Australian Toddler Flown By Father To Africa To Undergo Clitoral Circumcision
According to a new report a girl between the age of four and seven has been flown to Africa by her father to undergo a clitoral circumcision in line with an ancient Muslim ritual which calls for this kind of practice.
The Guardian Australia reported that the Australian Federal Police is investigating reports of a Brisbane girl being taken from her home to undergo the genital mutilation in Africa, accompanied by her father.
While the girl and her father are Australian citizens, they also hold citizenship in Sierra Leone where they were born. According to the report, the pair first flew to Sierra Leone and then on to Gambia, in order have the procedure carried out before Christmas.
An AFP spokeswoman confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that they were investigating the allegations. “AFP has received a referral in relation to FGM, and as we are currently conducting enquiries, no more comment can be offered at this point in time,” she said.
As well as female genital mutilation being totally illegal in Australia, transporting children to undergo the procedure in another country is also forbidden.
The Daily Mail explains there are four types of female genital mutilation practiced, including clitoridectomy, excision, infibulation and other.
Clitoridectomy is where a part or all of the clitoris is removed. Excision also involves removal of the clitoris but includes the labia minoria and/or the labia major. The labia is ‘the lips’ that surround the vagina.
Infibulation is the procedure of narrowing the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the labia. It may not end with the removal of the clitoris.
Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop has already come forward and urged relatives or friends to blow the whistle on anyone taking children abroad to undergo female genital mutilation. As Bishop told Fairfax Radio on Tuesday,
“If somebody just presents with a passport, and they’re heading off overseas and we have no evidence to provide us with any cause to prevent the person leaving, and then, of course that happens. People are free to travel on an Australian passport if they have a valid passport. This equally applies to foreign terrorist fighters. It’s the families that we need to hear from if there are such matters occurring.”
It remains to be seen whether or not the young Australian girl had one of the FGM procedures carried out when she returns to Australia from her trip back home with her father.
