Last week, we were shocked to read a GB News article that stated “the only reason Britain has female genital mutilation or a forced marriage problem is because of immigration”.

The narrative presented in the article is both concerning and inaccurate, as it conflates ‘honour’-based abuse, forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM) with specific cultures and faith. Let us be clear, no culture and no faith or religious text promotes or permits these practices. They are abuse and violations of human rights.

There are some who use culture and faith to excuse these practices, but many more who oppose and actively work to end them.

While there is prevalence in some groups where cases of FGM, forced marriage and HBA are identified, there are also cases that emerge from outside of these groups. As a frontline charity, working to end these forms of abuse, we see cases in broad sections of society, including white communities.

The article also fails to address the historical roots of practices such as FGM and position it as something that has been “brought into” Britain by immigrants. In fact, in the second half of the nineteenth century, doctors performed ‘clitoridectomies’ (Type 1 FGM) on women, which is the removal of the clitoris, as a way of suppressing and controlling female libido, with the most prominent advocate of this practice being the English gynaecologist Isaac Baker Brown. There were also numerous male British and American medics who also supported this practice.

The narrative of this article is dangerous, inaccurate and designed to misinform and stir up hate and division, and demonise whole communities and cultures. What is actually needed to address these issues in an educational way to allow better identification and more effective response, and recognise them as human rights violations rather than saying that culture and religion/faith are the problem, because our cultures are beautiful and not an excuse for abuse. 

To learn more about HBA and harmful practices like FGM and harmful practices, visit the Savera UK Learning Hub