FGM in the UK, illegal since 1985 but no prosecutions, how can we change this?

[OvaryAction]

I have just read this article stating that two people have been arrested for performing Female Genital Mutilation on a baby less than two months old.

The UK's efforts to end FGM are being seriously held back by a lack of national strategy or action plan. There are plenty of guidelines out there for teachers, midwives, social workers, police and so on, but they are not obligatory reading and many people in positions where they could identify victims and girls and women at risk are simply not aware of the problem or the role they could play in fixing it. this documentary explains this problem very well and the woman presenting it has created a petition asking the home office to act now and create an effective national action plan.

Please, please sign it and share it. FGM breaches numerous human rights including the right to no torture, inhuman or degrading treatment and causes lifelong physical and psychological trauma to it's survivors. In some cases FGM is fatal.

bumping for the evening crowd.

86,737 signatures so far, so still a way to go to reach the required 100,000.

Signed. Yes I am surprised there are not more posts on this thread, and maybe a Mumsnet campaign? It is absolutely horrific.

Can only think people aren't clicking on it because of either:

1. the horrible subject matter, which they don't want to think about.
2. misguided political correctness, ie they might think it's a 'cultural practice' which should be left up to those particular communities to deal with. Well stuff that!

If a new religious cult sprang up where they decided it was a good idea to cut off their children's little fingers as a sign of faith, would this be equally ignored by the authorities - don't think so. Its because its kept hidden and affects girls only. But these are children being mutilated who have no choice in the matter.

I read somewhere that there have been no known cases of adult women who have somehow bypassed FGM in childhood, choosing to have in done voluntarily in adulthood. So that tells you a lot. Why is it acceptable to inflict on children?

Signed

Its squeamishness about all matter involving the dreaded vagina that's stopping any one being prosecuted for this. If folk were cutting off the ends of fingers or toes it'd be being prosecuted left, right and centre. As a country we really are shit about being able to talk about our genitals, especially the female set.
I work in sexual health and am constantly horrified by the number of adult women who won't touch their own genitals or who can't tell me if they have symptoms because they don't like looking.
There's a really strong current of mysogyny in our culture that's led to even women feeling that the vagina and all its accessory parts are tainted and dirty. This is the rock that dark deads like FMG are carried out under. We need to educate everyone, from childhood and create a much more open culture where folk feel able to talk about FMG.

I read this last week and it made me really very angry indeed:

www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/young-girls-brought-to-scotland-for-illegal-mutilation.22703312

86,781 signatures. How many mumsnetters are there?

Cross posts with you Nadia, you're right. Its all hidden away in girls' underwear so it can be hidden and ignored.
I really don't want to live in country where people are bringing their children to be mutilated because we all turn a blind eye.
Or maybe that's not fair because if I came across a family who I suspected might be at risk of FMG I would have absolutely no idea who to talk to about it or how to get help, barring what I've learned at work. So maybe its not turning a blind eye more not knowing what to do and that's where some kind of national strategy and education campaign would come in.

in my dc's nursery is a little girl whose parents are from an african area where fgm is common.
I sometimes think I should broach it with the nurses, but am unsure how to do it without sounding too judgey.

It is certainly needed, MrsWedge.

Your professional perspective is certainly interesting, and have the authorities really given you no official guidelines on this? That's terrible. The government must do more.

Would it be worth re-posting the petition with a different title to get more signatures? I've signed and shared on FB but maybe the thread title needs to be more petition-specific.

I can't imagine anyone being unwilling to sign tbh.

Signed!

Mnyouclever maybe you're onto something there! But it is up to the OP to change it , I suppose. Does anyone know how many members MN has?

I'm sure its something like 1. million. So we could get a few more signatures.

Signed! Can't believe it's allowed to go on :(

Sorry, you (Branleuse / Madasafish) seem to be getting very wound up about this and I think you're missing the point.

There is no limit to how wound up I can get about this issue.
There is also simply no way a reasonable person could in any way equate circumcision with this hideous, often fatal, and life-destroying mutilation, which derives from culture, not religion (though religion has been roped in as a justification, without cause).

Bump!

OP - I thought it was great of you to start this thread with an excellent original post, and that the current title is good, and you would have thought it would be enough to get loads of signatures. But it keeps dropping off the front page, so maybe you could try Mnyouclever's suggestion? It's worth trying anything? Maybe something like 'Baby girl mutilated in the UK - Please urgently sign the petition to stop this happening?' Perhaps people just glance at it and imagine 'you can help' is a request for donations? My laptop is playing up, so I couldn't PM you this.

Signed

Hi, I've messaged MNHQ and asked to change the title and have asked if they would consider starting a campaign.

Brilliant, Ovary. Will you let us know if they reply re campaign?

Of course!

Signed

Nadia, we have training on FMG in work and I would be pretty confident about getting it passed to the right people if I came across it there but in my home life or among my friends I wouldn't know where to turn and I think that would go for the majority of people.

If you suspect a child is at risk of FGM the NSPCC has recently launched a national helpline

Number for NSPCC FGM helpline: 0800 028 3550

Dedicated email address: [email protected].

If someone is in immediate danger you should call 999

The minute you dilute that focus to talk about (unrelated, culturally different and specifically religiously mandated) male circumcision you are going to render the FGM campaign less effective.

Hear! Hear! Why is this issue always being piggy-backed by the anti-circ crowd?

The Alpha Parent posted a link to the petition on her Facebook page and was jumped on by the "what about baby boys" brigade. FFS.

Thanks for that OP. The fact that I work in a related field and didn't know that really highlights the need for better education.

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