Liverpool: Doctor: I Saw Horror of FGM
A MERSEYSIDE doctor has spoken of the horrific results of female genital mutilation (FGM) that she saw while caring for patients in Kenya.
Tina Buckley, a former surgical doctor at Arrowe Park hospital, said she was shocked not only at the extent of the appalling practice, which is widespread in east Africa, but also at the results, which included death.
Dr Buckley said that while caring for maternity patients in one area of the country all but one patient she saw had been circumcised.
She said: “The procedure is often referred to as female genital mutilation, and having seen the results in patients who attended my obstetric clinic, mutilation is the most accurate description.”
Dr Buckley was speaking out after the ECHO this week revealed that girls from African communities in Liverpool were still undergoing FGM in the UK and after being flown to Africa.
Dr Buckley said in its worst form much more flesh is cut off by the razor blades, causing immediate and long-term harm.
She said: “Some will bleed to death.
“Methods of stopping bleeding are primitive and ineffective. Others will develop infection which can lead to blood poisoning and death at a later stage.
“Long term, the problems I encountered in victims include difficulty passing urine, severe menstrual pain, emotional difficulties in responding to one’s partner and obstructed childbirth.
“In the months I spent working in Kenya, I saw only one maternity patient who was not circumcised.”
Dr Buckley, who has a diploma from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, explained that girls and their families were pressured to maintain the FGM tradition.
She said: “In tribal thinking, circumcision is designed to remove sensory nerves and reduce the ‘risk’ of infidelity.
“If a woman cannot associate physical intimate contact with anything pleasant, it is thought she is less likely to stray.
“Some tribal men I spoke to said they’d be worried if married to a non-circumcised woman.
“Other younger men say the tradition of FGM is a terrible one.
“As young African women become more educated and better informed, some are refusing circumcision.
“But sadly many girls are unable to defend themselves. As a result many girls are powerless against a culture that expects this of them.”
Anyone who suspects a child is at risk of FGM can call the police in confidence on 0151-777 4589. For advice and support Liverpool’s FGM advocacy worker – who speaks Somali – can be reached on 0151-296 7430. Alternatively visit www.fgm-liverpool.org
Source: Liverpool Echo – 7 February 2008
