-Amid Advocacy for Initiation Without Mutilation
Liberia is taking substantial steps in its fight against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) as stakeholders gather to review a draft bill aimed at prohibiting the harmful practice. At an engagement held at the RLJ Kendeja Resort on Thursday, Bong County District #6 Representative and Chairperson of the Committee on Gender, Children, and Social Protection at the House of Representatives, Moima Briggs-Mensah, emphasized the importance of preserving cultural traditions while eradicating practices that violate human rights.
“If we want to stop it once and for all, we can maintain our culture. We can have our programs and teach our children how to sing, dance, cook, and take care of their families without resorting to harmful practices,” Representative Mensah stated. She highlighted that the draft FGM Prohibition Bill is designed to safeguard the health, security, and physical integrity of women and girls across Liberia.
The bill, currently under review, recollects a collective and intentional approach to ending FGM, a practice that has long-term physical and psychological consequences for its victims. Representative Mensah’s call for “initiation without mutilation” underscores the need to preserve cultural identity while eliminating harmful traditions.
The Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia (AFELL) is at the forefront of advocating for the bill. AFELL has adopted a robust and systematic approach to champion the protection of women and girls, particularly against FGM. The organization is collaborating with the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, as well as the House of Representatives Committee on Gender, to ensure the bill’s successful passage.
As part of its advocacy campaign, AFELL has launched a series of nationwide consultations to review and refine the draft legislation. The first day of consultations brought together key stakeholders, including legal counsels from the Ministry of Gender, the Human Rights Commission, the Law Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Health. These discussions aim to address the legal, social, and cultural dimensions of FGM and ensure the bill’s alignment with international human rights standards.
Frederick Cooper, Deputy Minister for Administration and Acting Minister at the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to eradicating FGM. He praised AFELL and its partners for their relentless efforts in combating the practice. “This fight requires collective action, and we are grateful for the support of all stakeholders,” Cooper said.
Philomena Williams, President of AFELL, emphasized the significance of the bill in protecting women and girls from harmful traditional practices. She called on politicians to refrain from justifying FGM for personal or political gain, stressing that such practices disproportionately harm young girls and women. “We must eliminate these practices and ensure the total involvement of all relevant stakeholders in combating violence against women and girls,” Williams asserted.g
The two-day consultation also addressed broader national issues, including good governance, the rule of law, and strategies to strengthen efforts against FGM. Representatives from the Law Reform Commission, the Independent National Commission on Human Rights, and the Ministry of Health were also represented at the engagement.
Global and Local Context of FGM
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 230 million girls and women worldwide have undergone FGM, with the practice being prevalent in 30 countries across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. In Liberia, FGM is practiced in 11 of the country’s 15 counties. The WHO terms FGM as a violation of human rights.
In February 2022, the National Council of Chiefs and Elders of Liberia proclaimed a three-year ban on the practice of FGM from 2022 to 2025, during an anti-FGM event in Nimba County. Last month, Chief Arthur Dowah, the new chairperson of the National Council of Elders, told this paper that he lacks the authority to make decisions regarding FGM until the three-year ban on the practice is lifted. The ban, declared on February 6, 2022, officially ended on February 6, 2025, but has yet to be formally lifted by the government.
A reported lack of cooperation has led to traditional women being vulnerable, resulting in the resurgence of the practice in other parts of the country. On September 14 last year, Ma. Weto Musa, a prominent Zoe in Margibi County who owns and operates the Zenah Hill Bush School in the area graduated over 150 girls. She confirmed it to this publication. However, some community members said the number was higher following an inquiry by this paper in December last year.
International Commitments
Article V (Elimination of Harmful Practices) of the Maputo Protocol discourages harmful traditional practices and urges governments to prohibit and condemn all forms of harmful practices that negatively affect women’s human rights and are contrary to recognized international standards. “State Parties shall prohibit and condemn all forms of harmful practices that negatively affect the human rights of women and are contrary to recognized international standards.”
The protocol provides that state parties shall take all necessary legislative and other measures to eliminate such practices. Liberia signaled its commitment to ending FGM during the global convening of world leaders and women’s rights activists at the Generation Equality Forum in Paris in 2021. Liberia pledged to pursue efforts to end gender-based violence and became a signatory to the collective commitment to eradicating harmful practices, including FGM.
However, Liberia remains one of three West African countries without a law criminalizing FGM, despite having signed and ratified regional and international human rights instruments condemning the practice as a human rights violation, including the Maputo Protocol.
