Genital mutilation of girls in Greater Manchester must be treated as child abuse - not a cultural issue, a top police officer has warned.
Det Chf Supt Vanessa Jardine, GMP’s head of safeguarding, was speaking at a national conference taking place in Manchester today on female genital mutilation, FGM.
Two-thousand girls in Greater Manchester are believed to be at risk of undergoing the procedure - either in the UK or after being flown abroad during school holidays.
Egyptian, Somali, Indian and Iraqi communities living in the region are identified as most likely to carry out the practice, where all or parts of a girl’s genitals are removed.
Speaking at the event at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Law School, DS Jardine said: “Let’s be clear - this is child abuse.
“We need to give it the recognition it deserves - it’s a truly heinous crime committed against young people.
“This is about protecting a child, not being racist.”
DS Jardine said GMP also supported the idea for adult victims of FGM be given lifelong anonymity in any legal action against those who practice in a bid to gain convictions.
A conviction is yet to be brought for FGM in the UK but DS Jardine said she believed this ‘only a matter of time’ due to awareness raised on the issue.
Latest figures show on average two women a week undergoing reconstructive surgery for FGM at St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester.
Many more are seen with FGM at hospitals across the region, with North Manchester General recording the highest numbers.
Greater Manchester is also one of five ‘hotspots’ for the crime in the UK.
The data was collected by the Greater Manchester FGM Forum, who organised today’s conference.
Set up in 2011, they work to identify schools believed to have pupils most at risk of being forced to undergo FGM by their families.
Twenty trainers also work around Greater Manchester showing police, teachers and medical staff the warning signs to look out for that a family may be planning to have their daughter circumcised.
Former domestic violence worker and forum chair Jaria Hussain-Lala said: “These numbers are not even the tip of an iceberg - FGM is very much a Greater Manchester issue.”