It's female genital mutilation and should be prosecuted
BMJ 2007; 334 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39252.646042.3A (Published 28 June 2007) Cite this as: BMJ 2007;334:1335
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The BMJ's web entry states that its published material will be
"rigourous" in the interests of medical science. The sloppy and misleading
material in Ms Berer's letter (BMJ 30 Jun p1335)does a dis-service to this
position and to the campaign against FGM. The comparison between the
horrors of infundibulation and excision of the clitoris on the one hand
and the request from an educated Western woman to have protruding labia
trimmed on the other is a nonsense. As a plastic surgeon I have had
numerous perfectly reasonable requests from the latter group, all of
which, properly selected, have provided exactly the satisfaction the
patients wanted.They have included professional sportswomen representing
their country. Now Ms Berer suggests I should be punished under an Act of
Parliament designed to prevent the former.
Let us set aside her inability to comprehend the difference between
the two groups, and her apparent oblivion to the plague of penile
lengthening procedures offered at every turn on the internet and
elsewhere. What is most disturbing is her obvious attempt to control and
dictate to her fellow females. It reminds me very much of the prolonged
campaign by a small group of women against breast augmentation in the
1980's and 90's which caused untold anxiety to those who had already had
the procedure and in the end was found to have no substance whatever.
Why doesn't Ms Berer's magazine, which she appears to represent,
devote itself to the appalling ongoing problem of genital mutilation in
Africa and show us some results. The ban in the UK addresses but the tip
of a huge iceberg.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
I don't know where Ms. Berer has been living, but there are plenty of
people offering to lengthen, shorten and otherwise 'enhance' penises. In
fact any man with an e-mail address is regularly inundated with
advertisements offering these services. While I too am uncomfortable with
people's need to alter their appearance (not just their genitals), I am
also uncomfortable with the strident tone of Ms. Berer's editorial and the
certainty she exhibits in knowing just how other people should behave and
live their lives.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
The "latter" can only refer to the second of two items. In this case
there are
three and it should therefore be the "last." It is bad enough to have to
put up
with this sort of thing here in the U.S., but I expect better of the
B.M.J.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
'Cosmetic' penile surgery
While I share many of Dr Berer's concerns, I must take issue with her
statement that "No one is offering to shorten or lengthen men's penises or
change the shape or size of their testicles for 'cosmetic' reasons".
If she really believes that, then her spam filter must be much more
efficient than mine.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests