A CAMPAIGNING women’s group says it has noticed shifting attitudes towards female genital mutilation (FGM) in Camden.
But the “inhuman” cultural practice – where young girls’ genitalia is slashed, torn and sewn tight – remains part of everyday life for some Somalis living in the borough.
Based in Grafton Road, Kentish Town, women at the British Somali Group have campaigned since the early 1990s to raise awareness and break down taboos blocking debate.
FGM, which causes deep-rooted psychological damage and physical pain, is illegal in this country but for years young women have been taken back to their homeland for the operation.
Speaking in St Martin’s Community Hall in Carol Street on Monday, FGM expert Fadu Hussein said: “I don’t think that it is good to be a refugee in a country – but I am happy about what I am seeing. People are mixing with different groups of people and they are seeing other women who do not do this.
“FGM is deep-rooted in our community, but the mood is changing. I can see light at the end of the tunnel. Girls are looking at other girls and seeing that it is inhuman – interfering with the body for no medical reason.”
She said Somali men enforced FGM it to “create a sort of virginity” or “a cleanness”. Ms Hussein said: “People are beginning to realise that there is no religious obligation. It is not in the Quran.”
Experts from the Royal Free Hospital attended Monday’s seminar and warned about a rise in Somalian women who have contracted the hepatitis C.
The seminar heard details of the appalling conditions in which girls are subjected to FGM – often in group sessions, with the same utensils.
Source: Camden New Journal Website
No comments:
Post a Comment