The UK’s Legal approach to FGM: Challenges and consequences
By Alice Pavlou
Laws are meant to protect – but what happens when the very laws designed to shield young girls from harm end up alienating the communities they’re meant to serve? This article shines light on the ways UK laws intended to help women and girls at risk of FGM can alienate or criminalise the communities they’re meant to safeguard, and highlights the need for community-led, survivor-informed services that help women and girls affected by FGM that our organisation, Nistawi Women, provides.
Overview
The UK’s FGM Act 2003 aims to protect young girls from FGM, criminalising FGM and act of, or conspiracy to, take girls who are UK residents abroad to have FGM performed on them. Yet, over two decades later, only two convictions have been made. This raises critical questions: What factors lead authorities to suspect whether a young girl is at risk of FGM? What evidence justifies intervention to help these girls?
These are all questions raised by members of the UK Somali community who have spoken about their experiences of being wrongly arrested and having their children taken into custody, on suspicions that they had been planning to take their children abroad to have FGM performed on them. The family members claim they had been racially profiled, accused of committing an offense based on their racial identity and community background, rather than substantial evidence.
We can see that the current legislation can lead to racial profiling against innocent families. It fuels racial stereotypes and generalisations about FGM within African, Asian and Middle Eastern communities, which harms those communities and does not help to identify and treating those affected by the practice.
Instead, organisations must focus on directly engaging with affected communities: to provide education on the harms of FGM and give tailored support for the women and girls affected.
Engaging with Communities: Education, awareness, and aiding FGM survivors
Leading FGM activists like FORWARD UK advocate for engaging directly with diaspora communities to understand cultural perceptions and provide survivor support. FORWARD works at the grassroots level with African diaspora communities in the UK, conducting culturally sensitive educational programmes that foster awareness about the health consequences of FGM and dismantle misconceptions surrounding the practice.
At Nistawi, we carry this mission forward. We recognise that FGM is not just a problem within the Global South – it is a deep rooted global issue that continues to affect women and girls here in the UK.
Our work is rooted in empathy and cultural sensitivity. We provide safe, confidential support for survivors of FGM through:
- One-on-one emotional and wellbeing support for women and girls affected by FGM
- Workshops and community education sessions co-designed with healthcare professionals
- Awareness campaigns that centre survivor voices and break down stigma
- Partnerships with local services to improve access to physical and mental healthcare
At Nistawi, we know that healing begins with trust. We aim for a future where no girl is harmed and no community is criminalised for something they need support to overcome. We believe that ending FGM in the UK won’t happen through fear or surveillance. It will happen through compassion, education, community-led change and empowerment.