Over 2,100 sufferers of female genital mutilation (FMG) have been treated since 2010 in hospitals across London, a latest report reveals.
The statistics showed that nearly 300 women underwent surgery to recover fully and children's hospitals witnessed 12 cases of genital mutilation of girls including one girl who had been left with an 'open wound' following the ritual, reported the Evening Standard.
The total reported cases of FGM were 2,115 between 2010 and this summer, but doctors and campaigners said that the numbers could be even higher as some women do not seek any treatment. Although FGM is illegal in the U.K., the country witnessed a rise in the criminal act with nearly 66,000 women victimized and 20,000 more girls thought to be at risk.
FGM is a ritual in African countries like Mali, Somalia, Sudan and Kenya, and also in few Middle Eastern countries. FGM is a ritual where clitoris of young girls is cut with scissors, blades or knives. Families following the ritual maintain that removal of clitoris controls sexual pleasure.
According to the Daily Mail, British girls, some as young as five, are taken to the African or Middle Eastern countries for FGM. Doctors said that the increasing numbers are a matter of concern. "These statistics show a very significant number of women are being treated for FGM, but there are still lots out there who are not being identified because they don't know where to go for help, aren't being referred by GPs or are too scared to come forward. "I'm really worried about girls, in particular. Where are they going to seek help? The GPs who are their first point of call often don't have the knowledge. We also need teachers and lecturers to do more to at least signpost girls towards help," Dr Comfort Momoh, a specialist in treating FGM who runs the African Well Woman's Clinic at St Thomas' Hospital told the Evening Standard.
Dr Momoh explained that FGM can have dangerous consequences both physical and psychological.
