Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Ban hymenoplasty too along with 'virginity tests', says medic body

Ban hymenoplasty too along with 'virginity tests', says medic body

MINISTERS’ pledge to outlaw "virginity tests" will be undermined if the surgical procedure of hymenoplasty- done to "restore virginity"- goes unchecked in the UK, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has warned on Sunday (15), saying "the two practices are inextricably linked".

  


The warning came after it emerged that ministers are committed to criminalising the unscientific “virginity tests” offered by some private clinics which claim to determine a girl’s "virginity" through an invasive examination to see if the hymen is intact.

However, RCOG has claimed that efforts to ban virginity testing should also be accompanied by the laws to ban hymenoplasty, a procedure that some clinics use to “restore virginity" by reconstructing the hymen, reports said.

Dr Edward Morris, the RCOG president, said: “We believe both procedures should be banned in the UK. Neither have any medical benefit and both are harmful practices that create and exacerbate social, cultural and political beliefs that attach a false value to women and girls in relation to their sexual history."

“A ban on virginity testing is undermined without a ban on hymenoplasty, as the two practices are inextricably linked.”

In 2020, a report by Sunday Times has identified 22 private clinics across the UK charging up to £3,000 for the procedure of hymen restoration, which is performed under local anaesthetic. During the course of a year, about 9,000 people in the UK had searched Google for “hymenoplasty” and related terms, reports said.

Hymen restoration or “virginity restoration” is done by constructing a layer of skin at the entrance to the vagina to create the illusion of an unbroken hymen.

Since in some cultures, it is important that a woman is a virgin at the time of her marriage and is expected to bleed on her wedding night, many girls and women are forced into such surgery by their relatives though scientific studies have proven that bleeding is not routinely observed after first vaginal intercourse.

Such procedures often come with claims like “fixing shame” and making “woman a girl again”.

The World Health Organization is also reportedly clear over both the issues, saying the appearance of the hymen is not a reliable indicator of intercourse and virginity testing is a violation of human rights.

Calling hymenoplasty a "form of violence against women and girls", Diana Nammi, executive director at IKWRO Women’s Rights Organisation also emphasised that a ban on virginity testing is essential but on its own will not be enough.

Meanwhile, MP Richard Holden is hoping for cross-party support for two clauses banning virginity testing and hymenoplasty that he has tabled for the health and care bill going through parliament.

“Virginity tests and hymen repair surgeries are being conducted by doctors to check or ‘restore’ the virginity of girls and women, often prior to marriage. These practices are not founded in science, are abusive and perpetuate dangerous myths,” Holden said.

Although the UK government has already committed to banning virginity testing saying it will legislate to make virginity testing illegal at the “earliest opportunity”, hymenoplasty is not mentioned in the agenda, as per reports.

More For You

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

FILE PHOTO: Riot police hold back protesters near a burning police vehicle in Southport, England (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

TERRORISM watchdog has rejected calls to redefine terrorism following last summer's tragic Southport murders, while recommending a new offence to tackle those intent on mass killings without clear ideological motives.

Jonathan Hall KC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, published his highly anticipated report on Thursday (13), concluding that the existing definition of terrorism should remain unchanged despite growing concerns about violent attackers with unclear motives.

Keep ReadingShow less
Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A military piper, choir, and the Sikh soldiers of the British Army took part in the ceremony.

Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A WREATH-LAYING ceremony was held at the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill in London on 10 March to honour Commonwealth servicemen and women who fought in the First and Second World Wars.

Lord Boateng, chairman of the Memorial Gates Council, led the event, highlighting the importance of remembering those who served.

Keep ReadingShow less
Student visas

The ongoing negotiations focus specifically on business mobility, addressing only the relevant business visas

iStock

Student visas excluded from UK-India FTA talks, says government

THE government last week clarified that only temporary business mobility visas are part of the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations.

Other types of visas, such as student visas, will not be included in the trade deal, it was revealed during a debate in the House of Lords.

Keep ReadingShow less
India Detains Crypto Administrator Wanted by US for Laundering

Aleksej Besciokov, was charged with money laundering and accused of violating sanctions and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, according to the US Justice Department. (Photo: US Secret Service)

India arrests crypto administrator wanted by US for money laundering

INDIAN authorities have arrested a cryptocurrency exchange administrator at the request of the United States on charges of money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violations, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday.

The arrest follows a joint operation by the United States, Germany, and Finland, which dismantled the online infrastructure of Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer-Getty

Starmer said that the change would free up funds for doctors, nurses, and frontline services while reducing red tape to accelerate improvements in the health system. (Photo: Getty Images)

Starmer scraps NHS England, brings health service under ministerial control

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer has abolished NHS England, bringing the health service under direct ministerial control.

The decision reverses a key reform introduced by former health secretary Andrew Lansley during the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less