Gambia lawmakers refer repeal of ban on female genital cutting to more committee discussions

Lawmakers in Gambia referred an attempted repeal of the 2015 ban on female genital cutting for further committee discussions on Monday.

Lawmakers in Gambia referred an attempted repeal of the 2015 ban on female genital cutting for further committee discussions on Monday.

Gambian activists fear a repeal would overturn years of work to better protect girls and women. The legislation was referred to a national committee for further debate and could return to a vote in the weeks and months ahead.

Activists in the largely Muslim country had warned that lifting the ban would hurt years of work against a procedure often performed on girls younger than 5 in the mistaken belief that it would control their sexuality.

The procedure, which also has been called female genital mutilation, includes the partial or full removal of external genitalia, often by traditional community practitioners with tools such as razor blades or at times by health workers. It can cause serious bleeding, death and childbirth complications but remains a widespread practice in parts of Africa.

Jaha Dukureh, the founder of Safe Hands for Girls, a local group that aims to end the practice, told The Associated Press she worried that other laws safeguarding women’s rights could be repealed next. Dukureh underwent the procedure and watched her sister bleed to death.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/female-genital-cutting-mutilation-gambia-repeal-law-rcna144017

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