Faith Nyasuguta
This week, MPs in The Gambia voted to retain a law outlawing female genital mutilation (FGM), bringing joy and relief to campaigners. Thirty-four out of 53 lawmakers voted to maintain the ban, which was introduced in 2015, while the remainder voted to repeal it.
Jaha Dukureh, an FGM survivor and founder of Safe Hands for Girls, expressed her elation, stating, “Today we stood on the right side of history one more time. We have shown that even if they burn down this country, we will rebuild to protect our women and girls. Today, we won for Gambia.”
According to the UN, The Gambia has the ninth-highest rate of FGM in the world. Almost three-quarters of Gambian women between the ages of 15 and 49 have undergone FGM, which involves the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia. Nearly two-thirds of these women were cut before the age of five.
The bill to repeal the ban was introduced in March by Almameh Gibba, who argued it was necessary to “uphold religious loyalty and safeguard cultural norms and values” in the Muslim-majority state. Initially, the repeal was approved by a majority of MPs, prompting human rights campaigners to intensify their lobbying against the move.
The law’s repeal was supported by influential Muslim clerics in The Gambia, a conservative country with a population of 2.7 million. One imam, Abdoulie Fatty, even helped pay the fines of three women in the northern village of Bakadagi who were found guilty of mutilating eight infant girls last year in the first major conviction under the law.
Those convicted of carrying out FGM face three years in prison or a fine of 50,000 dalasi (£570) or both.
The decisive vote took place following the bill’s second reading after it was referred to a parliamentary committee for consultation. A third and final reading had been scheduled for next week. However, Fabakary Tombong Jatta, the speaker of parliament, declared, “[We] cannot be engaged in such a futile exercise as to allow the bill to proceed to a third reading. The bill is rejected and the legislative process ends here.”
Judy Gitau, coordinator for Equality Now’s Africa office, praised the vote, noting it set a significant precedent. She said, “Repealing the FGM law was going to set a new low in the pushback against women’s rights.”
While welcoming the decision to uphold the ban, human rights campaigners emphasized that more needed to be done to improve the lives of women and girls in the West African country. Binta Ceesay, women’s rights manager at ActionAid Gambia, commented,
“Since FGM was banned nearly a decade ago, we have made encouraging strides in ending the practice, but it has not been enough. After voting to uphold the ban, we encourage politicians to redouble their efforts in ending this form of violence against women and girls forever.”
Dukureh also highlighted the ongoing challenges, stating she remained vigilant against any further attempts to overturn the anti-FGM law. “We don’t know if it will come up again, but the majority of Gambians still believe in FGM and many believe it is a religious requirement,” she said. “If it comes up again, we will be here to fight.”
This vote marks a significant victory for human rights advocates in The Gambia, reinforcing the country’s commitment to protecting women and girls from the harmful practice of FGM.
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