I was totally sad when my anatomy professor misunderstood our circumcision in Islam for female. it was quite unacceptable when he described that Islam's way of circumcision is similar to the one that had been done in Africa. But, i know that he doesn't understand a thing and it was not his fault. and i must admit that it was my fault for not knowing the detail of Islamic circumcision and correct him in the first place.
In this post I won't talk about whether it is sunnah or fardh for female circumcision. I will emphasise on what differs between Islam and those that were done in Africa (which has been labelled by the westerners as cruel and child/woman abuse).
These are the types of circumcision done by some tribes in africa
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/FGC_Types.jpg
I've asked this question to my mother and she said that. compared to Islam, only a very small proportion of the prepuce of clitoris is cut off. thus, it will not bring any harm to the woman during intercourse.
From the image that you can see in the link above, you should get some kind of idea and the differences between Islamic circumcision and the ones that had been done by some uncivilized tribe. the harsh and ridiculous types of circumcision will sure bring harm to the woman. during intercourse especially, the scar can be torn and plus the nerve that circulates at the clitoris (dorsal nerve of clitoris) will surely damaged. so, if you hear any criticism about Islam abuses woman, than you will know what to say =)