Maïmouna – Das Leben, das vor mir liegt

The practice of female circumcision has been illegal in Burkina Faso since 1996. Despite this, many young women still undergo the painful and sometimes fatal operation. NGOs such as Bangr Nooma work to expose the realities of the traditional practice of circumcision through educational programmes. We follow one of their representatives, Maïmouna, a determined young woman from the Ivory Coast, who was herself circumcised at the age of 15, as she travels by motorbike around the vast savannahs of the Samatenga region of Burkina Faso, talking to men, women and young people about their views and her experiences. On her travels Maïmouna repeatedly encounters familiar superstitions, fears and myths but the discussions she leads in the communities allow a space for people to both express themselves and learn about what has been until then a taboo subject. Fabiola Maldonado’s and Ulrike Sülzle’s film intelligently explores the reasons why the practice of female circumcision continues to be so widespread, without taking the moral highground. Through the spirit and strength of Maïmouna, the film delivers a message of hope. (DOK.fest München)