Girls in Sierra Leone are under huge pressure to be initiated into all-female secret societies that practise female genital mutilation.

Mariatu* describes her struggle to escape FGM while Plan International worker Aminata Sheriff, who helps young girls like Mariatu, recalls the horror of being cut at the age of 16. Two soweis, the highest ranking figures in the secret societies, speak about the cultural traditions and financial pressures that perpetuate FGM.

Read the accompanying text piece by The Guardian’s Lisa O’Carroll
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2015/aug/24/sierra-leone-female-genital-mutilation-soweis-secret-societies-fear