Breast ironing
Many of us have heard of female genital mutilation (FGM), a case of which is now reported in the UK every 109 minutes according to new statistics.And while it’s still desperately sad that, since it was outlawed in Britain 30 years ago, no one here has been convicted of this crime against women and girls - it can surely only be a matter of time before a successful case is brought.
So it can’t be right that so few are familiar with a practice as brutal as breast ironing – something increasingly carried out in Britain, according to Conservative MP Jake Berry.- The Telegraph reports.
In this world of horrors, there can be little more appalling than the practice of beating a young girl’s chest with hot irons in order to try and stop her breasts growing .
That mothers are doing this to their own daughters compounds the savagery. And if, as has been reported, this is happening in the UK, we should surely be shamed into action – for the sake not only of our own children, but also the millions around the world being abused in this way.
Breast ironing is the practice of pounding the developing breasts of young girls with objects heated over coals or on a stove. It is performed on girls from the age of 10 up until the end of puberty. Hot stones, hammers and spatulas are used twice a day for several weeks and months to stop and or delay and in some cases permanently destroy the natural development of the breast.
The purpose of this barbaric procedure? To make girls less sexually attractive to men, and in the belief that mutilating their breasts will protect them from harassment, rape or forced marriage. If you haven't heard of it, you aren't alone. The practice is said to have originated in Cameroon and spread out to other countries.
Campaigners say there have been victims in London and Birmingham. Pressure group believes up to a thousand British girls have been subjected to it - mostly by female family members.
Some FGM campaigners, however, argue that breast ironing is extremely rare in the UK, while others question Mr Berry's motives in raising this in parliament.
In his Commons speech, Mr Berry quoted the Mayor of London’s “Harmful Practices Task Force", which has described breast ironing as “an emerging issue”.
Today, he said British authorities were in denial about the problem. “I have been contacted by local authorities, health care professionals and even fellow members of parliament who don’t understand, or in some cases don’t even know that the problem of breast ironing exists,” he told the press.
He acknowledged that some might question why he, a man, is leading this campaign, but added: “Child abuse, so-called honour based violence, and criminal activities of this type are not gender issues. All people should be concerned and want to draw attention to matters of this kind. I am proud to have had the opportunity to raise the issue of Breast Ironing in the House of Commons, allowing me to shed light on this appalling and abhorrent practice.”
The Government and the police are dominated by men, so if male MPs are making a fuss about this, the hope must surely be that they can ratchet up the pressure on their colleagues in power to take action.
Women shouldn’t have a monopoly on combating breast ironing and FGM : everyone has a duty to do so.
