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www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-ban-virginity-tests
Info from the petition:
Virginity testing is a long-standing practice in the UK. In the 1970s it was reportedly carried out by immigration officials on women arriving from the Indian sub-continent to marry their British-Asian fiancés.
Now, exclusively carried out by private clinics the extent to which virginity testing goes on in the UK is unknown. However, a BBC Newsbeat investigation in 2020 identified at least 21 clinics offering such tests, as well as hymen repair surgery, costing between £1,500-£3,000, should the girl or woman fail the test. A similar investigation was also conducted by The Sunday Times which said “‘Restoring virgins’ is a big earner for British surgeons”.
Tragically, failed virginity tests can result in violence, sexual assault, banishment from the community and even honour killings. This is not something that just goes on abroad. This is a very real British problem.
The Middle Eastern Women & Society Organisation (MEWSo) is calling on the UK Government, the National Health Service and its agencies, private health clinics, health professionals and associations, local authorities and relevant voluntary organisations across the UK to put this ban into practice.
However, to ensure this practice is permanently stopped and not just driven underground, the Government, and all the agencies mentioned above, also need to make a commitment to educate health professionals, communities and school children about the myths that surround a woman’s virginity.
There also needs to be services in place to intervene and protect women and girls trying to assert their right to not be violated in this way, and who subsequently face very real dangers to their health and, in some cases, to their lives.