Violation of Rights or Local Custom: Force-feeding in Mauritania

In a culture where women strive to be thin–sometimes to the point of developing an eating disorder– it is hard to imagine any other way of thinking. When I read the article “Forced to Be Fat” in Marie Claire’s November issue, I was immediately intrigued. I understood the concept of women forcing themselves to be skinny, but forced to be fat, in 2010? No way.

This article explains the culture of Mauritania, an Islamic republic in the Sahara desert, in which “stretch marks are sexy.” These stretch marks, which are so prized by prospective husbands, are not gained through the natural growth a child experiences throughout her life–they are the result of leblouh.

Leblouh, a native Mauritanian word, means intensive force-feeding and that is what causes the stretch marks clearly visible on the women featured in Marie Claire’s online version of the article. The article explains leblouh from the perspective of Tijanniya, a 14-year- old athlete who has been sent to a force-feeding camp by her parents in order to prepare her for marriage.

A quote from the article explains what Tijanniya believed would happen to her: “You’re going on vacation to the desert to meet other girls and eat sweet food,” Tijanniya Mint Tijani’s mother told her. Tijanniya was excited. “She said that by the time I returned home, I’d be a beautiful woman.” Unfortunately the reality was much worse that she could have ever anticipated.

The young women in these camps, are forced to eat over 16,000 calories per day. According to a calorie calculator found on freedieting.com, a healthy 14-year-old girl should be eating about 1,400 calories per day in order to lose weight, however, if she wanted to maintain her weight the maximum amount she should consume per day is 1,800. As you can see from these numbers, 16,000 calories is an extreme amount. Think about how many calories you consume per day. Could you handle four times the recommended limit for your age and height? You probably could not, and many of these women cannot either. According to the article, Aminetou Moctar, Chief of the Association of Women Heads of Households, which is an equal-rights organization in Nouakchott, states that “force-feeding grows the body and shrinks the brain—all the girls do is eat and sleep.” Additionally the article explains the life of a 26-year-old shop keeper who had been force fed as a child. She has, as the article explains, “a love-hate relationship” with her weight. She married at 14, had two sons and then divorced at 16. She is currently with a man who enjoys her weight, but that doesn’t stop her from experiencing bouts of fatigue and shortness of breath.

To me, this practice is just as bad as forcing young women to believe that skinny is the only way. The American culture holds models above all, and yet those women barely eat enough to stay alive. I think that something needs to be done to stop this torture of young women all around the world, but particularly in Mauritania. In America, we have become more and more sensitive to the needs of young women. We have opened organizations and dedicated Web sites to those living with eating disorders. The National Eating Disorders Association has a wonderful database of information, and many women who have suffered through these conditions often serve as mentors to aid others in overcoming these diseases.

The problem in Mauritania, however, is not going away. According to Marie Claire, Leblouh has never been outlawed by the government, but in 2003 they began a campaign to end child abuse of all forms in an effort to create social change, however it seems that many of these “force-feeding camps” are still active. Tijanniya’s did not want to be fat, she was afraid that she wouldn’t be able to run anymore if she gained all the weight needed to be a “beautiful” woman, and quite frankly women in America who are super-skinny do not have such a wonderful lifestyle either. Both extremes cause a variety of health issues, and sometimes a premature death.

Women are all built differently, and I am (finally) starting to realize that. American women have fought long and hard to be able to vote like men, work like men and live like men– why should we suddenly begin to allow men to dictate what is beautiful; either here at home or in any country?

Oprah aired a show about this last November and her forums had tons of women up in arms. Women are outraged by the treatment of other women abroad, and I think we (college women of the world) need to be as well. If women in Mauritania WANT to be force-fed, then so be it, but as the article says, many do not.

A petition on the Web has been signed by 18 people. If you feel strongly about it, follow this link and sign the petition as well. I am not telling you to force our ways on these women, but I do think that by raising awareness perhaps we can save girls like Tijanniya from being tortured into a life of sadness, regret and a culture which forces her to maintain an impossible life-style.