News

Laura MacDonald
(This page does not contain medical advice)

Woman prosecuted for circumcising her baby

Wednesday 17th March 2010
A mother in the American state of Georgia has been charged with genital mutilation and second degree cruelty after relatives spotted during nappy changes that her 10 month old baby girl appeared to be missing something.

It is not yet known what form of female circumcision is alleged, and it's important to recognise that it may have been comparable to the form of male circumcision which America practises on most of its sons.

Female genital mutilation is defined by the World Health Organisation as a procedure or procedures that “intentionally alter or injure female genital organs for non-medical reasons”. Rather like traditional male circumcision then!?

WHO has categorised FGM into 7 specific types plus a broad grouping - type IV - which covers other forms which do not involve removing tissue. This list clearly - and uncomfortably for many feminists who have cut their sons - reveals that female circumcision can involve similar damage to male circumcision, and indeed can be much less severe.

Type Ia, removal of the clitoral hood or prepuce only
Type Ib, removal of the clitoris with the prepuce.
Type IIa, removal of the labia minora only
Type IIb, partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora
Type IIc, partial or total removal of the clitoris, the labia minora and the labia majora.
Type IIIa, removal and apposition of the labia minora
Type IIIb, removal and apposition of the labia majora.
Type IV — All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterization.

The latest interagency statement on FGM puts type IV "nicking" as one of the most prevalent forms of FGM.

A classic case of the double standards around genital cutting is seen in Israel, where almost every male has undergone an involuntary 'circumcision' depriving him permanently of the joy and function of his foreskin....yet the Bedouin community has been persuaded to abandon the 'genital mutilation' they practice - which involves making a small incision in their daughter's clitoral hood (her foreskin).

Another case of blatant double standards emerged in a recent US Appeal Court judgement. An Indonesian couple had initially been denied asylum which they had claimed on the basis that a younger daughter might be circumcised if they returned home (the eldest was reportedly circumcised as a 5 day old baby on her grandmother's demand). Appeal court judges overturned this ruling, stating that the "attempt to parse the distinction between differing forms of female genital mutilation is not only a threat to the rights of women in a civilized society, but also runs counter to [established] precedent." They added, "there's no such thing as mild female genital mutilation."

To put this into context one needs to understand that the prevalent form of female genital mutilation in Indonesia is a type Ia circumcision which removes the tip of her clitoral foreskin. In other words it's rather similar to the surgery that was begun on more than 20 American boys during the time it's taken you to read this article.

As a male infant circumcision can take 15 minutes or more to complete - and is unlikely to be anaesthetised - long after you stop reading about genital mutilation he's still screaming about it.