What do New Zealanders think of...?

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Tania C

The only male in my family (including my partner, father, brother, son and three nephews) who has been circumcised, had it done for a specific medical reason. Personally, (I'm a pakeha (European) NZer) I don't see it as necessary - I have no cultural reason for having my son circumcised, and although there are some reported medical benefits (like reductions in transmission of STDs), I'm not convinced that those benefits outweigh the benefits of keeping the foreskin - both for normal penile health and for enjoyment later in life (if you know what I mean).

Rates are low generally in NZ - 10-20%. But, there are higher rates amongst Pacific Island communities here - reported rates get up towards 100% - and, of course, Jewish and Muslim communities. I've included links to a few articles you might find interesting - from both sides of the debate.

daisyrose

many doctors here will not have a bar of it ,,,really i non't think it practise here some culture do it,, but it rare..

dookie

Its not commonly done as far as i can tell, not like in the US or for Jewish people.

atlantisflicka

There is a big movement against it here, but not sure why as I think it is a good practice. My partner had to fake religious reasons to have his son circumcised, most doctors will not do it.

Driver T

It's unnecessary, it's obscene, it's barbaric, it's torture of some smaller than the perpetrator (that is called bullying), and it's done in the name of God. Huh - some God who approves of this sort of thing.

The anatomical reason for a foreskin is to protect the very sensitive glans from injury and unintentional contact with external objects.
About 30% of all males born in western countries are circumcised, and 70% of those are American.
An American doctor recently came out with all the tired old "reasons" why the practise should be done, and made very emphatic points. BUT a look at his name at the end of the article showed that he was Jewish, and he was only parroting what Jews have been saying for 5000 years.

I don't know how much male circumcision is done in NZ, but I'd venture to suggest that it's a small number. After all, why copy the Americans only because they are copying the Jews.
Female circumcision is outlawed by the UN and illegal in most countries, even those that practise it widely. It's carried out for the nearly the same reasons, but it's still unnecessary.

I suspect that the real reason why it came about is that the church and tribal elders did not like to think that the nerve endings situated in both the clitoris and the glans may give that person a bit of sexual pleasure, and wow, we wouldn't want that, would we.

mareeclara

It used to be commonly done and I think most men over the age of say 35 would have had it done...now the practice is for parental preferance or religious reasons...or if there is a medical need. My brother who is 30 this year was circumcised at 4 as he kept getting infections in that region and it was to prevent further infections.

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