Photo credit: Jenaolya | Dreamstime.com

Iceland stands ready to become the first European country to ban male circumcision, a ritual among Judaism and Islam, and the proposed ban has sparked an outcry from religious freedom proponents.

The bill is currently before the Icelandic parliament proposes a penalty of up to six years in prison for anyone carrying out a circumcision for any reason other than medical. Muslims across Europe are alarmed by the proposed law saying it would make life in Iceland unsustainable.

Globally, one in three men is thought to be circumcised and the vast majority are for religious or cultural reasons. Genital mutilation of a child should not be protected by religious freedoms. Of course, the Muslims are calling the bill a proxy for Islamophobia.

The Icelandic bill says the circumcision of young boys violates their rights and is not compatible with the United Nations Convention on the rights of children. It also draws parallels with female genital mutilation which is already outlawed in most European countries.

It's time to extend the same protections to the young men of the world. Circumcisions are often performed without anesthesia and "in homes that are not sterile, and not by doctors but by religious leaders. There is a high risk of infections under such conditions that may lead to death."

<img src="https://media.8ch.net/file_store/d1d79aff70d48dbd71986959398148f0c58efea27a363dee19581efb12d4782b.jpg" style="max-height:640px;max-width:360px;">

<span style="margin-top:15px;rgba(42,51,6,0.7);font-size:12px;">Credit: Seth Wenig</span>

Some religious leaders even suck the babies penis in whats called an <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/nyc-orthodox-jews-clash-over-oral-circumcision-rite/">oral circumcision rite,</a> this particular practice is mostly to the Jewish religion. "If we have laws banning circumcision for girls, then we should do so for boys," Silja Dögg Gunnarsdóttir of the center-right Progressive party said.

"We are talking about children’s rights, not about freedom of belief. Everyone has the right to believe in what they want, but the rights of children come above the right to belief. If Iceland backs this, I think other countries will follow."

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Source: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/feb/18/iceland-ban-male-circumcision-first-european-country