Hampshire study finds most African diaspora view FGM as abuse

The first study to explore African women’s attitudes to female genital mutilation (FGM) reveals that more than half the women interviewed view FGM as abuse.

Out of 55 women interviewed from African diaspora communities in Portsmouth and Southampton, 60 per cent opposed the practice, which involves the removal by force of all or part of the clitoris and closure of the vagina, to ensure the virginity of young girls in preparation for marriage.

Some 170,000 women and girls are estimated to be living with FGM in the UK and it has been estimated that over 20,000 girls under the age of 15 are at risk of the practice.

In partnership with the University of Portsmouth, the study was carried out by the Southern Domestic Abuse Service and the African Women’s Forum, a support group for people of African and Caribbean descent who live in Portsmouth and the surrounding areas.

Research consultant Dr Tamsin Bradley said: “The level of trauma associated with a woman’s own experience of the practice is really significant in shaping her attitude to FGM.  A large number of the women interviewed opposed FGM because they were acutely aware of the long-term health complications that women suffer.

“This research is a small study so we can’t draw wide conclusions concerning the whole of the African diaspora communities in Portsmouth and Southampton but it’s an important step forward, which we hope will contribute to eradicating the practice of FGM.”

Marie Costa, Chairwoman of the African Women’s Forum, said: “We must help stop the practice of FGM, which ostracises families who do not conform to it, through support for those who have been mutilated and education of all community groups who culturally practice FGM.

“The report shows the need for positive and effective action between local community groups and statutory agencies to address and support all women from this physical abuse.”

The study revealed that girls in the Guinean, Somali and Gambian communities appear to be more vulnerable to the procedure than others such as the Senegalese community.

One of the 40 per cent who support FGM, a Gambian woman who went through the procedure when she was five years old, said: “It was very traumatic; I can still recall it now. I do not blame my mother but just accept that it is part of my tradition. It is very painful and problematic for women but if I have a daughter I would put her through it because it is part of our cultural identity.”

Dr Bradley said many women feared social marginalisation and felt obliged to conform with community expectations and traditions.

She said: “This study aims to shine a light on an under-researched cultural practice which is causing suffering and pain. It is important to challenge the normalisation of FGM and give women from ethnic minority communities a voice.”

The project was funded by the Rosa Trust, a charitable fund set up to support initiatives that benefit women and girls in the UK. It is intended that the findings will be used to inform and influence local policy making and the provision of services that meet the specific needs of girls and women who have experienced or are at risk of FGM.