'Breast ironing': the agony of young Cameroonian girls

Screen grab from a video showing a breast ironing re-enactment by the Cameroonian organisation OGCEYOD, based in Limbe, in western Cameroon.

During puberty, thousands of Cameroonian girls fall victim to a painful practice: the women in their families, sometimes even their own mothers, try to make their growing breasts disappear by crushing them. They believe this “protects” the girls from experiencing their sexuality too soon.

According to a 2005 investigation by two doctors, almost a quarter of Cameroonian women have been victims of this practice. This “ironing” or “massaging” of the breasts, as it is sometimes euphemistically called, has also been reported in Togo and Guinea.

A re-enactment by the Cameroonian organisation OGCEYOD. The woman who plays the mother realises how painful it is, and then becomes involves in the fight against this practice.

“A lot of women become worried when their daughter reaches puberty around the age of eight or nine. They consider this to be too early”

Georgette Arrey Taky is the Executive Secretary of Renata, a national network of young mothers that teaches sexual education to Cameroonian women.

It’s difficult to say when this began. All we know is that today’s elderly women also suffered this treatment during their adolescence. The last study on the subject concluded that breast ironing was practised throughout Cameroon, particularly in the centre and west of the country. This practice exists among the rich as well as the poor.

The reason why breast ironing is so rooted in our customs is because the mothers who endured it were told by their own mothers that it was to protect them. They therefore repeat the gesture to protect their own daughters. It’s a vicious circle that survives through ignorance more than tradition.

A lot of women become worried when their daughter reaches puberty around the age of eight or nine. They consider this to be too early, and therefore believe that their daughter will attract boys and risk becoming pregnant too early. The young girls are massaged until they are 15 or 16 years old. By making their breasts disappear, the mothers believe they can control the girls’ effect on men, and thus, their sexuality. This is obviously an illusion. We regularly meet very young mothers in our organisation who had their breasts ironed. That’s why we are working to convince parents that effective sex education can only be achieved through dialogue.

The breasts of a victim. © Réseau national des associations des tantines.

“Women, usually mothers or aunts, use spatulas, stones and even pestles”

The pain of the “ironing” is unimaginable. Women, usually mothers or aunts, use spatulas, stones or even pestles. These objects are heated up and struck against the developing breast. The strike leads to burns as well as infections and cysts. The long-term consequences are no less detrimental. According to a few specialists, the victims are more susceptible to breast cancer. Furthermore, in intimate situations, the damaged breasts become the source of body image issues. I met a girl who doesn’t even dare to take her clothes off in front of her friends.

Our work is to make mothers understand that breast ironing causes a lot more pain to a young girl than puberty does. We do a lot of field work, going to churches and traditional meetings among mothers. We make sure they thoroughly understand the pain they have caused. But changing attitudes takes time, given that there is no law forbidding this practice.

Comments

Reply to comment | The Observers

Submitted by click here (not verified) on Sun, 03/02/2013 - 11:59.

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Harming Girls

Submitted by momo coats (not verified) on Sat, 08/12/2012 - 11:14.

Sadly these practisies are only harmful to the girl who doesnt have a voice. This can olny be eradicated by education.

cette pratique est vraiment

Submitted by alice38 (not verified) on Thu, 22/11/2012 - 17:40.

cette pratique est vraiment terrible !!!

This is why I scoff when I

Submitted by The Bruce (not verified) on Mon, 29/10/2012 - 14:38.

This is why I scoff when I liberals proclaim that all cultures are equal and that none are better than others.

Ethnocentricity

Submitted by Aria (not verified) on Wed, 31/10/2012 - 17:19.

Cultures are different, not "better" or "worse". It's the activities within the culture which can be held up and said to be "worse than" not the entire culture. Still, breast ironing is no worse than say putting young girls into corsets and tightening them until they can barely breath and their internal organs collapse if they leave them off for more than an hour a day. ALL cultures have a lot to answer for when it comes to fashion and morality. Assuming your culture is "superior" requires you define another culture as "inferior" which leads to racism, bigotry and a sense of entitlement when dealing with other individuals. In a democracy it is never wise to look down your nose at others - who may one day be on top looking down their noses at you.

breast ironing

Submitted by jessix (not verified) on Sun, 28/10/2012 - 13:24.

Why haven't they thought of "ironing" their boy's penises instead?

This would be more effective in preventing pregnancy than "breast ironing" which has no effect on fertility or reproduction.

It's a known fact that heat destroys sperm. Just stick those testicles between a few hot stones and you'll see how fast the practice of breast ironing disappears.