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Scandinavian countries stamping out FGM

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - When she was 11, a Swedish-born girl was taken on vacation to her mother's native Somalia. The mother wanted to "make her daughter clean" and paid a man to cut off her daughter's clitoris and labia while two women held her down.
Afterward, the girl was stitched to her urethra.

No anesthesia was used.

Last year, at age 19, a Swedish court convicted the mother for those illegal acts, awarding the victim record demages.

Good news that religious freedom laws aren't getting in the way of prosecuting this hideous act.

Edit:

Link: http://tinyurl.com/luyudw Thanks Jack for pointing out the missing link.

Tags: FGM, female, freedom, genital, mutilation, religious

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Luke on September 20, 2009 at 9:05pm

Sorry Jake http://tinyurl.com/luyudw

Permalink Reply by Jo Jerome on September 21, 2009 at 1:47pm

If I'm not mistaken, it's not even in the Q'uran or traditional Muslim teachings. It's a cultural thing added in later and got absorbed by/associated with Islam.

Religious nutjobs are bad enough. But then they go making shit up outside of their own doctrine.

Permalink Reply by Luke on September 21, 2009 at 6:27pm

Australia is letting the side down.

SMH article:

Permalink Reply by Luke on September 21, 2009 at 8:18pm

I emailed the immigration minister:

To: senator.evans@aph.gov.au
Senator Evans

I would like to draw your attention to this Sydney Morning Herald article:
http://www.smh.com.au/national/ordered-from-australia-to-face-mutil...
I am sure you are more than familiar with this case.

I would also like to draw your attention to this Global Post story which you may not have read:
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/europe/090916/scandinavia-female...

These Scandinavian countries have drawn a line in the sand. They are clearly telling the world that cultural traditions are no excuse for terrible personal harm to powerless young people.

As I am sure you understand, FGM is sometimes mis-named Female Circumcision which makes people imagine that it is the removal of a small piece of skin and it does no harm. This is not the case. The labia minora and clitoris are removed completely. The stump of nerves to the removed clitoris form a painful scar. The labia majora is then sewn shut. This is all done without surgical sanitation or anaesthetic. There is risk of infection to these external wounds and also infection to the womb as menstrual blood is unable to properly drain.

This said to be done to improve male sexual pleasure and to ensure that the woman has not had sex before marriage. Two reprehensible reasons to do anything.

Australia is a country of intelligent compassion. Could we please join Scandinavian countries and send a clear message to Kenya that FGM is not acceptable to this nation.

Thank you for your time.

Luke