#FGM has become a pressing issue in Australia, Canada, England, France, and the U.S., because of immigrants continuing to practice the procedures that were common in their native countries
hide page
#FGM has become a pressing issue in Australia, Canada, England, France, and the U.S., because of immigrants continuing to practice the procedures that were common in their native countries
Approx 140 million girls and women live with the consequences of #FGM worldwide
#FGM is defined as procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.
Laila, not her real name, recounts escaping from her parents, who had arranged for her sister Homa, 16, also not her real name, to marry a much older man against her will
Looking back, life could have been very different for me and my two younger sisters if our schools had taught us about our right not to face “honour” based violence and forced marriage, had understood what we were going through so that they could have properly supported us, and if they’d informed us about help that was available.
I was born in Iran. I felt lucky, as unlike some parents, my mum and dad’s dreams were no less for us because we are girls. They wanted us to attend university and have careers. My dad was politically active and when I was 11, it had become too dangerous for us to live in Iran, so we fled to Cyprus. Soon afterwards my mother was diagnosed with Leukaemia. We were sent to the UK so that she could receive treatment. When I was 12 she passed away.
Everything changed when, within a year, dad remarried. My stepmother, who had been a child bride at 13, had strict ideas about girls and she brainwashed dad. We were forbidden to hang out with friends, she controlled what we wore and all three of us, even Maryam who was only six, had to cook, clean, and look after her two sons and the baby she’d had with dad. She was training us to be good housewives and we lived under constant threat that if we did not behave as expected, we’d be sent to Iran to be married off by our uncles.
Read More: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/laila-survivor-ambassador/honour-violence-and-forced-marriages_b_6040442.html?utm_hp_ref=uk
Over 50 surviours showed up at Monday’s “Circle of Firends” meeting to share their stories.
Empowerment for those who need help, Halo supports victims by providing not just a voice but change and improved outcomes by sharing survivor stories with providers enabling meaningful change and increased understanding through awareness programmes.
MORE than 20 investigations have been launched over allegations of honour-based violence and forced marriage in the Cambridge area in one year, it has been revealed.
The Cambridgeshire Constabulary was the second force in the country to launch a hotline for victims of the crime in 2007 and has since dealt with some harrowing incidents.
In one case, a young girl was removed against her will from one country to another and forced into marriage. She was rescued from the situation and made safe.
Another woman in an arranged marriage was mentally abused by her husband before she contacted the force. Officers helped her to flee with her children to a place of safety.
Force chiefs said honour-based crimes can be complex and often go unreported because some victims do not feel they can approach the police.
Nearly 500 females were newly identified as having been subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) in one month, according to newly released figures.
The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) said 467 patients treated at reporting acute NHS hospital trusts in England were found to have undergone the illegal procedure in September.
The data also showed that 1,279 female patients previously identified as having been subjected to FGM were being treated at the end of last month.
The findings are the first official figures to have been published on the numbers of FGM cases seen in hospitals in England, with 125 of the 160 acute hospital trusts in England returning data for September.
The HSCIC said the results were a “first step” towards understanding how many females have been subject to genital mutilation, but added that the data only included cases reported by acute hospital trusts.
Read more: http://www.stroudnewsandjournal.co.uk/news/national/11540920.Data_highlights_500_new_FGM_cases/
Staff in two children’s centres in Islington in London have undertaken training to help them recognise children who might be at risk of FGM, and to be able to reach out to parents in practising communities.
The training, arranged by Manor Gardens, a local charity, forms part of a wider council programme aimed at protecting girls from the practice. If successful, Islington Council plans to roll out training to all 16 of its children’s centres.
The training comes as the NSPCC raises concerns that girls are being subjected to FGM at a younger age because parents are becoming wise to the fact that teachers are now more aware of the issue.
Read More: http://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1147497/children-centre-staff-trained-spot-signs-fgm
The “Honoring our Heartbeats” tour to end forced marriages in the U.S. stopped in Houston on Thursday with a community forum and performance to highlight the issue.
In partnership with Houston NGO’s Daya and Voices Breaking Boundaries, the Tahirih Justice Center and Pomegranate Tree Group brought to life on stage a comic book about breaking free from a cycle of violence.
“We look at it as a love letter to our communities. This comic book (and performance) is an opportunity for the community to heal together,” said Farrah Khan with Pomegranate Tree Group.
Read More: http://abc13.com/family/forced-marriage-takes-center-stage-at-conference/354028/
