Female genital cutting (FGC) is roundly condemned within international human rights discourse. The narrative surrounding the practice tends to categorically censure FGC in all forms. In this article, I analyse the criminalisation of the practice in New South Wales, Australia to demonstrate the dominant influence of this narrative, while also highlighting its deficiencies. Focusing on the recent Australian case of Magennis and Vaziri and criticisms of the Family Law Council’s approach to FGC-eradication in Australia, I argue that the decision relied on speculation rather than objective evidence. Further, by substituting the internal perspectives of affected communities with gendered and racialised stereotypes, the courts prevented women most affected by FGC from participating in active and meaningful dialogue. As a landmark decision, Magennis and Vaziri set a clear precedent as to how future cases are decided and how women from affected communities are to be treated: as gendered, racialised and voiceless subjects.

中文翻译：

---

谁的声音？：女性生殖器切割和自上而下的刑事定罪的模糊影响

女性生殖器切割（FGC）在国际人权话语中受到严厉谴责。围绕这种做法的叙述倾向于明确谴责各种形式的女性生殖器切割。在本文中，我分析了澳大利亚新南威尔士州对该做法的刑事定罪，以证明这种叙述的主导影响，同时也强调了其缺陷。重点关注最近发生的澳大利亚马根尼斯和瓦齐里案件以及对澳大利亚家庭法委员会根除女性生殖器切割方法的批评，我认为该决定依赖于猜测而不是客观证据。此外，通过用性别和种族成见取代受影响社区的内部观点，法院阻止了受女性生殖器切割影响最严重的妇女参与积极和有意义的对话。作为一个具有里程碑意义的决定，