Gambia Moves to Reverse Ban on Female Mutilation

Gambia’s National Assembly has taken a significant step by voting to progress a bill aimed at reversing the ban on female genital cutting, potentially making this small West African nation the first in the world to retract such a safeguard.

Numerous women, many of whom have personally endured the anguish associated with genital cutting—a deeply entrenched tradition in Gambia—gathered at the National Assembly building on Monday to observe the proceedings. Among them, one recounted being subjected to the practice at the age of 8 during a ceremony where she was forcibly restrained. Another shared the distressing discovery on her wedding night that her genitalia had been sealed, while a third suffered from recurrent infections and later infertility after undergoing the procedure without parental consent.

Despite the predominantly male composition of the parliamentarians, who vehemently endorsed the bill with resounding gavel strikes, the women present remained composed. Almameh Gibba, the lawmaker who introduced the bill, framed it as a measure to “preserve religious freedoms and protect cultural traditions and values.” He argued that the prohibition on cutting constituted a “direct infringement upon citizens’ rights to uphold their cultural practice