Yadicon Njie Eribo, chairperson of The Association of Non-Governmental Organizations in the Gambia (TANGO), has re-echoed that while Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is hailed as a religious or cultural practice, it is a human rights violation that affects the health and integrity of girls and women.
Madam Njie Eribo was speaking during a ‘Walk for Health’ procession in commemoration of ‘Zero Tolerance for FGM’ day organised by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare in collaboration with partners.
The event was held at the weekend at the Youth Monument in Westfield.
“Girls who undergo FGM suffer from pain, excessive bleeding, infection and difficulty urinating and for the long term they face sexual and reproductive health issues,” she said. “In extreme cases they will experience infertility and mental health issues.”
Coming closer to home in the Gambia, she cites, 8 out of 10 girls undergo FGM, and this rite affects them throughout their lives.
To discourage this practice, she said, advocates in The Gambia have been engaging in advocacy activities against FGM since the 1990s.
According to her, due to their hard work the Government of The Gambia finally passed the Women’s Amendment Act 2015 banning FGM in The Gambia. Under section 32A and 32B the act criminalizes FGM and sets punishments for performing, procuring, aiding and abetting the practice of FGM thus protecting women and girls in the country.
Neneh Touray, deputy executive director of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment at the Ministry of Gender, said the Gambian youth are now taking the lead in advocating for an end to the practice, using their voices to challenge long-standing harmful practice and to promote the rights of their peers.
She added that the youth’s courage, activism and dedication to this cause “gives them hope” for a future free from FGM.
“As we observe the International Day for Zero Tolerance for FGM, let us commit ourselves today to redoubling our efforts to end FGM in The Gambia,” she said.
She calls for collective efforts to see that every girl in the country grows up free from the trauma of FGM, able to live her life with dignity and autonomy.
She also calls on every Gambian, young and old, men and women, boys and girls to stand together in the fight for a future where FGM is a thing of the past.
She said further: “Together, we can make The Gambia a beacon of hope in the global fight to end FGM. Together, we can build a future where every girl has the right to live free from harm, where every girl and woman has the opportunity to fulfill her potential, and where the rights of all individuals are respected and protected.”
The deputy UNICEF country representative to The Gambia, Armand Gnahore, also said FGM is a grave violation of women, adolescent girls and girl child’s fundamental human rights, including their rights to health, physical integrity and dignity.
He added that FGM violates the principles of equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex and women’s and girls’ rights to freedom from degrading treatment.
FGM, he said, is an attempt to control women’s bodies and their sexual behaviour, which perpetuates the control of men over women. It can also result in serious health complications, including infections, bleeding, infertility, complications in childbirth, and impairs sexual pleasure.
According to him, the year 2024 saw a legal challenge to the rights of every women and girl in The Gambia, through the proposed repeal of the Women’s Amendment Act 2015 banning FGM.
He took the opportunity to commend the Government of The Gambia and the National Assembly for upholding the law and committing to end FGM, to protect every woman and girl in The Gambia.
