Research throughout much of Africa indicates that the first sexual experiences of today’s young people are taking place in a different social context from those of previous generations.1 Increasing urbanization, modernization and education, together with exposure to Western media, appear to have led to a decline in traditional values and, in particular, to have reduced the importance of virgini...

Abstract This article looks at India’s complaint the United Nations Human Rights Commission in 1979 about ‘virginity test’ performed on a migrant Indian woman Heathrow. It examines use of arguments race and racial discrimination by India to compel Britain discuss immigration bilateral basis. The argues that pivot race-based argument was deliberately patriarchal main concern these negotiations i...

OBJECTIVES To investigate the preferred actions of healthcare staff, as well as their reasoning and attitudes about young females' requests for a virginity certificate or hymen restoration. METHOD A qualitative study, consisting of semi-structured interviews of healthcare providers from different parts of Sweden and from different medical specialties and professions, who had experience of wom...

Many countries, Sweden among them, lack professional guidelines and established procedures for responding to young females requesting virginity certificates or hymen restoration due to honour-related threats. The purpose of the present survey study was to further examine the attitudes of the Swedish healthcare professionals concerned towards young females requesting virginity certificates or hy...