BAG publishes letter of protection against female genital mutilation
Published: Monday, Jul 1st 2024, 17:50
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Female genital mutilation is banned in Switzerland. The federal government now wants to help girls and families to oppose female genital mutilation. To this end, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is publishing a letter of protection in various languages.
Female genital mutilation is a human rights violation with serious consequences for physical and mental health, as the FOPH announced on Monday. In Switzerland, it is also a criminal offense to have the procedure carried out abroad. According to the information, the act usually takes place before entering Switzerland or during a vacation trip to the country of origin.
Those affected are often unaware that their parents face legal consequences in Switzerland. The letter of protection is therefore intended to draw attention to the legal situation, as the FOPH wrote.
The document is also intended to support families and girls in defending themselves against family and social pressure in their country of origin and in their diaspora in Switzerland.
The "Protection letter against female genital mutilation" is available in German, French, Italian, English, Amharic, Arabic, Somali and Tigrinja. It can be ordered or downloaded free of charge from the Migesplus website.
According to the UN children's charity Unicef, female genital mutilation is most widespread in Islamic countries in Africa. At the top of the list are Somalia with 98 percent and Egypt with 91 percent, followed by Sierra Leone with 90 percent and Sudan with 88 percent.
However, female circumcision is older than Islam, which does not prescribe it according to the Koran. It was already practiced in ancient, pre-Islamic Egypt.
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