Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is an illegal action under UK law and has been so for decades. FGM has no medical or cosmetic benefit and is purely undertaken by male dominated, often Islamic, societies in order to control women’s sexuality. FGM robs a woman of the ability to feel sexual pleasure, is dangerous, causes lethal infections and complicates the already difficult process of childbirth. It is not something that women choose to do to their own bodies and neither is it something that can be compared to male circumcision, which is a very minor procedure when compared to the wholesale removal of nearly all of a woman’s external sexual organs which is what occurs in FGM. It’s right that it is banned, but what is wrong is the fact that there has never been a successful prosecution for FGM.
The CPS, the police and other agencies have been far too willing to tiptoe round the issue of FGM for fear of ‘offending’ the very cultures that practise FGM. FGM is a truly misogynist practise and not enough is being done by our cowardly police, cowardly social services and cowardly NHS to stamp this practise out. The number of FGM cases in London in particular is truly horrific.
A report by the charity The Trust for London has found that 2.1% of London’s female population were afflicted by FGM. What is worse is that when you drill down into the figures in order to understand the numbers you will find that this makes this 2.1% figure even more horrifying.
The numbers of women afflicted by FGM in London are truly staggering and are probably getting worse. As of 2009 the female population of London was said to be 3.9 Million. When you look at what 2.1% of 3.9 Million women is, you end up with a figure of 81,900 London women living with the effects of FGM.
If there were 81,900 people in London who were getting killed in traffic accidents then there would be an outcry and action would be taken. If there were 81,900 women in London who were victims of domestic violence, then something would be done. If there were 81,900 women who were victims of rapists, then something would be done. However, because the disgusting practise of FGM is seen as ‘cultural’, there appears to be a reluctance on the part of the authorities to deal with this matter.
Despite FGM itself being illegal for decades and despite more recent legislation criminalising taking girls overseas for mutilation, there have still been zero prosecutions. There appears to be an extreme reluctance on the part of the authorities to enforce the law in this area, despite other nations, such as France, being able to do so. A slavish adherence to the ideology of multiculturalism among the political movers and shakers coupled possibly with a fear of ‘stirring up the Islamic savages’, has brought us to this disgusting and shameful situation.
A misplaced desire to be fair to all and to see all cultures as equal has brought about a situation where tens of thousands of London women are victimised and not one damn thing has been done about it. FGM, along with ‘honour killing’ and forced marriage and extreme misogyny are just some of the poisonous fruits of the tree of Islam and of cultures that have been influenced by Islam. By allowing this accursed tree to take root on British soil we as a society have condemned far too many women to oppression and mutilation.
We need to say to minority groups ‘damn your culture’, and start arresting, charging and convicting those who approve of, facilitate or carry out FGM. Let us see no more of this disgusting and abject cowardice by the authorities when confronted with the appalling reality of FGM.
The great irony of this story is that the Metropolitan Police are far more likely to arrest and charge someone who calls the Islamic ‘prophet’ a paedophile or who questions aspects of Islam in Britain or who marches against an unwanted mosque, than they are to arrest or charge those involved in FGM.
It’s quite obvious to me, and many others, that when it comes to dealing with FGM in London, the Metropolitan Police are not fit for purpose.
Links and data sources
Trust For London – Figures showing the prevalence of FGM in London and the rest of the UK.
Demographic data for London as of 2009 from the office of the Mayor of London
Facebook page for one of the Stop FGM campaigns
https://www.facebook.com/STOPFGMUK
France’s tough stance against FGM appears to be working according to the Guardian
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/feb/10/france-tough-stance-female-genital-mutilation-fgm
I wonder how many are adults who had it done before coming here?
“It’s quite obvious to me, and many others, that when it comes to dealing with FGM in London, the Metropolitan Police are not fit for purpose.”
The metropolitan police are not fit for purpose… period!!!