Doctor challenges anti-FGM laws at Machakos court, wants women to decide about their bodies

A girl undergoes FGM in Somalia. (Courtesy)

MACHAKOS—A doctor has moved to the court challenging the a legislative piece that criminilised female genital mutilation, or FGM.

Dr Tatu Kamau, who has been practising medicine for 26 years, wants the court to declare as unconstitutional an Act that outlawed Female Genital Mutilation.

Kamau argues that stopping women from undergoing the cut yet men are allowed to get circumcised is discriminatory.

According to her, banning the practice is tantamount to embracing Western culture and disregarding local practices as inferior.

“I wants the court to declare as unconstitutional the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act, which was enacted in 2011,” she said.

Further, she wants a declaration that the board formed to fight the practice is improperly constituted.

“Your petitioner avers that the dignity of traditional practitioners of female circumcision is disregarded.

“Every citizen has a right to equality and freedom from discrimination but the said Act shows open intolerance to women who wish to undergo female circumcision even for the purpose of upholding their culture. They are treated unequally to the men who undergo similar surgical procedure,” she argues.

The doctor’s view is that women can equally undergo the adulthood initiation process safely if the females get proper training, just as the traditional male counterparts.

“The Act has created distress within some communities by overly favouring the cultural practices of one gender against the cultural practices of the other gender in contravention of the constitutional fundamental right of gender equality,” she adds.

Kamau argues that every person has a right to choose what they want to do. She says the anti-FGM Act is against the Constitution for limiting women’s right to decide what should happen to their bodies.

Kamau holds a master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Nairobi and a degree from Andhra University, India.

—This artcle was contributed by The Standard