Hello! Welcome to SAHIYO, a forum dedicated to empowering Dawoodi Bohra and other Asian communities to end Female Genital Cutting (FGC) and create positive social change. Variously known as khatna, sunnah, female circumcision and Female Genital Mutilation, FGC is regarded as a human rights violation by the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF). By working towards an FGC-free world, we aim to recognize and emphasize the values of consent and a child’s/woman’s right over her own body.We aim to enable a culture in which female sexuality is not feared or suppressed but embraced as normal.
SAHIYO is the Bohra Gujarati word for ‘saheliyo’, or friends, and reflects our organization’s mission to engage in dialogue with the community to find a collective solution towards ending the practice of FGC or Khatna.