I Want To Undergo Female Circumcision. What Does The Law Say?

Before you wonder how it is even possible for a woman to want to undergo female circumcision, there are stories about brides who engage in the practice for various reasons; one of them being the desire to be made ‘virgins again’.

It’s been reported that there are women opting to undergo female circumcision which is widely known as female genital mutilation (FGM) a month or two before their wedding to pretend to be virgins even though they had already had the procedure done. Some of the women interviewed said that their fiancés would never have trusted them if they discovered that they have had sex before their wedding day.

WHAT IS FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION?

Female genital mutilation (FGM), refers to much more than just any cutting of the female gentalia, it refers to any alternations made to the original form of the gentalia. The World Health Organization actually describes it as “any procedure that injures the female genital organs for non-medical reasons”

WHAT IF I ALLOW IT TO BE DONE TO ME WITHOUT BEING FORCED?

It is worth noting that Uganda has a law called the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act, 2010. This law prohibits and punishes offenders who practice FGM and seeks to protect victims as well as girls and women under threat of female genital mutilation.

According to this law, even if there is consent by the victim, this is no defence for a person is found carrying out FGM. Even carrying out FGM on yourself is a crime punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years.

In today’s age where women rally behind the “My body, my choice” campaign, do you think women should be allowed to undergo any practices that alter the form of their genitalia if they choose to?

Women who want to pretend to be virgins before their weddings are having “re-circumcision” in Sudan.

Source: Barefoot Lawyers- Uganda.