Reps. Crowley, Bono Mack Urge Secretary Clinton to Support United Nations Resolution Calling for a Worldwide Ban on Female Genital Mutilation

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Reps. Joe Crowley (D-NY) and Mary Bono Mack (R-CA), authors of legislation that would make it a federal crime to transport a minor outside the United States for the purpose of female genital mutilation (FGM), sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging the United States to support a United National General Assembly (UNGA) resolution seeking to end the practice of FGM worldwide. Today marks International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation.

“A UNGA resolution calling on all countries to ban FGM in their domestic laws and encouraging support for critical educational and community-based outreach efforts to prevent FGM would help end the practice of minors being transported abroad for the purposes of FGM.  The United States must lend its name to this effort and press for passage of such a resolution. In doing so, the global community will send a strong and unified message that FGM is harmful to women and girls and an unacceptable practice in the 21st century,” write the lawmakers in the letter.

The practice of FGM, defined by the World Health Organization as, “procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons,” has been illegal in the United States since 1996. Breaking the existing law or conspiring to do so constitutes a felony which could result in a prison sentence of up to five years. 

Current law, however, does not protect minors who are forcibly taken outside the United States for the purposes of carrying out FGM. In 2010, Crowley and Bono Mack introduced The Girls Protection Act, legislation that would expand current laws to ensure that the same penalties that exist for domestic FGM apply to those involved in the transport of a minor abroad for the purpose of FGM. The Girls Protection Act is modeled partly on U.S. laws that prevent international child trafficking. Crowley and Bono Mack reintroduced their legislation in June 2011.

The World Health Organization estimates that 130-140 million women and girls have been subjected to FGM, and up to two million girls are threatened with FGM each year. 

The full text of the letter to Secretary Clinton is below:

 February 6, 2012

The Honorable Hillary Clinton
Secretary of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Secretary Clinton,

We commend the priority you have placed on making the rights of women and girls a key component of U.S. foreign policy, and we share your view that women must be a central part of any effective approach to achieving prosperity, democracy and security.  Of particular importance to us is the urgent need to end violence against women and girls, including the painful practice of female genital mutilation (FGM).  We urge you to support and lend your leadership to creating and passing a United Nations General Assembly resolution seeking to end the practice of FGM worldwide. 

The World Health Organization estimates that 130-140 million women and girls have been subjected to FGM, and up to two million girls – or 6,000 per day – are threatened with FGM each year.  The consequences, both psychological and physical, can be devastating, with many victims of FGM at high risk of chronic infections, severe pain or even death. 

With strong bipartisan support, the Congress passed a law in 1996 making it a crime to commit FGM against a minor.  Similar measures have been passed by scores of other nations.  Unfortunately, FGM remains common in many places throughout the world, and American girls have been transported abroad and subjected to FGM in order to evade U.S. law. 

More action is needed to end this global scourge.  A UNGA resolution calling on all countries to ban FGM in their domestic laws and encouraging support for critical educational and community-based outreach efforts to prevent FGM would help end the practice of minors being transported abroad for the purposes of FGM.  The United States must lend its name to this effort and press for passage of such a resolution.  In doing so, the global community will send a strong and unified message that FGM is harmful to women and girls and an unacceptable practice in the 21st century.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and your consistent support for the health and well-being of women and girls. We look forward to continuing to be your partner in the campaign to stop FGM once and for all.

Sincerely,

Joseph Crowley  

Mary Bono Mack

Betty McCollum       

Marsha Blackburn 

Rush Holt          

Diana DeGette

Silvestre Reyes             

Alcee Hastings

James P. Moran                 

Jared Polis

Debbie Wasserman Schultz   

Gary L. Ackerman

George Miller 

Theodore E. Deutch

Dennis J. Kucinich     

Jean Schmidt                

Charles W. Dent                                                           

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