'Circumcision season': Philippine rite puts boys under pressureThe Philippines has one of the highest rates of male circumcision in the world. Yet even as circumcision comes under increasing scrutiny around the world, with critics branding it "child abuse", it is rarely questioned in the Philippines and boys face tremendous pressure undergo the procedure. He was among 1,500 boys who underwent the procedure in one city near Manila, but the scenes are similar in clinics nationwide. "To get circumcised is probably the essence of being a man... for boys, circumcision is necessary to be called a man," Joana Nobleza told AFP after her 11-year-old son Carlos underwent the operation. Male circumcision tends to be more common in nations with significant Muslim or Jewish populations, and less so in Catholic majority places.

Source: Standard Digital June 19, 2019 03:22 UTC