Hansard

I am pleased to contribute to this debate to mark international day of zero tolerance for female genital mutilation, and I pay tribute to Margaret McCulloch for securing the parliamentary time for this important and deeply disturbing issue.

The campaign against FGM was originally an African-led movement, but awareness of FGM has greatly increased in recent years, thanks to the tireless efforts of campaigners such as those to whom Malcolm Chisholm referred, who have brought this hidden horror out of the shadows.

The horrific experience of FGM has psychological and physical aftershocks that reverberate for many girls, from adolescence to adulthood. It is understandable that girls and women who feel shamed by the stigma and traumatised into silence by what has happened to them are often reluctant to speak out about their ordeals.

However, some survivors have shared their experiences. Their accounts shake us to the very core. Girls in their infancy—trusting, unknowing and unable to defend themselves—are typically circumcised with a range of implements, without anaesthesia, in a non-sterile environment, and with no appropriate aftercare. Some girls bleed to death. Others are left with debilitating pain and complications that afflict them for the rest of their lives.

Some parents are complicit in this so-called rite of passage. Others have no idea what their daughters have been subjected to. The perpetrator is often someone who is in a position of trust in the family or local community—someone whom a child would not instinctively fear. Victims are reassured with meaningless platitudes about favourable prospects and promises of good husbands.

FGM is not a rite of passage. On the contrary, it is a gross violation of human rights and of the very essence of womanhood.

In the United Kingdom, a woman is barbarically cut every 96 minutes—indeed, the situation is feared to be much worse. FGM is a silent and often unreported crime, so we must assume that the figure is considerably higher.

I applaud the UK Government and the Scottish Government for their efforts and initiatives to eliminate this horrendous practice in our home nations. It is my sincere hope that we can build on that momentum in the months and years to come.

Figures from UNICEF show that the scale of FGM across the globe is much worse than international organisations first thought. Previously, it was estimated that 125 million girls worldwide had been cut, but in the past few days UNICEF disclosed that that number is shockingly higher and closer to 200 million. UNICEF warns that, with increasing population growth, the number of girls and women who undergo FGM will rise significantly over the next 15 years. That is an appalling prospect.

Malian musician and FGM survivor Inna Modja bravely shared her experience of cutting and its aftermath with the United Nations last Saturday. She said:

“I felt that I would never become a woman because I had something missing and I wasn’t worth it. It took a lot away from what I could achieve as a teenager and what I could realize as a teenager. So I lost my identity when I went through FGM. I didn’t know who I was. I didn’t know ... how strong I could be because cutting me was telling me that I’m not good enough.”

FGM dates back to antiquity. Millions upon millions of women have been subjected to it, have suffered from it and have been devalued by it. We now have an opportunity to empower and protect not just a new generation of women but their children and their children’s children.

This is our call to action. Let us unite to end a barbaric anachronism and, in doing so, let us give hope to women, their daughters and the unborn girls of the future.