Ending FGM in Egypt
Egyptian legislation criminalizes FGM/C in the Penal Code in June 2008. It carries a minimum sentence of three months and a maximum of two years, and an alternative punishment is 1,000 to 5,000 Egyptian pounds. The new Child Law mandates the formation of Child Protection Committees to identify children at risk of circumcision, and to help them. These committees also monitor girls who might be at risk for circumcision.
Efforts to eliminate egypt fgm
Efforts to eliminate Egypt FGM are underway. The UNFPA has supported the creation and strengthening of an NGO Coalition to eliminate FGM in Egypt. The coalition comprises ninety local NGOs dedicated to eliminating FGM in Egypt. Since the first meeting of the Coalition, over 450 people have been involved in the campaign. In addition, a national FGM committee was established by the National Council for Women and the Ministry of Social Solidarity.
In June 2008, the Egyptian government made FGM a crime. The minimum penalty for FGM is three months, and a maximum penalty of two years. The alternative penalty is a fine of 1,000 Egyptian pounds or five thousand Egyptian pounds. The Egyptian Parliament has enacted several legislative changes to strengthen the penalties for FGM. The legislation now includes a proposal to increase penalties for FGM through 2021.
The 2015 Egyptian Health Issues Survey found that the prevalence of FGM has dropped, particularly among younger women. The rate of FGM is still over eighty per cent among women between the ages of twenty-five and forty-nine, but is less than 70 percent for those aged 25 and younger. The rates have also declined in rural areas, such as Upper Egypt. These findings are encouraging, but must be accompanied by action in all regions of the country.
The government’s government programs on FGM tended to focus on punishments for perpetrators of FGM. However, these programs rarely examined the issue from the perspective of women’s sexual rights. To successfully eliminate FGM, we need to investigate the connection between social norms and FGM. In the end, the government must take a comprehensive look at the relationship between sexual norms and FGM.
The film Between Two Seas is an important contribution to awareness raising efforts in Egypt. It was produced in partnership between the National Council for Women and UN Women Egypt. The United States Agency for International Development and Japan have generously supported the film’s production. It has received over 900 participants. These screenings have also made it possible for the National Council for Women to conduct interactive discussions and public forums around the film.
Legal sanctions
The Egyptian government recently approved new legal sanctions to end FGM. The legislation will make the practice a crime, and practitioners face a maximum of seven years in prison. The maximum penalty, however, is 15 years in prison if a person performs FGM that results in death or permanent disability. The previous law only stipulated prison sentences ranging from three months to two years, and a fine of EGP 5000.
FGM has become a major issue in the country, with approximately 90 percent of women aged 15-49 having undergone the procedure. The practice was so deeply rooted in Egyptian society that some families celebrated it as a festive event. Today, more than 80 percent of Egyptian women have undergone the procedure, and around 14 percent of girls under fourteen have had it performed by family members. Despite the fact that it is illegal, medical doctors continue to perform it.
The Egyptian parliament’s House of Representatives has passed a bill that will toughen the punishments for FGM. The law is not yet in force, but it is an important step in combating this practice. According to Human Rights Watch, the government must ensure that the law is enforced, including the new penal code. In addition to toughening the penalties, the government should also make efforts to implement more prevention measures and change social attitudes that allow FGM.
The new laws are a huge step forward for Egypt’s fgm victims, as they are the most widespread form of the practice. They will also make it harder for the perpetrators to hide their identities and commit the act. However, the new laws are not a cure-all, as they are only intended to curb the practice. In Egypt, the new laws will help prevent further fgm practices, and the Egyptian government should enforce them in full.
In the recent case of Raslan Fadl, a doctor from Cairo was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison for performing the procedure on a 13-year-old girl. The sentence was based on the doctor’s previous conviction and a negotiated plea agreement with the family of the victim. The father’s conviction has sparked a new campaign against FGM among doctors in Egypt. Several doctors published guidance leaflets and displayed posters stating ‘No to FGM’ and “FGM is a Crime” and other similar slogans.
The new laws do not prevent private reconciliation, but rather, it places punishment on the family or those escorting the girl to the clinic for the operation. This means families are unlikely to admit that the girl underwent FGM. It’s also important to note that many cases of FGM are intentionally misreported by practitioners and their families, obscuring the possibility of a crackdown. However, the new laws will still not deter those who practice the procedure.
Persistent practice among health care providers
A recent study reveals a pronounced problem of persistent practice among health care providers in Egypt. According to the study, nearly three quarters of respondents are confident that the country will be able to control the pandemic. This is surprising, considering that the health care system in Egypt is severely overloaded and faces problems recruiting and retaining health workers. Here, we take a closer look at these problems.
The COVID-19 epidemic caused a high level of stress and anxiety among Egyptian health care providers. In addition to the overwhelming workload, HCPs were exposed to high rates of mortality and infection. Such conditions are detrimental to their mental health. In this study, we examined the working conditions of Egyptian health care providers and their intentions towards discrimination at work. We included questions on how much workers in a hospital or clinic felt worried about contracting the disease while at work. We also included an internalized shame scale to assess the extent of these attitudes.
The study involved mystery client visits to health care clinics in AlGharbeya, Assiut, and Cairo. Among these, we found five physicians who performed FGM/C on patients in their clinics. In addition, we also found two private clinics run by NGOs in the same areas. The physicians in these two clinics had consented to participate in the study and the research.
While the medical profession was supposed to be neutral, the conditions in Egypt during the military rule challenged this notion. Rather than neutrally treating patients, doctors became politically involved, even when attempting to practice medicine. Hamdy and Bayoumi explain how doctors tended to treat the injured protesters. In this way, they challenged the regime’s authority and the military’s disciplinary practices. In other words, the doctors were political actors.
This study found that FGM/C among daughters of health care providers was increasingly common, and was a result of medicalization of the procedure. Understanding the factors that drive the practice will help us design interventions that will address the root causes of this problem. The findings also suggest that health care providers are likely to continue performing FGM/C because they feel obligated to do so. Further, they may also be motivated by financial and cultural benefits.
In the MENA region, there are significant health inequities for women. The region’s socially assigned gender roles influence women’s perception of their bodies and health seeking behavior. The gender-based health care system is shaped by these cultural constraints. Furthermore, women have to navigate a culture of silence that is not conducive to their reproductive health. These cultural constraints make it difficult to access quality health care services.
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