CIVICUS discusses the role of civil society in defeating a recent attempt to make female genital mutilation (FGM) legal in The Gambia with Isatou Touray, co-founder of the Gambia Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (GAMCOTRAP), a leading Gambian women’s and children’s rights civil society organisation.

In July 2024, The Gambia’s National Assembly rejected the Women’s Amendment Bill 2024, which sought to decriminalise FGM, a practice outlawed in 2015. The bill had passed a previous reading with only five National Assembly members opposed but faced strong opposition from Gambian anti-FGM campaigners and international rights groups. The bill was defeated following widespread protests and heated debate. FGM remains illegal and is punishable by up to three years in prison.

What challenges have you faced in your campaign against FGM?

Over decades of campaigning against FGM, we’ve faced many challenges. The Gambian feminist and women’s rights movement achieved a significant victory in 2015, when a law was finally passed banning the practice. But it was clear our struggle was far from over. The 2015 ban provided a legal framework for protection, but enforcement remained a challenge.

Five years into the ban, we found girls in central Gambia were still being subjected to FGM. We alerted the Child Welfare Bureau, which initiated legal action. It was disheartening to see so many stakeholders remain silent, but fortunately the police took the matter seriously and within three months justice was done. A court imposed fines of 15,000 Gambian Dalasi (approx. US$300) on those responsible, with one-year prison sentences if they failed to pay within three weeks. This reaffirmed the importance of enforcing the law.

But then another major challenged emerged when religious scholars and National Assembly members began to push for the re-legalisation of FGM, claiming the practice had religious significance. In response, women’s rights organisations mobilised and spoke out strongly against regression. We presented a compelling case to the National Assembly, arguing that a true democracy couldn’t fail to protect the rights of half its people.

How did civil society mobilise against the bill?

The anti-FGM campaign involved community outreach, media engagement and regional and international partnerships.

Diverse groups, including youth and women’s rights organisations, came together to engage in policy discussions and develop collective strategies. They addressed the gap between educated and uneducated women, raised awareness and empowered grassroots organisations to hold National Assembly representatives to account.

Civil society facilitated discussions with key ministries and presented arguments focused on women’s and children’s health. We networked with women’s rights organisations at the regional level and launched a petition to put pressure on the National Assembly. We worked with organisations such as the United Nations Population Fund, UNICEF, the African Women’s Development Fund and Equality Now. The international community played a key role by reminding Gambian state officials of their obligations regarding women’s rights.

It was our collective efforts that kept the FGM ban in place, setting a precedent for other African countries.

What are your key takeaways from the anti-FGM campaign?

Throughout this process, we have learned the importance of remaining vigilant against rising fundamentalism and patriarchal attempts to assert control over women’s bodies. After extensive advocacy, we defeated the bill to repeal the FGM ban, but that doesn’t mean the challenges are over. We must remain vigilant, as opponents may try to repeal the law again, and in the meantime they are likely to try to obstruct its enforcement.

After all, almost a decade after it was banned, many still follow traditional practices and FGM still affects an estimated 76 per cent of Gambian women. The prevalence of the practice appears to have declined somewhat, but this is difficult to assess due to shortcomings in survey methods. For example, women may report having been cut without fully understanding the details of the practice, leading to inaccurate data.

Awareness-raising is crucial to help communities and key institutions understand the consequences of FGM and their role in preventing it. The police, for example, only began to recognise their responsibility to enforce the law when they were targeted with awareness-raising efforts. The number of grassroots organisations working on FGM has increased, but more advocacy and campaigning is needed to ensure the law is consistently applied.

The positive response from the feminist movement and local organisations suggests our struggle can serve as a model for tackling issues such as child marriage and violence against women. On all fronts, we need to ensure laws are enforced and opposition is met with united resistance.

It is also crucial to increasing women’s representation in the National Assembly. Only four out of 58 members are currently women, so it’s no wonder women’s rights issues are not high on the agenda. Strengthening women’s voices in decision-making processes will help secure their rights and those of other excluded groups.