Couple Charged With Genital Mutilation of Girl, 13
Police are afraid other cases may be going undetected
Originally published in The Toronto Star, February 14, 2002
ST. CATHARINES — The parents of a 13-year-old St. Catharines girl have been charged after illegal surgery was performed on her genitals.
Known once as female circumcision but now called genital mutilation, the procedure is alleged to have happened when the girl was 11 years old.
Her mother and father were charged yesterday with aggravated assault, and police are still looking for the person who actually performed the surgery at the family's St. Catharines home.
One of the things investigators want to find out is if any other girls have been subjected to the same surgery.
This is the first time detectives in Niagara's child abuse unit have encountered a case of female genital mutilation performed here.
Although widely practiced among a number of cultures in Africa and some Middle Eastern countries including Oman, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates—it's a tradition said to initiate young girls into adulthood—the practice is illegal in Canada. But if it's done here, it usually doesn't come to the attention of police.
"I have yet to deal with someone professionally or in the community who has dealt with this happening here," said Detective Constable Dave Weeks, who has been investigating the case for the past two months along with Family and Children's Services Niagara.
"Obviously if this is being done, there's always the possibility of its being done to someone else," he said.
People doing it range from traditional practitioners "up to and including doctors doing it under the table."
The allegations were brought to police in December. The 13-year-old girl had confided in a friend about the surgery. The two then told the police.
The girl's father has also been charged with assault with a weapon, for allegedly hitting her on the back with a belt several times over the past few years, said Detective Sergeant James Mackay, who heads up Niagara's child abuse unit.
The girl's parents were to appear in court in St. Catharines for a bail hearing today. Their names or cultural background aren't being released, to protect the identity of the child. Police also won't say if the couple has any other children, or in whose custody the girl has been placed.
Female genital mutilation has been condemned for its physical and psychological effects on young girls and women. It's estimated that 135 million females in the world have had their genitals mutilated.
"It is assault to the child. There is not any benefit to the child or to the family," said Madina Wasuge, a program manager at Hamilton's Settlement and Integration Services Organization.
Wasuge was a doctor in her native Somalia, one of the African countries where it's considered a cultural rite of passage. She said she's never encountered a case of it being performed here.
