The following was released by the Home Office and relates to a new bill
to eradicate the practice of Female Genital Mutilation in the UK as the existing
law has been shown to be ineffective.
There is still no sign of equal protection for boys and by the wording
of note No.8 below there is an implication that if it were done for religious
reasons FGM would be viewed differently. How strange that it is alright to
sexually mutilate boys but not girls and that the sexual perversion is somehow
justified by religion.
The UK is supposed to respect human rights and apply laws with
'equality' but not so when considering the sexual abuse of boys who have no
rights or say in their sexual integrity.
Mr Blunkett is to be commended for his support for this bill but reprimanded
for his discriminatory application of care for children.
Please write to him and explain the need for equality in UK law and the
need to protect ALL children from sexual modification/mutilation.
Original government page is at:
http://index.homeoffice.gov.uk/n_story.asp?item_id=414
Write to him:-
Rt Hon David
Blunkett MP
Home Office
50 Queen Anne's
Gate
London.
SW1H 9AT
DAVID BLUNKETT BACKS NEW BILL TO OUTLAW FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION
Reference: 081/2003 - Date: 21 Mar 2003 09:53
A move to end the brutal practice of female genital mutilation has won the
backing of the Home Secretary, David Blunkett.
A Private Members Bill introduced by Ann Clwyd MP, which has its second
reading today, proposes to amend the current law to make it unlawful to take
girls abroad for genital mutilation whether or not it is lawful elsewhere. It
will also increase the maximum penalty for both performing and procuring female
genital mutilation from 5 to 14 years imprisonment.
The Home Secretary, David Blunkett said:
"Female Genital Mutilation is a barbaric practice that is rightly
illegal in this country. It cannot be justified on cultural, medical or any
other grounds. It causes extreme pain and suffering and often leads to
permanent health problems. I am determined to ensure this vile practice is
completely outlawed and I am very pleased Ann Clwyd brought forward this
Private Member’s Bill, without which I would have brought forward
Government legislation. I have visited support groups working with women who
have suffered this appalling practice and was very moved by their terrible
plight. This dreadful procedure has no place in a modern, civilised Britain.
"Female genital mutilation is an issue which affects women from a
range of different communities. Regardless of cultural background, it is
completely unacceptable and should be illegal, wherever it takes place.
"This Bill will close a loophole in the previous law by preventing
people taking young girls abroad to carry out female genital mutilation and
bring us closer to eradicating this practice entirely."
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- The Female Genital Mutilation Bill was introduced by Ann Clwyd MP on 11
December 2002 and will receive it’s second reading on 21 March 2003.
- Female genital mutilation involves procedures which include the partial or
total removal of the external female genital organs for cultural or other
non-therapeutic reasons. The practice is medically unnecessary, extremely
painful and has serious health consequences, both at the time when the
mutilation is carried out, and in later life.
- Female genital mutilation is a criminal offence in the UK under the
Prohibition of Female Circumcision Act 1985.
- The Female Genital Mutilation Bill repeals and re-enacts the provisions of
the 1985 Act and gives them extra-territorial effect as was recommended by an
All Party Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive
Health reporting in 2000. It also increases the maximum penalty, on conviction
on indictment, for FGM from 5 to 14 years imprisonment.
- Accurate information about the extent to which FGM is practised in this
country is difficult to come by because it is rarely reported to the
authorities. The most accurate view is probably that of FORWARD, which
estimates that there are 74,000 first generation African immigrant women in
the UK who have undergone FGM and as many as 7,000 girls (under 16) within the
practising communities who are at risk of FGM.
- The procedure is usually performed on girls between the ages of 4-13, but in
some cases FGM is performed on new born infants or on young women prior to
marriage or pregnancy.
- There are numerous reasons given for the practice, including custom and
tradition, religious demand, family honour, hygiene and prevention of
promiscuity. It has not been possible to determine when or where it
originated.
- The Government does not regard female genital mutilation as being
associated with any particular religion or ethnic group. Female genital
mutilation has been a traditional practice in certain communities –
primarily, though not exclusively, parts of Africa - for centuries.
- FGM has no possible physical advantages, is not called for in any religious
scripture, and is not limited to any religious group.
Crown Copyright acknowledged by SMC
© SMC 2003 Last update 21st March 2003
