SUDAN: Female genital mutilation banned
In early May, Sudan’s transitional government, which took over in 2019 following the ousting of President Omar al-Bashir, abolished a series of Islamist laws established by Bashir during his 30-year rule. Among other advances, such as the decriminalisation of apostasy, several laws that restricted women’s rights were abolished, including one mandating women to get travel permits, and a ban on female genital mutilation was introduced. Women’s rights organisations and activists celebrated the move and claimed it as a victory yielded by decades of advocacy and campaigning.
Changing the law is only a first step to abolishing FGM. Girls continue to be mutilated at an alarming rate. Laws are important but are not enough. A lot needs to be done to implement those laws. How are we going to look at it: are we criminalising parents? Are we criminalising practitioners? It takes a lot of awareness-raising, through all possible means, through the media and in schools, for this to become embedded in society.
Fahima Hashim
