HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES

OBJECTIONABLE TRADITIONAL METHODS

WEEK 4

TOPIC:

HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES

CONTENT:

1.Meaning of human traditional practices.

– Examples of harmful traditional practices.

2. Consequences – Social, Economic, Psychological.
3. Measures of preventing harmful traditional practices- Public.

SUB-TOPIC 1: MEANING OF HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES.

Harmful traditional practices are rooted in cultural, social, and religious beliefs and can have a negative impact on the health and well-being of women and girls. It is important to respect the cultures and traditions of others, but it is also important to protect the rights and safety of women and girls. These practices must be stopped in order

Breast ironing is a harmful traditional practice that involves the flattening of a girl’s breasts using hot objects, such as stones, heated coins, or irons. It is typically performed on girls between the ages of 9 and 13, in an attempt to prevent them from developing breasts. Breast ironing can have serious health consequences, including pain, tissue damage, and infection.

Child marriage is another harmful traditional practice that affects girls. Child marriage is a formal marriage or informal union entered into by an individual before reaching the age of 18. Child marriages are often forced marriages, as the girls do not have a say in the decision and are not able to give their consent.

These rituals are often seen as a way to purify the woman and prepare her for her next life. Widowhood practices can have a negative impact on the health and well-being of widowed women, as they can be emotionally and psychologically distressing.

Harmful traditional practices are the customs, beliefs and ways of life which are capable of causing death, fear, stigma, diseases, and other psychological and physical pain or damage to the citizens. In other words, they are practices that could have negative effects to the health and social well-being of the people. Many of these practices are passed down from generation to generation.

EXAMPLES OF HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES.

There are many practices in our various cultures which are harmful to our well being. The following are examples of some of these harmful traditional practices.

1. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)/ Female Circumcision
2. Child Marriage
3. Female Spouse Sharing
4. Son Preference
5. Polygamy
6. Violence against Women
7. Scarification
8. Tribal Marks
9. Circumcision of Young Boys.
10. Maltreatment of widows
11. Superstition

1. FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM): Female genital mutilation (FGM), or female circumcision, involves surgical removal of parts or all of the most sensitive female genital organs. FGM is performed on infants as young as a few days old, on children from 7-10 years old and on adolescents.
2. CHILD MARRIAGE: Early marriage is another serious problem which some girls face in some African communities. The practice of giving girls away to marriage at the age of 11, 12, or 13 after which they must start producing children. The principal reasons for this practice are the girls’ virginity and the bride price.

A very young girl being given in marriage to an elderly man

3. FEMALE SPOUSE SHARING: This is a common practice in some parts of Africa. The cultural function of this practice is to ensure that when the husband is away for a long time the woman is satisfied sexually to maximize fertility performance by a man from the same linage.
4. SON PREFERENCE: Preference for male child is a powerful tradition rooted in inheritance practice and patriarchy. Male child is figuratively described as the “seat” of a woman in the matrimonial home among the Yoruba. This means that until a woman bears a male child, she is still a visitor to the matrimonial home because the husband can marry another woman.
5. POLYGAMY: This is a situation whereby a man marries more than one wife and it is widely practice in Africa. Due to value of children, especially male, competition may ensue among co-wives.
6. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: Violence against women is a technical term used to collectively refer to violent acts that are primarily or exclusively committed against women.
7. SCARIFICATION: This is permanent or semi-permanent deliberate altering of human body for non-medical reasons, such as: sexual enhancement, a rite of passage, aesthetic reasons, denoting affiliation, trust and loyalty, religious reasons, mystical affiliation and self expression.
8. TRIBAL MARKS: Many tribes in Nigeria identify themselves by certain forms of tribal marks made on the face using sharp objects such as knives. It was meant to assist the various tribes to identify their kinsmen in period of war.
9. CIRCUMCISION OF YOUNG BOYS: Circumcision of boys between the age of six to ten years is practiced among some tribes. These boys are made to bear untold pain before they heal-up.
10. MALTREATMENT OF WIDOWS: A widow is a woman whose husband has died. In some cultures, the woman’s head is shaved clean immediately the husband dies. Sometimes, the woman is not allowed to have her bath until seven days after the husband burial. In some culture the water that is used in bathing the dead husband’s corpse is given to the widow to drink. These practices bring negative value to the society.
11. SUPERSTITION: This is the belief in luck, ill-luck, magic, witchcraft, reincarnation, appeasing of gods, sorcery and divination.

EVALUATION

1. What is harmful traditional practice?
2. Mention and explain 4 types of harmful traditional practices.
3. What is the most common type of harmful traditional practice?
4.  Which harmful traditional practices are most prevalent in Africa?
5.  What are the health consequences of harmful traditional practices?
6.  How do harmful traditional practices impact women’s rights?
7.  What are some ways to address harmful traditional practices

Sub-Topic 2: CONSEQUENCES OF HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES.

1. SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES: Apart from the fact that facial tribal marks unnecessary marked out those who have them, many children find it difficult to associate with their peers because it might disfigure the individual if not properly handled since he or she could no longer carry the natural look.
2. WICKED WIDOWHOOD PRACTICEcan cause conflict between families. The family of the widow may go against the practices of the deceased and this will create conflict between the two families.
3. ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES: Harmful traditional practices such as child abuse may cause loss of man power in the society. Children who were not given the right type of education would later turn to liabilities to themselves and other people in the society.
4. PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES: This practice cause both physical and emotional pain. For example, when a woman is given out to a man she did not love; she suffers physical trauma and psychological problems.
5. PHYSICAL CONSEQUENCES: Physical consequences are part of harmful traditional practice. When you ask a young girl of between the age of 11 and 18 to get married, she does not yet have the body that can carry pregnancy or mature passage for safe and easy delivery.

       EVALUATION

In your own words explain the following: (i) Economic consequences  and (ii) Physical consequences of harmful traditional practice.

Sub-Topic 3: MEASURES OF PREVENTING HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES

There are measures which can be adopted in order to prevent harmful traditional practices. Among these are:

1. PUBLIC ENLIGHTENMENT: The media such as the radio, television and newspaper could be used also organizing seminars, workshops and conferences could be used to create public awareness on the effects of these traditional practices.
2. EDUCATION: Government on its part should make education available and affordable most especially at village levels. An educated populace will avoid such harmful and outdated customs and belief that do not add value to the society.
3. ADVOCACY: The non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the government officials, community leaders and various groups should help to support the eradication of such practice.
4. LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES: The law enforcement agencies should be empowered to enforce the law on defaulter.
5. LEGISLATION: Government should enact laws prohibiting harmful traditional practice.

EVALUATION

1. Mention 3 measures of preventing harmful traditional practice.
2. State 2 ways by which the NGOs can assist to curb these practices.

READING ASSIGNMENT: – Read chapter 1 of Macmillan JSS Social studies Book 3 by M. A Orebanjo et al pages 22-30.

WEEKEND ASSIGNMENT:

Objective Test:

1. Harmful traditional practices are those cultural practices which are ________ (a) Harmless to the victims and the society. (b) Harmful to the victims and the society.(c) Gainful to the government and the society (d) Harmless to the government and the society.
2. The following are harmful traditional practices except (a) Childhood marriage (b) Genital mutilation (c) Marriage ceremonies (d) Wife inheritance
3. Which pair is most harmful to young girls? (a) Widows maltreatment and taboo (b) Inheritance and forced marriage (c) Superstition and witchcraft (d) Genital mutilation and force marriage.
4. One is not a consequence of harmful traditional practices. (a) Economic consequence (b) Political consequence (c) Physical consequence (d) Psychological consequence
5. The customs, beliefs and way of life of the people which are capable of causing physical or psychological pain to people is called _________ (a) Civilization (b) Socialization (c) Harmful traditional practice (d) Social problems

Essay Test:        

1. List 5 possible solutions to harmful traditional practice.
2. What is population?