the abandonment process.

This article by Rebecca J. Cook examines the practice of female genital mutilation; the contexts in which it has been and is currently practiced, its forms and extent, social and health consequences, and professional responses. 

Ending Female Genital Mutilation - A Strategy for the European Union Institutions

Three million girls and women are subjected to female genital mutilation worldwide each year. That's 8000 girls per day.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a form of violence against women and children that can amount to torture.

The practice violates:

Traditional cultural practices reflect values and beliefs held by members of a community for periods often spanning generations. Every social grouping in the world has specific traditional cultural practices and beliefs, some of which are beneficial to all members, while others are harmful to a specific group, such as women.