A British-Muslim mother was recently banned from traveling to Egypt with her baby daughter, over fears that her one-year-old child might be subjected to female genital mutilation.
The mother converted to Islam after meeting her husband, an Egyptian national, in his native country. She planned to take her newborn baby to the North African country to see her father and his family.
However, UK Judge Justice Allison Russell issued a Female Genital Mutilation Protection Order, effectively banning the mother from traveling outside the UK with her daughter until 2032. She ordered that the child's passport be retained by the court till then.
Russell said the father viewed FGM as part of "Egyptian culture and tradition," according to The Daily Mail. Despite the fact that he also believes the procedure should be legalized, the father said that he does not intend to subject his daughter to the procedure.
"It is not intended that the girl should not be able to see her father or members of the paternal family and the court would encourage the father and his family to visit her in England," Russell added.
FGM is a criminal offense in the UK, however it is a common practice in Egypt
FGM, which is defined as a "partial or total removal of external genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons" by the World Health Organization (WHO), is extremely common in Egypt.
According to a 2014 survey, 92 percent of Egyptian women aged between 15 and 49 have been circumcised.
This can lead to worrisome side effects, including severe physical pain, bleeding, and the risk of wound infections.
The practice has also been revealed to cause a delay in women's sexual response cycle.
Earlier this year, the spokesperson of Egypt's primary Forensic Medicine Department, Dr. Hesham Abdel Hamid, revealed that 70 to 80 percent of all Egyptian women cannot orgasm due to the practice.
As part of the ongoing crackdown on FGM, Egypt's government passed a law in 2016 that increases the penalty for female genital mutilation.
Perpetrators of the crime can now face between five and seven years in prison.
If the mutilation leads to permanent disability or death, the perpetrator could face up to 15 years behind bars.
Before the law came into effect, the practice was classified as a misdemeanor and carried a penalty of three months to a maximum of three years in prison.
However, many in the country continue to practice FGM illegally, charging parents large amounts to get the procedure done. Many believe that turning to a doctor makes it a "medical procedure."
"This is not a medical practice whatsoever. Nobody should be doing it," Germaine Haddad, a representative from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Egypt, once told CNN.
