The Guardian: Patriarchy allows child marriage and female genital mutilation to flourish
Ghadeer Malek, Rachel Arinii, and Nelly Bassily, members of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development

“…The commitments made at the Girl Summit on eradicating FGM and child marriage, the focus on tougher laws (including putting the onus on parents to protect girls from FGM) and increased funding for prevention programs are important steps to combat these harmful practices. But until we link these issues to girls’ lack of education, poverty, marginalization and exclusion in the patriarchal societies in which they live, little will change. … Saturday 11 October will mark the third International Day of the Girl. We, and other young feminists, will use that opportunity to reiterate that all forms of oppression of girls are interconnected and to reaffirm their human rights” (7/24).