United Kingdom’s Home Office has launched an awareness campaign designed to help eradicate the horrific crime of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
The campaign sends a powerful message that communities should protect children from people who carry out this horrific practice, as it is child abuse and this will not be tolerated in the UK.
Ending FGM
Through the tagline ‘Let’s Protect our Girls’, the Government want to ensure young girls and families know about the life altering health consequences of FGM. These can include: Childbirth complications, Period problems, Scarring, Mental health issues and Urinary infections.
Home Secretary Sajid Javid said: “Female Genital Mutilation has no place in modern society. It is repulsive, unethical and leaves victims with emotional and physical scars that last a lifetime.
“We have launched this important campaign to make it clear to everyone that the practice is illegal and has serious health consequences. I urge everyone to help protect girls at risk by spreading the messages.”
The design and messaging of the campaign was created in consultation with FGM victims and activists including the NSPCC, Forward UK, Midaye Somali Women’s Network, The Girl Generation and IKWRO.
The messages will be amplified using targeted print and radio adverts and materials will be distributed directly into communities where FGM is more prevalent. The campaign will also include recruiting FGM ambassadors and engaging with organisations on the ground to support its messaging.
FGM is illegal
The campaign will signpost people who want more information to the NSPCC’s helpline and website where they can find further help. This can be found at http://nspcc.org.uk/fgm or by contacting the free, anonymous helpline on 0800 028 3550.
John Cameron, NSPCC Head of Helplines, said: “We know from calls to our dedicated helpline that Female Genital Mutilation is still affecting hundreds of girls in the UK. Sadly, the true picture of how many are affected is unknown because for far too long, FGM has been cloaked in secrecy.
“We hope this campaign will help to end the silence that surrounds FGM by encouraging young people and any adults worried about them to speak out and get help. By joining forces across communities, we can bring an end to this dangerous and illegal practice.”
The campaign comes after NHS England statistics released in July show that between April 2017 and March this year, 6,195 individual women and girls had FGM identified or treatment related to it.
However, FGM is still a hidden crime. A 2015 prevalence study by City University and Equality Now, which was part-funded by the Home Office, estimated that 137,000 women and girls who have migrated to England and Wales are living with the consequences of FGM.
The campaign will be placed into communities where, according to these statistics, FGM may be most prevalent. These include Sudanese, Somalian, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Egyptian, Iraqi, Gambian and Nigerian communities.
The husband and two children of Sarian Karim Kamara feature in the campaign. The mother-of-five was just 11-years-old when she became an FGM victim, which later meant she suffered complications during childbirth.
Sarian said: “Efforts to end FGM is something every man and woman in society should be engaged in. FGM is, quite simply, child abuse.”
The campaign is the latest action the Government is taking to tackle so-called ‘Honour-Based Violence.’
This includes:
- introducing a new offence of failing to protect a girl from FGM;
- extending the reach of extra territorial offences;
- introducing lifelong anonymity for victims of FGM;
- introducing civil FGM Protection Orders; and
- introducing a mandatory reporting duty for known cases of FGM in under 18s.