A Selsdon school prefect has received praise from Prime Minister David Cameron for her work raising awareness of a “barbaric” practice.
Katie Tomsett this week organised a conference at her school, Croydon High, about female genital mutilation, which was attended by world-leading experts on the issue.
The Advertiser recently discovered more than 140 women had been treated for FGM between 2010 and 2013 at Croydon University Hospital, although experts say thousands more girls in Croydon are at risk.
Katie, 18, who is also branch leader of the National Council of Young Women, brought together more than 200 schoolgirls to hear from three of the top anti-FGM campaigners in the country.
“I first found out about it when I was doing work experience at Guy’s Hospital and I saw the words female genital mutilation on a poster,” she said.
“I had never heard it before and had no idea what it was so I went away and did some research and was absolutely horrified by what I found out.”
The practice, also known as cutting, was banned in the UK in 1985. It is also illegal for girls residing in the country to be flown to countries where FGM is carried out, although a case is yet to be brought to court.
“I was deeply shocked that girls I know could have had this done to them or be at risk of being a victim of it,” Katie said.
“Croydon has a large immigrant population with girls who are at risk and I had this opportunity to choose a topic for this conference.
“It’s hugely important we start making some noise about it to make sure it is stopped completely.”
The assembled group of girls listened to Dr Comfort Momoh, a midwife who specialises in FGM treatment; Rani Bilkhu, founder of women’s rights group Jeena International; and Ifrah Ahmed, who was a victim of the practice and sought asylum in Ireland from Somalia.
Ms Ahmed, 25, said: “It’s ruined my future and I’m determined it will not ruin the future of girls throughout the country.
“I thought, ‘How will I tell the man I love what has been done to me?’”
Dr Comfort described to the room what the practice entailed and the effects it has on young girls, while Ms Bilkhu encouraged the audience to report any suspicions they might have that a peer was at risk.
Katie said: “It’s a bit of an edgy issue that people feel uncomfortable talking about.
“It needs to start with women but men need to understand and talk about it too.”
Katie was recently rewarded with a personal letter from David Cameron, who congratulated her for bringing together so many “inspirational people on such an important topic”.
Factfile: FGM
FGM involves the total or partial removal of external female genitalia.
There are 66,000 thousand women currently living in the UK who have suffered from the practice.
More than 20,000 girls under the age of 15 are at risk of becoming a victim.
It is practised in more than 27 African countries as well as Malaysia, Indonesia and India, with girls regularly taken from the UK to places like Egypt or Dubai to have it done during summer holidays.
It is carried out with razors, broken glass or sharp stones. without anaesthetic, by individuals with no medical training.
Around 35 per cent of girls subject to FGM die, either soon after or from the long-term effects.
Lucy Njomo, another Croydon campaigner, runs the African Youth Development Association (AYDA), which supports victims of FGM. Her charity is based in Thornton Heath, and anyone affected by the practice can log on to www.aydacentre.org for more details, or visit the office at Day Lewis House, 324-340 Bensham Lane.