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07/31/2007: "Breast ironing in West Africa"
"Breast ironing" -- the use of hard or heated objects or other substances to try to stunt breast growth in girls -- is a traditional practice in West Africa, experts say.
A new survey has revealed it is shockingly widespread in Cameroon, where one in four teen-agers are subjected to the traumatic process by relatives, often hoping to lessen their sexual attractiveness.
"Breast ironing is an age-old practice in Cameroon, as well as in many other countries in West and Central Africa, including Chad, Togo, Benin, Guinea-Conakry, just to name a few," said Flavien Ndonko, an anthropologist and local representative of German development agency GTZ, which sponsored the survey.
"If society has been silent about it up to now it is because, like other harmful practices done to women such as female genital mutilation, it was thought to be good for the girl," said Ndonko.
[ If feminists were serious, they'd get machine guns and go stop this practice. However, it is likely that the source of some of Africa's instability is Western wealth, which is why the LNSG has for ten years taken the stance that western interests need to withdraw and stay out of Africa! ]
http://anti-state.com/forum/index.php?board=12;action=display;threadid=17419