[women-rights] International Zero Tolerance to FGM Day: Effective measures needed to protect girls from female genital mutilation

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE
AI Index: ACT 77/018/2004 (Public)
6 February 2004

As the world observes the first International Zero Tolerance to Female
Genital Mutilation (FGM) Day, Amnesty International is appealing to all
governments to ensure effective protection of girls from female genital
mutilation (FGM).

"Governments are responsible for protecting women and girls' physical and
mental integrity. Moving against FGM should be part of a comprehensive
approach to protect women from violence and assert their equal status in
society," Amnesty International said.

During its last meeting in February 2003, the Inter-African Committee on
Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (IAC)
adopted a "Declaration of Zero Tolerance to FGM on the African Continent".
The Declaration stresses that the "zero tolerance forum will be an
initiative which will bring all [our] efforts to celebrate, reflect and
deliberate on FGM and to renew [our] commitment to protect African women
from cultural and traditional belief systems that are inimical to the
sexual and reproductive rights of women in the continent".

The February 2003 meeting also adopted a Common Agenda to provide a common
framework for all organizations and actors to intensify and coordinate
activities at different levels while respecting their diversity.

"The Declaration and the Common Agenda are welcome signs of determination
to eliminate FGM. The IAC should act decisively to spur governments, NGOs
and other stakeholders to coordinate efforts to eradicate FGM and other
harmful traditional practices which contribute to the perpetuation of
violence against women".

So far, only 14 African countries have adopted laws banning the practice.
Despite the fact that enforcement of the laws is made difficult by social
pressure to undergo the ritual, Amnesty International believes that
legislation is an important tool in creating a protective environment for
girls and women affected by this practice and asks African governments to
accompany legislative efforts with measures that will promote the status
of women with regards to their internationally protected human rights,
especially, the right to life and physical integrity and the right to
health.

On this first international day, Amnesty International urges African
governments to comply with the obligations they have contracted by
ratifying international instruments such as the Convention on the Rights
of the Child, the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women and the African Charter on Human and People's
Rights.

Amnesty International also calls on all African governments to ratify the
Additional Protocol on Women Rights in Africa adopted at the African Union
Summit in Maputo in July 2003. The Protocol is the first international
instrument which explicitly protects women's reproductive rights including
an explicit call for the legal prohibition of female genital mutilation.


Background

Female Genital Mutilation comprises all procedures involving partial or
total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the
female genital organs whether for cultural, religious or other
non-therapeutic reasons.

The immediate and long-term health consequences of female genital
mutilation vary according to the type and severity of the procedure
performed. Immediate complications include severe pain, shock,
haemorrhage, urine retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury
to adjacent tissue. Long-term complications include, recurring urinary
tract infections, pelvic infections, infertility (from deep infections),
scarring, difficulties in menstruation, fistulae (holes or tunnels between
the vagina and the bladder or rectum), painful intercourse, sexual
dysfunction, and problems in pregnancy and childbirth (the need to cut the
vagina to allow delivery and the trauma that results, often compounded by
re-stitching).

Female Genital Mutilation is practiced in 28 African countries as well as
in Asia (Indonesia) and the Middle-East (Yemen). It is increasingly found
in Europe, Australia, Canada and the USA, primarily among immigrants from
these countries.

Today, the number of girls and women who have undergone female genital
mutilation is estimated at between 100 and 140 million. It is estimated
that each year, a further 2 million girls are at risk of undergoing FGM.




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