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| Midwives wait for the next girl to be brought in, Indonesia |
Earlier this week it was decided in Parliament that extra measures would be taken in order to protect girls living in the UK (permanently
and habitually) from
Female Genital Mutilation. If a girl is suspected to be at risk, the government now have the authority to confiscate her passport so that she cannot be taken out of the country and subject her to mandatory medical examinations so that they can check if she has been a victim of the practice. These new measures were introduced as part of the amendments to the serious crime bill; parents now have a legal duty to protect their daughters from mutilation or they'll face prosecution. An estimated 137,000 women and girls in England and Wales have been affected by FGM, most before they reach puberty; and 65,000 are at risk this year. But with so many of our girls falling victim to infection, infertility and even death as a result of it each day, why do we know so little about FGM?
