Britain’s big battle against Female Genital Mutilation

Londoner Hibo Wardere, a mother of seven, still vividly remembers the day when, as a six-year-old back home in East Africa, she was marched by close relatives led by her mother for ‘the cut’.

She nearly died that day. The pain was so agonising, Hibo recalls, that she simply prayed that she should die.

Hibo demanded to know from her mother why she had been subjected to such brutality, but was met with an eerie silence.

It was not until many years later, while settled in London, that Hibo discovered she was not the only one but one of the thousands of women from Somalia, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, The Gambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo living in the United Kingdom who have gone through Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

‘The cut’ involves the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or any other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.

Hibo believed FGM was morally wrong and reprehensible, and joined hands with like-minded women in the UK to oppose the circumcision of girls.

Today, she is among prominent anti-FGM campaigners in London seeking to confine the practice to the scrapheap.

There are thousands of Eastern African diaspora women bearing the scars of the rite, or living in fear of the agony of ‘the cut’ in Britain.

An estimated 20,000 girls under 15 are at risk of FGM in the UK each year, and 66,000 women are living here with the consequences of the cut.

Girls are taken to their countries of origin so that the cultural practice can be carried out during the summer holidays, allowing them time to ‘heal’ before they return to school.

Hibo says the practice is deeply rooted in the older generation. “Even my generation cannot get away from it.”

Two decades ago, pioneering campaigners from the African and Middle Eastern diaspora launched a vociferous onslaught against FGM by holding public meetings telling women that ‘the cut’ was child abuse and an assault on their human rights.

They lobbied British politicians until the Female Genital Mutilation Act of 2003 was enacted, making it illegal to participate in any sort of arrangement for FGM to be performed on another, inside or outside the UK.

Those who are involved in any way — be it aiding, abetting, counselling, procuring or carrying out FGM inside or outside the UK — can face 14 years’ imprisonment.

The Act states in part: “A person is guilty of an offence if he excises, infibulates or otherwise mutilates the whole or any part of a girl’s labia majora, labia minora or clitoris.”

Today, several frontline organisations in Britain are fighting to wipe out FGM in Britain and across Africa. These groups include Daughters of Eve, 28 Too Many, Integrate Bristol, Orchid Project, Project Ace, Trust for London and Manor Gardens, who run the Newham FGM Prevention Service in East London. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists also play an important role in disseminating information to the communities in the UK and beyond.

In addition, the government and the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, have so far committed an equivalent of Sh221 million to fight the scourge of FGM in the UK.

Johnson is using Sh112 million (£800,000) for a project to police and crack down on the practice in vulnerable parts of the city.

The scheme targets fathers whose daughters are at risk of undergoing FGM.

Leyla Hussein, an anti-FGM campaigner from the Manor Gardens charity, welcomed the plan to target men, whom she described as “the key people in the fight against FGM because it is done for them”.

Her organisation has recruited four men to speak to community leaders about the harm caused by ‘the cut’.

“I am sick and tired of people saying it is the mother’s choice. This is a patriarchal society and the man is at the top and he needs to speak up,” she said.

The UK government has committed a further £500,000 (Sh70.4 million) to anti-FGM activities in schools. In addition, £270,000 (Sh38 million) is being used to fund the work of 17 frontline UK-based FGM community projects.

Communities Minister Stephen Williams said: “Female genital mutilation has no place in British life. We will not tolerate a practice that can lead to extreme and lifelong physical and emotional suffering to women and girls.”

Diaspora health workers and activists held events to mark the International Day of Zero Tolerance of FGM on February 6.

The Metropolitan Police carried out proactive operations at the Heathrow Airport, the country’s largest travel hub. Officials from the UK Border Force, specialists from the Metropolitan Police Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Unit collaborate to carry out preventative and detection work among incoming and outgoing flights from and to countries where FGM is prevalent.

They also carry out intelligence-led checks on passengers and searches of baggage, and engage with passengers from the African and the Arab diaspora affected by the crime.

A number of passengers arriving on a flight from Nairobi on February 6 were spoken to.

Though no offences were identified, travellers were given guidance about the risks involved with FGM.

Passengers travelling to destinations such as Ghana, Qatar and Abu Dhabi have also been given advisory leaflets.

Detective Chief Inspector Jane Scotchbrook from the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command said: “We are targeting those communities where offences of FGM are prevalent, by engaging with passengers travelling to and from countries where the offence is practised. We hope to educate and prevent anyone who may engage in FGM, as well as highlight the support available to those who may be at risk.”

Their efforts are bearing fruit as many investigations into allegations of FGM have started.

The Crown Prosecution Service, the body responsible for prosecuting criminal cases investigated by the police in England and Wales, is considering 17 possible cases.

Some 28 arrests have been made in connection with FGM since 2009, but a lot of work still needs to be done to eradicate the practice in the UK.

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