State Refuses To Pass Bill To Criminalize Female Genital Mutilation (Video)

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Female Genital Mutilation is thought to affect up to 140 million women and girls, and is recognized as a violation of human rights.

Between 100 million and 140 million women and girls are thought to be living with the consequences of female genital mutilation, according to the World Health Organisation.

FGM is defined by the WHO as “all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons”. It is recognized as a violation of the human rights of women and girls. In December 2012, the United Nations general assembly unanimously voted to work for the elimination of FGM throughout the world.

FGM has no health benefits, and it harms girls and women in many ways. It involves removing and damaging healthy and normal female genital tissue, and interferes with the natural functions of girls’ and women’s bodies. Generally speaking, risks increase with increasing severity of the procedure.  So why then, would Maine’s state legislature kill a bill that would criminalize this practice in the state of Maine?

There are thousands of FGM victims in Maine because Maine is a dumping ground for Muslim refugees mostly from Somalia. Why are we importing this madness? Creeping Sharia reports.

Source: Maine’s state legislature shot down a bill that would criminalize female genital mutilation

Eight women in Maine have been treated for complications related to female genital mutilation (FGM), including two minors, according to 2016 MaineCare records.

Local FGM legislation has been introduced in states across the country, and in Maine it was presented by State Representative Heather Sirocki. Her bill would make it a Class B crime to perform FGM on a female under 18 years of age for non-medical purposes or for a parent, guardian, or caretaker to allow FGM to be done on a girl in their custody.

State Rep. Sirocki said, “We know that FGM has been treated here in the state of Maine because I have the MaineCare billing codes and information to prove it.

The bill, LD745 “An Act to Prohibit Female Genital Mutilation,” had six amendments submitted from the state House and Senate, but ultimately failed in a 74-73 vote on June 23.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in Maine said FGM legislation is not worth expanding the criminal code. They released a statement saying, “This bill is nothing more than an attempt to single out behavior that is commonly attributed to certain religious and ethnic communities as different from other forms of abuse.”

“Opposition has to do more with questioning my character, the character of some of the people supporting the bill, and our intentions and motivations as being related to a hate bill,” Sirocki said. “I would say to them they are correct – I hate child abuse. So if that’s their angle, I take issue with that, and would again strongly state that little girls are being horribly abused under the name of a cultural tradition that we do not support here in this country.”

“We believe FGM is a serious problem in Maine but believe that the solutions are not as straight forward as those proposed in the bill,” said Cara Courchesne, the Communications Director with the Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault in a statement.

“Currently, many legal experts believe that FGM is already illegal in Maine, under the broader heading of aggravated assault (Aggravated Assault: “Bodily injury to another that causes serious, permanent disfigurement or loss or substantial impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ.’)”

There has been a larger focus on FGM since three medical professionals were arrested in Michigan for performing FGM on little girls, some of whom were brought to Michigan from Minnesota. This was the first instance where federal files were charged relating to FGM being performed on a child, and it sparked awareness across the country. Wednesday, two mothers in Michigan were charged with FGM conspiracy and FGM.

Federal legislation was passed making FGM illegal in 1997 and 24 states have passed local legislation to supplement the federal law. Since the case in Michigan, many states including Michigan, Minnesota, Texas, and Maine have introduced state legislation to either strengthen their local laws, or protect young girls from parents or guardians in favor of FGM, and the people performing the procedure.

“If it is happening, we want it to stop. And we want to send that clear message that we do not do that here in this country,” Sirocki said.

The Maine Prosecutors Association came out strongly in favor of this bill, to clarify and specifically identify this as a crime, with a clear level of crime attributed to both the person doing the cutting as well as the parents who are accomplices.

“If it is happening, we want it to stop. And we want to send that clear message that we do not do that here in this country,” Sirocki said.

The Maine Prosecutors Association came out strongly in favor of this bill, to clarify and specifically identify this as a crime, with a clear level of crime attributed to both the person doing the cutting as well as the parents who are accomplices.

Photo:  Bing

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