The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Young girls in Dundee ‘facing trauma of FGM’
WARNING: Charity claims there could be far more victims than reported
A leading women’s charity has warned children in Dundee as young as eight are being subjected to female genital mutilation.
Caroline McKenna, of Dundee International Women’s Centre, said she has worked personally with the families of girls in the city who have been sent abroad for the practice.
Ms McKenna revealed the organisation are currently helping more than 20 women from migrant communities who have fallen victim to honour-based violence, including forced marriage, domestic abuse and female genital mutilation (FGM).
However, she believes authorities may only be seeing the tip of the iceberg and warned the real figures could be even more alarming.
“FGM may only come to light when a woman is having a baby or getting married because coming forward and reporting it could mean being asked to leave their community,” Ms McKenna said.
“The reality is that it is happening here in Dundee and it is happening to girls as young as eight years old.”
Ms McKenna, who is also chairwoman of a harmful practices working group, called for greater education in the public sector to help identify and support vulnerable women and girls.
The CEO of an award-winning Scottish charity – who asked not to be named due to security concerns – told The Courier thousands of children across Scotland could be at risk.
NSPCC Scotland said their helpline is contacted more than once a day, on average, by people worried about girls who may have suffered, or are at risk of, the practice.
Suzanne Smith, temporary detective chief inspector of Police Scotland’s Tayside division, said the force is working to “better understand and learn more about this type of abuse and would thoroughly investigate any reports of female genital mutilation”.