Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 March 2023
581. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Justice the reason he has not included a national action plan to address female genital mutilation in the Third Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, as called for by the National Steering Committee on FGM. [15213/23]
View answerThis Government is committed to combatting all forms of domestic sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV) and to supporting those who are victims of these terrible crimes. Our whole of Government third national strategy specifically and rightly recognises female genital mutilation (FGM) as a form of DSGBV and contains actions to enhance our response to it.
As the Deputy is no doubt aware, our response to FGM is primarily a health-led response and in September 2012 the then Minister for Health signed the commencement order for the Criminal Justice (Female Genital Mutilation) Act 2012. As the long-title of the Act explains, this important piece of legislation creates an offence of female genital mutilation and provides for other offences related to female genital mutilation for the better protection of girls and women.
I have been informed by my colleague the Minister for Health, that the Health Service Executive's National Social Inclusion Office plays a key role in responding to the health needs of service users from marginalised communities, including those from diverse ethnic, cultural and religious communities. Ireland has two national strategies that outline actions to ensure the healthcare provided is effective, easily accessed and culturally competent.
The Second National Intercultural Health Strategy commits to providing training to increase the knowledge and competence of healthcare providers, in relation to appropriate care and protection for FGM survivors and women and girls at risk nationwide. It also outlines how Ireland should provide appropriate support to survivors of FGM, including counselling and access to specialised health services.
The Third National DSGBV Strategy recognises the need to ensure that all actions aimed at preventing DSGBV, protecting victims, improving prosecutions and coordinating polices should be advanced using an intersectional approach. This will allow for a more holistic understanding of an individual and their positioning in societal hierarchies that seeks to ease binary understandings and account for the complexities of life, especially regarding the needs of more excluded identity groups (that include Travellers, other ethnic minorities, migrants, individuals with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ communities and others). An intersectional approach to DSGBV recognises that DSGBV is a problem that requires consideration of all parts of an individual’s identity to ensure equality of outcome for all.
The Strategy commits to put in place special health support services required by victims/survivors of FGM. To fulfil this action, our health service will commence a mapping exercise of current service provision with a view to identifying gaps in the current provision to victims/survivors of FGM. This mapping will include consultation with relevant community support organisations and will include looking at the needs assessment of staff.
Both statutory services and community and voluntary services currently provide support for victims of FGM, this includes care planning, specialised medical care and counselling and sexual and reproductive health outreach.
In addition, under the Strategy there are a number of actions focused at raising public awareness of DSGBV with a view to prevention and with a view to signposting victims and potential victims to help and support. All such campaigns will include a focus on reaching marginalised and harder to reach communities.
