NEW DELHI: Somaliland has issued a fatwa, or religious edict, banning female genital mutilation (FGM) - and paving the way for the breakaway region to pass legislation against the internationally condemned practice, a senior official said on Wednesday.
The fatwa from the ministry of religious affairs on Tuesday said those who perform FGM would face punishment, and victims would be eligible for compensation. It did not provide details on the severity of punishment, or the amount of compensation.
"The reason that this harmful practice has existed for so long is that people believe it is because our religion or culture dictates that we should do it," said Ayan Mahamoud, Somaliland's representative in Britain.
"The fatwa is basically a message from the government to everyone in Somaliland that there is no religious or cultural basis for FGM," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The practice - which involves the partial or total removal of the female genitalia - is almost universal in the self-declared republic of Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia.
The Horn of Africa nation has the world's highest rate of FGM, according to the United Nations.
An estimated 200 million girls and women worldwide have undergone FGM, which can cause serious physical and mental health problems.
Mahamoud said the religious ban - which coincided with the International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM - was timely as it comes weeks before a bill outlawing the practice is expected to before parliament.
Many families in Somaliland believe it is a religious obligation although it is not mentioned in the Koran. It is widely considered important for ensuring a girl's purity and a prerequisite to marriage.
The ancient ritual is usually carried out by traditional cutters, often using unsterilised blades or knives.
The fatwa pertains to the most severe form of FGM called infibulation, where the external genitalia are removed and the vaginal opening sewn or sealed closed. It is the most common type of FGM performed in Somaliland.
Women's rights activists, who have fought for decades to end FGM, welcomed the move but said the struggle was not over yet.
"It took us 42 years to reach this day, but, this is not the end of the battle," tweeted Edna Adan, a leading anti-FGM campaigner in Somaliland.
"FGM must be completely eradicated in my country and everywhere in the world."
Somaliland issues fatwa banning female genital mutilation
Somaliland issues fatwa banning female genital mutilation
Protests across globe mark one week of Iran war
- In Washington DC, demonstrators gathered at the National Mall carrying US, Israeli and Iranian flags, with some protesters painting the colors of the Iranian flags on their cheeks
- Several counter-protesters carried signs denouncing Israel and in support of the Palestinians
PARIS, France: Lion-emblazoned flags of pre-revolution Iran fluttered in cities across the world on Saturday as demonstrators took to the streets a week after the start of the war in the Middle East.
Europe, Africa and the Americas saw demonstrations, with some protesting against Iran’s Islamic regime, others railing against the war, and some in support of Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the first US-Israeli strikes of the conflict.
Paris saw two demonstrations: one supporting the US-based Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late shah, to head up a transition, and another denouncing that scenario.
“I support Pahlavi who is calling for a revolution,” Masoud Ghanaatian, 35, a student, told AFP at a protest in southern Paris, where participants carried photos of the late shah’s son and waved US, Israeli and pre-revolution Iran flags.
“He’s a democrat. He can oversee a transition and promises to organize elections.”
Hundreds of pro-Pahlavi demonstrations also gathered in Stockholm, holding up pictures of him and his late father.
But farther north, protesters wearing yellow vests reading “Free Iran” showed off stickers on their hands that read “No Shah, no Mullah.”
In Amsterdam protesters snaked along one of the city’s canals, holding up Israeli, American and pre-revolution Iran flags, as they called on the government to invite Pahlavi to the country and to close the Iranian embassy.
In Israel, anti-war activists and police scuffled during a protest against eh war in HaBima Square in Tel Aviv.
Shortly after dawn in Britain, anti-war protesters gathered at the entrance of an air force base in Fairford, southwest of England, holding signs reading “Hands off Iran,” “Peace” and “Yanks go home.”
- ‘Assassins’ -
A demonstrations against the war also took place in Cyprus.
Outside the US consulate in Mexico City, protesters carried a placard with pictures of US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with blood-soaked palms over the word “Assassins” and kicked pinatas with images of the two leaders.
In the United States, protesters carried Iranian, Lebanese and Palestinian flags and signs “Iran is not our enemy” and “No war on Iran” in downtown Detroit, Michigan.
In Washington DC, demonstrators gathered at the National Mall carrying US, Israeli and Iranian flags, with some protesters painting the colors of the Iranian flags on their cheeks.
In Boston, Iranian Americans gathered at Copley Square to call for the fall of the Islamic republic.
In South Africa — which has dragged Israel to International Court of Justice, accusing it of genocide during the Gaza war, a charge Israel denies — dozens gathered in front of the US consulate in Johannesburg, holding up photos of Khamenei, the Islamic republic’s flag and signs bashing Israel.
Protesters carried pictures of Khamenei and denounced the war in central Tunis in Tunisia.
In Cape Town, Iranian pro-democracy activists and supporters of Israel waved Israeli flags and chanted slogans in the Albert Waterfront shopping mall.
Several counter-protesters carried signs denouncing Israel and in support of the Palestinians.
