Our website use cookies to improve and personalize your experience and to display advertisements (if any). Our website may also include cookies from third parties like Google Adsense, Google Analytics, and Youtube. By using the website, you consent to the use of cookies.

Ok, I Agree
Mar
20
2024
By The African Mirror
Gambian parliament debates bill to reverse ban on female genital mutilation

Gambian parliament debates bill to reverse ban on female genital mutilation

NEWS
GAMBIAN lawmakers debated whether to repeal a ban on female genital mutilation, which has been on the rise in recent years despite activist campaigns to end the practice. The small West African nation imposed steep fines and jail sentences in 2015 for those who carry out female circumcision, known by the acronym FGM. The World Health Organization says the practice has no health benefits and can lead to excessive bleeding, shock, psychological problems and even death. Lawmaker Almameh Gibba presented the repeal bill earlier this month, arguing the ban violates citizens' rights to practice their culture and religion. Gambia is…
Read More
Mar
06
2024
By The African Mirror
Gambian parliament to discuss bill to decriminalise female genital mutilation

Gambian parliament to discuss bill to decriminalise female genital mutilation

NEWS
A bill seeking to repeal Gambia's ban on female genital mutilation (FGM) was presented in the West African country's parliament and will be discussed by lawmakers later this month. Former president Yahya Jammeh banned the practice in 2015 and introduced steep fines and jail sentences for perpetrators. However, many Gambians still believe that FGM is a requirement of Islam and the bill -- introduced by lawmaker Almameh Gibba -- argues that the current ban violates citizens' rights to practice their culture and religion. The bill has divided public opinion. Anti-FGM advocates point to the harmful physical and psychological effects of…
Read More
Oct
27
2023
By The African Mirror
London woman guilty of aiding Kenyan female genital mutilation

London woman guilty of aiding Kenyan female genital mutilation

NEWS
 A woman from London has been found guilty of aiding the female genital mutilation (FGM) of a young girl in Kenya, becoming the first person to be convicted in England of committing the crime overseas, British prosecutors said. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said police launched an investigation after the victim told a teacher in 2018 that she had been subjected to FGM in the African country years earlier as a young child. Detectives found that Amina Noor, 39, was responsible for taking the girl to Kenya where the FGM was carried out by a Kenyan woman. Noor said in…
Read More
May
30
2023
By ATIENO ODERA, BIRD STORY AGENCY
Kakenya Ntaiya’s dream is to end a brutal custom. She’s had some unexpected help

Kakenya Ntaiya’s dream is to end a brutal custom. She’s had some unexpected help

NEWS
AS a young girl growing up in Enoosaen, a rural Maasai village in southwestern Kenya, Kakenya Ntaiya's fate seemed determined from birth. After undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM) at puberty, she was expected to stop her education and start life as a married woman. In the Maasai community, female genital mutilation includes the removal of the entire exterior of the clitoris. This usually takes place in the homestead, with the use of a sharp knife or razor. Though the practice is banned in Kenya, many elders continue to consider the practice a prerequisite for the transition from childhood to womanhood.…
Read More
Apr
07
2023
By The African Mirror
Not just a woman’s issue: the Maasai man fighting to end female genital mutilation in Kenya

Not just a woman’s issue: the Maasai man fighting to end female genital mutilation in Kenya

NEWS
SHEILA MWALILI, BIRD STORY AGENCY PARSANKA Sayianka grew up in Kenya's Maa community, where female genital mutilation was the norm. In his village of Paranai in Kajiado County, it was customary for girls to drop out of primary school after undergoing "the cut". This is the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), sometimes erroneously referred to as circumcision. These girls would soon be married off in exchange for cows, mostly to older men. "I kept wondering why this had to happen to our girls while their mates from other communities remained in school. I saw how the practice coupled with…
Read More
Apr
27
2021
By The African Mirror
Egypt toughens penalties for FGM

Egypt toughens penalties for FGM

NEWS
MENNA A FAROUK EGYPT has toughened penalties for female genital mutilation (FGM), imposing prison terms of up to 20 years in a push to end the ancient practice. It is the second time Egypt's parliament has cracked down on FGM - which typically involves the removal of a girl's external genitalia - but activists remain sceptical about enforcement in a country where cutting is deep-rooted and widespread. "It's fantastic news that Egypt has strengthened its law on FGM again. However, unless the government takes it seriously this time, nothing is likely to change," Brendan Wynne, co-founder of The Five Foundation…
Read More
Apr
14
2021
By The African Mirror
Mali’s lack of anti-FGM law challenged

Mali’s lack of anti-FGM law challenged

NEWS
LEADING women’s rights organizations have jointly filed a case at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice in Abuja, Nigeria, to challenge Mali’s failure to prohibit Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by adopting a legal and policy framework that would criminalize the practice.  Currently, there is no legislation that addresses FGM, leaving women and girls without recourse or protection from this human rights violation.  The case, which was filed by Equality Now, Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA), Association Malienne pour le Suivi et l'Orientation des Pratiques Traditionnelles and Association pour le Progrès et…
Read More
Apr
13
2021
By The African Mirror
Mali’s failure to ban FGM challenged

Mali’s failure to ban FGM challenged

NEWS
NITA BHALLA MALI’S failure to outlaw female genital mutilation (FGM) is being challenged in West Africa's highest court by rights groups, who accused the country yesterday of failing to protect girls and women from "a grave and systematic violation". Nine out of 10 women and girls in Mali have undergone the ancient ritual, which usually involves the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia and can cause serious health problems, according to the United Nations. Women's rights NGO Equality Now said it had jointly filed a case with two partner organisations at the Economic Community of West African…
Read More
Mar
18
2021
By The African Mirror
Victory for Kenyan women – ban on FMG stays

Victory for Kenyan women – ban on FMG stays

NEWS
KENYA’S high court has upheld a ban on female genital mutilation (FGM) in a landmark ruling welcomed by campaigners seeking to eradicate the internationally condemned procedure. Kenya criminalised FGM in 2011 with a punishment of three years imprisonment and a $2,000 fine, but the practice persists because some communities regard it as necessary for social acceptance and increasing their daughters' marriage prospects. An estimated 200 million girls and women worldwide have been subjected to FGM, which usually involves the partial or total removal of the external genitalia. The ritual is practised in at least 27 African countries and parts of…
Read More
Mar
06
2021
By The African Mirror
Victory for Kenyan girls

Victory for Kenyan girls

NEWS
DOMINIC KIRUI TRIBAL leaders in northern Kenya have pledged to end female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage in their communities, a step hailed by President Uhuru Kenyatta as "an important milestone" in boosting girls' rights. One in five women and girls aged between 15 and 49 in Kenya have undergone FGM, which usually involves the partial or total removal of the female genitalia and can cause serious health problems, the United Nations says. Kenya outlawed the widely condemned practice a decade ago, but it continues in some communities such as the semi-nomadic Samburu tribe, who see it as necessary…
Read More
Facebook
Twitter
Linkedin
Instagram