Emmanuel Macron spoke this Friday, October 2 from Les Mureaux (Yvelines) to discuss the future bill concerning religious separatism, which should lead to the penalization of the authors of virginity certificates.
- The virginity certificate consists of signing a document establishing the existence of a hymen in women, following a gynecological examination.
- Examination of the hymen does not allow doctors to establish whether a woman is a virgin or not.
Emmanuel Macron’s long-awaited speech on religious separatism should lead to the penalization of the authors of virginity certificates issued to women before their marriage. The opportunity to remember that it is impossible to prove that a girl is a virgin, even for the best of gynecologists.
A woman can be a virgin and no longer have a hymen
The virginity certificate consists of signing a document establishing the existence of a hymen in women, following a gynecological examination. However, a woman can be a virgin and no longer have a hymen, since this membrane, located at the entrance to the vagina, can tear very young, when riding or cycling for example.
Conversely, a woman may have had sexual intercourse and still present a hymen. Although this membrane is thin, it is elastic and does not systematically rupture under the pressure of the penis. We then speak of “complacent hymens”, which are more flexible and wider than others. Every woman has a hymen of a different shape, and some are even born without it.
Women with a poorly vascularized hymen do not bleed
During a first sexual intercourse, the bleeding symbolizing the loss of virginity comes from the tearing, in two or more parts, of the hymen. However, women who have a poorly vascularized hymen do not lose blood from the vagina. Forty percent of young women say they did not bleed during the first sexual intercourse.
How many virginity certificates are issued in France each year? “By definition, there are few existing figures on this subject because most of it is underground. But each year, several cases are revealed”, informed the Ministry of the Interior. The testimonies of gynecologists report cases of women belonging to various religious communities, therefore not only Muslims.
In an interview at ParisianGérald Darmanin, the Minister of the Interior, had already announced that the government planned to “tackle virginity certificates”. “Some doctors still dare to certify that a woman is a virgin to allow a religious marriage, despite the condemnation of these practices by the Council of the College of Physicians. We will not only formally prohibit it, but propose the penalization”, assured the Minister. Remarks supported by Marlène Schiappa, Minister Delegate to the Minister of the Interior, in charge of Citizenship. Among gynecologists, the measure is debated.
.
