| 1945 |
United Nations Charter includes
human rights language. (Articles 55 & 56) |
| 1948 |
Universal
Declaration of Human Rights (Article 25.2) recognizes need
of the child for special protection and the right of all to the security
of the body. |
| 1949 |
In the Name of Humanity!, by Joseph Lewis, published by Eugenics
Publishing Company, New York. |
| 1949 |
" The Fate
of the Foreskin," by Douglas Gairdner, M.D., published British
Medical Journal. British National Health Service discontinues
payment for circumcision. |
| 1966 |
International Covenant on Human Rights guarantees right of
child to special protection without regard to race, color, sex,language,
religion, national or social origin, property or birth. |
| 1968 |
U.N. Declaration of Rights of the Child enunciates ten principles
for the protection of children. |
| 1968 |
" The Further
Fate of the Foreskin," by Jacob Oster, M.D., published by British
Medical Journal, recognizes the normal process of preputial separation
from glans as taking up to 17 years. |
| 1970 |
" Whither
the Foreskin?," by Capt. E. Noel Preston, MC, USAF, published
in JAMA, refutes claims that circumcision prevents cancer.
|
| 1971 |
The
American Academy of Pediatrics announces: "There is no medical
indication for circumcision." |
| 1975 |
American
Academy of Pediatrics ad hoc Task Force Committee on Circumcision
states: "There is no absolute medical indication for routine circumcision
of the newborn." No significant change in medical practice followed.
|
| 1976 |
Dr. Benjamin Spock revises his book, Baby and Child Care,
and reports there is "no medical reason to recommend routine circumcision."
Adding his personal opinion, he says, "We now know that it is not
the only choice, nor is it agreed that it is the most sensible choice.
My own preference, if I had the good fortune to have another son,
would be to leave his little penis alone." |
| 1978 |
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
concurs with the American Academy of Pediatrics. No significant change
in medical practice followed. |
| 1978 |
" Routine
circumcision of the newborn: A Reappraisal," by David Grimes,
M.D., published in American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynececology.
|
| 1979 |
The American Pediatric Urologic Society concurs with American
Academy of Pediatrics and American College of Obstetrics Gynecology.
No significant change in medical practice. |
| 1980 |
Circumcision: An American Health Fallacy, by Edward
Wallerstein published by Springer Publishing Company. |
| 1984 |
Care of the
Uncircumcized [sic] Penis," written by Edward Wallerstein and
published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, describes function
of the foreskin and problems caused by circumcision. This disclosure
of iatrogenic problems caused by removal of the foreskin was deleted
in a revision of the pamphlet two years later. |
| 1984 |
Adam
London lawsuit filed in an attempt to establish the right of a
child to intact sexual organs and to protect him from "battery" and
"false imprisonment," the causes of action allowed by the judge. The
finding of the Superior Court in defense of the doctor was upheld
by the California Appellate Court and the case was denied hearing
by the California Supreme Court. |
| 1984 |
Circumcision: What Every Parent Should Know, by Anne
Briggs published by Birth and Parenting Publications. |
| 1985 |
Circumcision: The Painful Dilemma, by Rosemary Romberg,
published by Bergin and Garvey Publishers, Inc. |
| 1985 |
National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers
(NOCIRC) founded by Marilyn Milos and Sheila Curran. |
| 1985 |
Circumcision: What Every Parent Should Know, 2nd edition,
by Anne Briggs published by Birth and Parenting Publications. |
| 1986 |
National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers
receives 501(c)3 educational non-profit status. |
| 1986 |
"Care of the Uncircumcised Penis," revised by the American
Academy of Pediatrics, omits "Function of the Foreskin" section. |
| 1987 |
The California Medical Association Resolution 712-87, "That
the CMA endorse the concept of newborn circumcision as a public health
measure," authored by pro-circumcision advocate, Aaron Fink, M.D.,
introduced by Robert L. Bratman, M.D., fails to pass following recommendation
of the CMA's Scientific Committee: "That CMA not adopt resolution
712-87, newborn circumcision as a public health measure." |
| 1987 |
The Phil Donahue Show addresses the circumcision/foreskin
restoration issue with guests Dr. Dean Edell, Marilyn Milos, Trudie
London, and Richard Steiner. |
| 1987 |
" Pain and its
effects on the human neonate and fetus," by K. J. S. Anand, MBBS,
D.Phil., and P. R. Hickey, M.D., published by the British Medical
Journal, November 19, 1987, debunks the myth that babies do not
feel pain. |
| 1988 |
California Medical Association Resolution 305-88, "That the
CMA endorse the concept of newborn circumcision as an effective public
health measure," authored by Aaron Fink, M.D., and introduced by Robert
L. Bratman, M.D., passes by a voice vote of CMA Delegates, against
Scientific Committee recommendation. |
| 1989 |
California Medical Association Resolution to rescind Fink's
resolution, authored by John W. Hardebeck, fails to pass. |
| 1989 |
The American Academy of Pediatrics Task
Force on Circumcision broadens its position: "Newborn circumcision
has potential medical benefits and advantages as well as disadvantages
and risks." Discusses pain and behavioral changes for the first time.
"When circumcision is being considered, the benefits and risks should
be explained to the parents and informed consent obtained." Circumcision
advocate, Dr. Edgar Schoen, headed the committee. AAP report distorted
by some newspapers that claimed AAP reversed its position. |
| 1989 |
First
International Symposium on Circumcision held in Anaheim, California.
The general assemply adopts
Declaration of the First International Symposium on Circumcision
in defense of children's rights to genital integrity. |
| 1989 |
United Nations adopts
International Covenant on the Rights of the Child. |
| 1991 |
Second
International Symposium on Circumcision, held San Francisco, California,
informs doctors of findings from First International Symposium on
Circumcision. |
| 1992 |
The Nurses of St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico
- 24 of them - take a conscientious objector stand and refuse to participate
with routine infant circumcision. |
| 1992 |
Say No to Circumcision! by Thomas J. Ritter, M.D.,
and The Joy of Uncircumcising! by Jim Bigelow, Ph.D., published
by Hourglass Publishing Company. |
| 1992 |
National Organization
to Halt the Abuse and Routine Mutilation of Males (NOHARMM) founded
by Tim Hammond as a non-profit organization to make men aware of the
deception behind "medical" infant circumcision and to empower men
to speak out for children's and men's rights. |
| 1994 |
The American
Academy of Pediatrics endorses International Covenant on
the Rights of the Child. |
| 1994 |
Third
International Symposium on Circumcision, held at the University
of Maryland Conference Center increases international networking.
|
| 1995 |
Nurses for the Rights of the
Child (NRC) founded by Mary Conant, Betty Sperlich, and Mary Rose
Booker as a non-profit organization of nurses committed to the protection
of nonconsenting infants and children from the surgical alteration
of their genitals. |
| 1995 |
Representative Patricia Schroeder introduces
bill to outlaw female genital mutilation, which is not acted upon.
New York and Minnesota join North Dakota in making genital mutilation
of a female minor a felony. |
| 1995 |
The American
Academy of Pediatrics recognizes limits on parental power to consent.
|
| 1995 |
Circumcision Information Resource
Pages (CIRP) on internet initiated to provide accurate information
on genital mutilation to the public. |
| 1996 |
Second Female Genital Mutilation Bill introduced by Representative
Patricia Schroeder. Lawsuit filed in North Dakota Federal Court for
gender bias of female genital mutilation bill, because it does not
allow for equal protection. |
| 1996 |
" The prepuce:
specialized mucosa of the penis and its loss to circumcision,"
by J.R. Taylor, A.P. Lockwood and A.J. Taylor, published by British
Journal of Urology, February 1996, documents exactly what is lost
with circumcision. |
| 1996 |
Doctors Opposing
Circumcision (D.O.C.) founded by George C. Denniston, M.D., as
an international organization of doctors committed to telling the
truth about the harm of circumcision and the uniquely specialized,
uniquely sensitive erogenous tissue circumcision destroys. |
| 1996 |
" Letter
to the Editor," by Dr. John Warren and 20 other signatories, published
by British Medical Journal, February 10, 1996, claims that
circumcision violates ethical standards and that "doctors should give
greater recognition to the rights of the child." |
| 1996 |
Second editions of Say No to Circumcision! by Thomas
J. Ritter, M.D., and George C. Denniston, M.D., and The Joy
of Uncircumcising! by Jim Bigelow, Ph.D., published by Hourglass
Publishing Company. |
| 1996 |
Fourth International Symposium on Sexual Mutilations, held
at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, is the first conference
in Europe to address both female and male genital mutilation. |
| 1996 |
Circumcision: The Hidden Trauma, by Ronald Goldman,
Ph.D. |
| 1996 |
Canadian Paediatric Society, Fetus and Newborn Committee, Neonatal
Circumcision Revisited says: "The overall evidence of the
benefits and harms of circumcision is so evenly balanced that it does
not support recommending circumcision as a routine procedure for newborns."
|
| 1996 |
Australasian
Association of Paediatric Surgeons says: "We do not support the
removal of a normal part of the body, unless there are definite indications
to justify the complications and risks which may arise. In particular,
we are opposed to male children being subjected to a procedure, which
had they been old enough to consider the advantages and disadvantages,
may well have opted to reject the operation and retain their prepuce."
|
| 1996 |
Australian College of Paediatrics Position
Statement on Routine Circumcision of Normal Male Infants and Boys
says: "The Australasian Association of Paediatric Surgeons has informed
the College that 'Neonatal male circumcision has no medical indication.
It is a traumatic procedure performed without anaesthesia to remove
a normal functional protective prepuce.'" |
| 1996 |
Australian
Medical Association says: "The Australian College of Paediatrics
should continue to discourage the practice of circumcision in newborns."
|
| 1996 |
British Medical Association Guidelines, Circumcision
of Male Infants Guidance for Doctors states: "To circumcise
for therapeutic reasons where medical research has sown other techniques
to be at least as effective and less invasive would be unethical and
inappropriate." |
| 1997 |
Sexual Mutilations: A Human Tragedy, the proceedings
of the
Fourth International Symposium on Sexual Mutilations, edited by
George C. Denniston and Marilyn Fayre Milos, published by Plenum.
|
| 1997 |
U.S.
Female Genital Mutilation Law goes into effect on April 1, providing
for the prosecution of anyone who "circumcises, excises, or infibulates
the whole or any part of the labia majora or labia minora or clitoris
of another person who has not attained the age of 18." |
| 1997 |
" Justifying
the unjustifiable: rite v. wrong," by A. J. Chessler, is published
by the Buffalo Law Review, 1997, saying that "The bifurcation
of male circumcision from female circumcision can no longer be tolerated.
Claims that the two cannot be linked perpetuates the continued legitimacy
of one human rights abuse, male circumcision, through the condemnation
of another." |
| 1997 |
"
Sex Reassignment at Birth," by M. Diamond and K. Sigmundson, is
published by Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine,
March 1997, describes a male, whose penis was burned off when he was
circumcised at 8 months of age for an alleged phimosis. He was then
castrated and his remaining genitals were surgically altered to "facilitate
feminization." Years later, and after a deeply troubled and tormented
childhood, John/Joan decided to take back his Y-chromosone-determined
identity of male. |
| 1997 |
" Effect of
neonatal circumcision on pain response during subsequent routine vaccination,
" by Anna Taddio, et al.," published by the Lancet, March 1,
1997, states: "It is, therefore, possible that the greater vaccination
response in the infants circumcised without anaesthesia may represent
an infant analogue of a post-traumatic
stress disorder triggered by a traumatic and painful event and
re-experienced under similar circumstances of pain during vaccination."
|
| 1997 |
"Circumcising baby boys 'criminal assault,' Ethist says society
must consider ban," by Sharon Kirkey, published in The Ottawa
Citizen, October 17, describes the courageous stand of Margaret
Somerville, one of Canada's leading medical ethicists. Somerville
is quoted as saying, "It's a bodily wounding on a tiny infant that
has given no consent itself, and it is not a medically necessary [procedure]."
Dr. Somerville is the founding director of the McGill Centre for Medicine,
Ethics and Law. "The onus," said Dr. Somerville, "is on the parents
to show that circumcision provides medical benefits. That issue has
been the subject of three decades of furious scientific debate, and
no consensus has emerged." |
| 1997 |
Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court Upholds Ban on Female Genital
Mutilation. On December 28, Egypt's highest court prohibits government-certified
doctors and health workers from mutilating girls and women. |
| 1997 |
" The Case Against
Circumcision," by Paul Fleiss, M.D., published in Mothering:
The Magazine of Natural Living, Winter issue. |
| 1998 |
The American Academy of Pediatrics' Policy Against Female Genital
Mutilation is published in the Pediatrics, the journal
of the AAP. Opposed to any form of female genital mutilation, the
AAP recommends that pediatricians dissuade families from having the
ritualistic procedure performed on their daughters. [NOCIRC looks
forward to the day that the AAP protects boys as well as girls because,
when one gender is traumatized by torture and mutilation, both genders
suffer.] |
| 1998 |
" Separated at Birth:
Did Circumcision Ruin Your Sex Life?,"an expose of the invasion
of circumcision into medical practice, the myths that perpetuate it,
and the harmful consequences of genital mutilation, published in Men's
Health, August issue. |
| 1998 |
Questioning Circumcision: A Jewish Perspective, by
Ronald Goldman, PhD, forward by Rabbi Raymond Singer, PhD, is published
by Vanguard Publications. |
| 1998 |
The Joy of Uncircumcising!by Jim Bigelow, Ph.D. This
third printing updates the 1995 2nd edition and includes an excellent
bulletin update, listing significant events of 1996 and 1997. |
| 1998 |
Fifth
International Symposium on Sexual Mutilations: Medical, Ethical and
Legal Considerations in Paediatric Practice, University of Oxford,
UK, 5-7 August. |
| 1998 |
FACING CIRCUMCISION: Eight Physicians Tell Their Stories
premiers at the 5ISSM, August 6. Reveals ethical dilemmas of physicians
who circumcise newborns. |
| 1998 |
Circumcision Exposed:
Rethinking a Medical and Cultural Tradition, by Billy Ray
Boyd, forward by Paul M. Fleiss, M.D., published by The Crossing Press.
|
| 1998 |
The Netherlands Institute of Human Rights issues a special report
on child circumcision as a violation of human rights entitled, " Male
Circumcision and the Rights of the Child." |
| 1998 |
Attorneys for the Rights
of the Child (ARC) founded by J. Steven Svoboda, Esq., as a non-profit
international network of attorneys to address the legality of mutilating
the genitals of children. |
| 1999 |
International Coalition for Genital Integrity (ICGI) founded
by Rio Cruz, PhD, to coordinate the many groups working to end harmful
traditional practices. |
| 1999 |
The 1999 American Academy of Pediatrics Task Force on Circumcision
released a new "evidence-based" Circumcision
Policy Statement that repudiates the previous Task Force's position
that "potential benefits" were a good reason to circumcise. The Task
Force refused to recommend neonatal circumcision to any parent, and
said that, if a child is to be circumcised, anesthesia should be used.The
AAP Position Statement can be viewed at www.aap.org/policy/re9850.html
or, with links to articles that further address the comments in the
statement, at www.cirp.org/library/statements/aap1999/. See the
NOCIRC press release in response to the AAP statement. |
| 1999 |
BJU International publishes special
supplement devoted to male circumcision. |
| 1999 |
Botched circumcision leads to $360,000 in damages; The cruel
cut that ruined a man's life. A Perth man won a $360,000 damages
payout after a West Australian doctor admitted he botched a circumcision
operation which left the man with a badly deformed penis. |
| 1999 |
Male and Female Circumcision: Medical, Legal, and Ethical
Considerations in Pediatric Practice. Proceedings of the Fifth
International Symposium on Sexual Mutilations, edited by George C.
Denniston, Frederick Mansfield Hodges, and Marilyn Fayre Milos. Published
by Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, Boston, Dordrecht,
London, Moscow. |
| 1999 |
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in adult males, in which the
traumatic stressor is identified as neonatal circumcision, is documented
by Dr. John Rhinehart in an article entitled, "Neonatal
Circumcision Reconsidered." |
| 1999 |
Open Letter to the American Medical Association, by
Gary Harryman, outlines the ways that routine infant circumcision
violates all seven principles of the AMA Code of Ethics, is
without medical justification, and suggests that the legal recourse
sought by the victims may be the thing to prompt, encourage, and ensure
that doctors put their scalpels down. |
| 1999 |
Female Genital Mutilation Now a Felony in Colorado. Democratic
Senator Dorothy Rupert's bill to outlaw female genital mutilation
in Colorado went into effect on March 25 when Governor Bill Owens
signed Senate Bill 96, making the procedure a felony. Violation of
the law is punishable by 4-12 years in prison and a fine of $3,000
to $750,000. It also is a crime to take a child under the age of 16
out of the state for such a mutilation. |
| 1999 |
UN Grants NOCIRC Roster Status. The Economic and Social Council
of the United Nations grants Roster status to NOCIRC, and NOCIRC now
has official representatives at UN Headquarters in New York, and the
Geneva and Vienna offices. |
| 2000 |
Circumcision: A History of the World's Most Controversial
Surgery, by David L. Gollaher is published by Basic Books,
A Member of the Perseus Books Group. |
| 2000 |
The Ethical Canary: Science, Society and the Human Spirit,
by Margaret Somerville, published by the Penguin Group, includes a
chapter entitled "Altering Baby Boys' Bodies, the Ethics of Infant
Male Circumcision." |
| 2000 |
The Sixth International Symposium on Sexual Mutilations: Securing
Human Rights in the 21st Century," held at the University of Sydney,
Australia, 7-9 December 2000. |
| 2000 |
18-year-old Files Lawsuit Against His Circumciser. William
G. Stowell filed a lawsuit in New York in December, suing the doctor
and hospital responsible for circumcising him shortly after birth,
saying the operation caused him excruciating pain and lasting sexual
harm. He claims his pain threshold has been reduced and his ability
to sexually satisfy women has been unalterably harmed. This is a landmark
case. |
| 2001 |
Dad Protects Son From Circumcision. A New Jersey father protected
his 3-year-old son from circumcision on January 4, when the case was
settled between the boy's mother and father, and the mother withdrew
her request to have the boy circumcised. |
| 2001 |
Genital Integrity Awareness Week Launched. The International
Coalition for Genital Integrity (ICGI) launched Genital Integrity
Awareness Week, April 1-7 (April is Child Abuse Prevention Month),
in Washington, DC. |
| 2001 |
Genital Integrity: A New Awareness, a NOCIRC conference,
was held to bring people together for Genital Integrity Week in Washington,
DC. |
| 2001 |
NOCIRC Attends UN Meetings in New York. Shelton Walden, Director
of NOCIRC of NY and our United Nations Representative, attended a
UN meeting of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) at the State Department
in Washington, DC, on May 30, to requrest the issue of male genital
mutilation be put on the agenda in preparation for the UN's Special
Session on Children, scheduled for 19-21 September in NY. On June
11, Shelton attended preparatory committee sessions in New York, especially
the meetings of the Child's Right Caucus. [Unfortunately, in the wake
of the Manhattan disaster on 9/11, the meeting was canceled.] |
| 2001 |
Attorneys for the Rights of the Child (ARC) and NOCIRC Address
UN in Geneva. Speaking on behalf of ARC and NOCIRC, J. Steven
Svoboda, a human rights attorney and the founder of ARC, on August
14 addressed the United Nations Sub-Commission on the Promotion and
Protection of Human Rights. He noted that, while protections for women
and girls have been instituted, including aggressive programs to stop
female genital mutilation, male circumcision has never even been studied
by the United Nations. Svoboda testified that every national medical
association that has examined the issue has failed to find medical
benefits that justify routine removal of healthy tissue from non-consenting
infants. Regarding religion, Svoboda said that, for boys and girls
alike, under basic human rights principles, another's right to practice
a religion must end where that individual's body begins. |
| 2001 |
The Female Circumcision Controversy: An Anthropological Perspective,
by Ellen Gruenbaum is published by University of Pennsylvania Press.
|
| 2001 |
Doctors Re-examine Circumcision, by Thomas J. Ritter,
MD, and George C. Denniston, MD, with a forward by Ashley Montagu,
PhD, is the 3rd edition of Say No To Circumcision!, with a
name change and cover revision. |
| 2001 |
The Ashley Montagu Resolution to End the Genital Mutilation
of Children Worldwide is put on the Internet at www.MontaguNOCIRCpetition.org.
|
| 2001 |
Human Rights Centre to Sue Female Circumcisers
The Eldoret based Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (CHRD) is
to sue 12 female circumcisers for intending to forefully circumcise
young girls in Uasin-Gishu and Nandi districts. CHRD official, David
Koros, said, "We have been briefed about their intentions and those
they want to circumcise." He added, "We appeal to all girls who may
be forced to undergo the rite, especially in the peak season of December
to report to us for necessary assistance." The East African Standard
(Nairobi), 13 November 2001. |
| 2001 |
Eastern Cape Tightens Law on Circumcision to Stem Casualties
Legislation regulating the practice of circumcision in the Eastern
Cape, one of South Africa's nine provinces, has been enacted to help
stem the tide of casualties of young men who have either died or been
maimed after circumcision. The Eastern Cape is home to the Xhosa tribe,
to which Nelson Mandela and president Tabo Mbeki belong. It is one
of the tribes in southern Africa that perform circumcision at 18 years
of age as part of initiation into manhood. The Application of Health
Standards in Traditional Circumcision Act in the Eastern Cape legislature
provides for the observation of health standards in traditional circumcisions,
with penalties of up to 10,000 rands ($12,000) and 10 years in jail.
BMJ, 2001;323:1090 (10 November). |
| 2001 |
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee
Opinion on Circumcision
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecolgists supports the
current position of the American Academy of Pediatrics that finds
the existing evidence insufficient to recommend routine neonatal circumcision...There
is ample evidence that newborns circumcised without analgesia experience
pain and stress. ACOG Committee Opinion Number 260, October
2001. |
| 2001 |
New Swedish Circumcision Law Now in Effect
A law restricting circumcisions, passed by the Swedish Parliament
on June 1, took effect on 1 October 2001. The law requires circumcision
to be performed only by a physician or another person with appropriate
training. It also requires the administration of an analgesic or an
anesthetic by a doctor or qualified nurse in connection with the procedure.
Circumcision in not generally performed on Swedish boys, except Jewish
boys eight days after birth and Muslim boys as a rite of passage,
generally done when they are older. Bo Lindblom, deputy director of
Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare, said the legislation
arose after serious injuries and a death occurred during circumcisions.
Lindblom said the law provides important precautions to protect the
health of children. A number of Swedish doctors say they will not
carry out such operations under any circumcstances, and one prominent
physician and professor of pediatrics, Dr. Yngve Hofvander, compares
male circumcision with female genital mutilation. Ritualistic male
circumcisions by Jews and Muslims are temporarily permitted, but are
severely restricted. Members of the Jewish community have condemned
the law as interfering with their historic traditions. Many do not
want the baby to be anesthetized, even though circumcision is an excruciatingly
painful surgery. They say they will not be able to find nurses or
doctors to help them perform the ceremony because many health professions
in Sweden view circumcision as a form of mutilation. This marks the
first time the circumcision of males under the age of majority has
been officially accepted by a national government as a human rights
issue, giving males equal protection with females against genital
cutting. The new law orders the Health and Welfare Committee to further
study ritual male circumcision as a human rights violation. |
| 2001 |
Physician and Hospital Motion to Dismiss Circumcision Case
Denied
Precedent Set for Men to Sue for Being Circumcised as Infants
Judge Leonard Wexler of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern
District of New York, on 24 September 2001, denied the Defendants'
Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim in the precedent-setting
case of 19-year-old William G. Stowell, who filed a civil suit against
the physician who circumcised him as a newborn and the hospital
where he was circumcised. Plaintiff Stowell, born on December 22,
1981, at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip, NY, was circumcised
the following day by his mother's obstetrician, Frank P. Cariello,
MD. This landmark case brings into question whether a physician
can legally obtain consent from a mother while she is debilitated
during post-surgical pain and anesthesia, and also raises issues
regarding removal of healthy, normal tissue from a non-consenting
minor for non-therapeutic reasons. Depending upon the facts of the
case and the jurisdiction, a male who was circumcised as an infant
may be able to file a lawsuit of this type within 1, 2, or 3 years
of reaching the age of majority - the time depends upon the law
of the state in which he was circumcised.
|
| 2001 |
Debates Rage Over Circumcision Bill
The Traditional Affairs Standing Committee Chairperson Chief Zwelodumo
Mtirara said his committee is listening to "hot debates" in the community
over a Traditional Circumcision bill. Public hearings have been held
throughout the Eastern Cape. Mtirara said the public welcomed the
bill but called for it to be changed "here and there." He said men
did not want women to participate in the custom, while women said
that they had parental rights to be involved. The bill calls for the
appointment of a medical officer to oversee circumcisions. The committee
was expected to meet shortly after the hearings and start compiling
a report for a joint standing on Health and Traditional Affairs. The
bill will be passed to the House of Traditional Affairs for scrutiny
and then tabled before the legislature for the debate and to be passed
as an Act. East Cape News, 4 September 2001. |
| 2001 |
UK Doctors Given Guidelines on Female Circumcision
Doctors in the UK have been urged to take firm action to protect girls
from genital mutilation. In guidelines published on 20 August, the
British Medical Association (BMA) called on doctors to involve social
services or invoke child protection proceedings if families insist
on having girls circumcised. The BMA urged doctors to deal with any
requests sensitively and to be aware of cultural differences, but
it has told doctors to make it clear that the practice is illegal
in the UK and that measures will be taken to prevent families from
going ahead with the procedure. Reuters Health, 20 August 2001.
|
| 2001 |
11-year-old Dies After Botched Circumcision
Sipho Mathe of Cork Trust village in Bushbuckridge was admitted to
Mapulaneng Hospital after being circumcised at an initiation school
several days earlier. Calcutta police representative Inspector Thulane
Maphanga said the boy was in pain for several days, but was only rushed
to the hospital when his condition deteriorated. He is one of nine
boys who died at initiation schools in the province this winter season.
African Eye News Service, 16 August 2001. |
| 2001 |
Agreement Reached in Circumcision Case
A settlement was reached on July 24, 2001, between a baby boy's parents,
whose disagreement over whether to circumcise their son, Asher Nathaniel
Grisham, born July 4, almost ended in court. Rodney Grisham, 25, the
baby's father, said his son will not be circumcised and he wouldn't
have agreed to "anything less." He argued that circumcision amounts
to sexual assault. Sheila Grisham, 21, the baby's mother, argued that
not doing it was against her religious beliefs, although she is a
Christian, a religion that does not require circumcision. Prior to
the settlement, Rodney filed a protection from abuse order to stop
the procedure. |
| 2001 |
European Parliamentarians Call for Action Against FGM
The European Parliament's Women's Rights Committee adopted a report
13 July, condemning all forms of female genital mutilation, calling
it a serious human rights violation and an act of violence against
women. The report is scheduled for adoption at the Brussels plenary
session in September. |
| 2001 |
Death Knell of the "Foreskins-Cause-Aids" Myth
In the first objective study in a first-world population, researchers
state "Our data...suggests that circumcision is not strongly protective
against HIV infection in homosexual men. Larger studies, preferably
of prospective design, are needed to confirm the absence of a relationship
between circumcision and HIV infection risk in gay men. In the meantime,
educational messages to homosexual men should continue to emphasize
that insertive anal sex is a high-risk activity for HIV transmission
whether or not the insertive partner is circumcised." Grulich, AE,
Hendry O, Clark E. Kippax S, Kaldor JM. Circumcision and male-to-male
sexual transmission of HIV. AIDS 2001 June 15;15(9):1188-1189.
National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research, Sydney,
Australia. |
| 2001 |
Boy Wins $1.4 Million for Circumcision as Procedure Becomes Increasingly
Risky for Physicians to Perform. A Sacramento, California, jury,
during the first week of June 2001, awarded $1.42 million to a 7-year-old
boy for a botched circumcision performed by a first-year resident
at the UC Davis Medical Center. The verdict exceeds the legal cap
of $250,000 on medical malpractice awards because the hospital failed
to obtain the parents' consent to operate. The child was 5 days old
when he underwent the surgery in 1994 and, according to his attorney
Martin Blake, he will have to undergo multiple surgeries when he is
an adolescent. |
| 2001 |
Billboard in Akron, sponsored by NOCIRC of Ohio.
|
| 2002 |
Arizona, Missouri, North Carolina, Montana, Join Growing Movement
Against Medicaid-Funded Circumcision when they eliminated Medicaid
funding for infant circumcision. |
| 2002 |
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Circumcision:
Untold Facts - and Most Unnecessary - Surgery, by Paul M.
Fleiss, MD, and Frederick M. Hodges, DPhil, published by Warner Books.
|
| 2002 |
The Seventh International Symposium on Human Rights and Modern
Society: Advancing Human Dignity and the Legal Right to Bodily Integrity
in the 21st Century, April 4-7, 2002, Georgetown University
Conference Center, Washington, DC. |
| 2002 |
Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons Cautions Doctors
The Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons is asking family
doctors to consider the physical risk to the patient and the legal
risk to the physician before becoming involved in the routine circumcision
of infants. A memo issued on February 20, 2002, advised physicians
to "accurately and effectively convey the message" that infant circumcision
is not consistent with good medical practice, and parental consent
for the operation may not be truly informed. [The memo warns physicians
who perform newborn circumcision, even for religious reasons, saying
they "would be prudent to consult with and seek advice from the Canadian
Medical Protective Association before proceeding." See: www.infocirc.org/saskmemo.htm]
JAMC, 3 September 2002; 167(5). |
| 2002 |
Circumcision Case to Proceed to Trial
North Dakota district Judge Cynthia Rothe-Seeger denied a motion for
summary judgment by defendants in the Flatt v. Katak circumcision
case, and decided it will proceed to trial on February 3, 2003. The
precedent-setting decision confirms that a baby who is circumcised
can sue his doctor when he reaches the age of majority, even if there
was parental consent for the circumcision, and even if the results
are considered to be 'normal.' |
| 2002 |
Lobbying & Law: Activists Fight Circumcision, By Shawn Zeller,
National Journal, Washington, Saturday, 29 June 2002. |
| 2002 |
Male and Female Circumcision Among Jews, Christians and Muslims:
Religious, Medical, Social and Legal Debate by Sami A. Aldeeb
Abu-Sahlieh (forward by Marilyn Fayre Milos). This 530-page book is
an English translation of a revised two-volume book published in Arabic
(forward by Dr. Nawal el Sa'dawi) by Riad El-Rayyes (Beirut)and available
at
www.lpj.org/Nonviolence/Sami/Circon/Index.htm, and in French by
L'Harmattan (Paris). This edition is published by Shangri-La Publications,
3 Coburn Hill Road, Warren Center, PA 19951 USA, URL: http://shangri-la.0catch.com.
Email orders: shangrila@egypt.net. Cloth bound (ISBN 0-9677201-9-2),
US $44.50; paperback (ISBN 0-9677201-6-8), US$36; pre-publication
discount of 10% until January 2002. Orders may also be placed through
Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble. |
| 2002 |
Doctors Re-examine Circumcision, by Thomas J. Ritter,
MD, and George C. Denniston, MD, 3rd edition (previously titled Say
No to Circumcision). $15ppd. To order single book or bulk orders,
contact Lisa Stephon at MusiciansUnited@aol.com |
| 2003 |
Utah Eliminates Medicaid-Funded Circumcision. Utah is the
first state in 2003 to eliminate funding of non-therapeutic circumcision,
joining ten other states. |
| 2004 |
Flesh and Blood: Perspectives on the Problem of Circumcision
in Contemporary Society, Edited by George, C. Denniston, Frederick
Mansfield Hodges, and Marilyn Fayre Milos. Proceedings of the 7th
International Symposium on Genital Integrity. Published by Kluwer
Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, Boston, Dordrecht, London, Moscow.
2004. |