Africa-Press – Uganda. The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development has commended the Magistrates Court in Moroto District for sentencing a 46-year-old woman to four years in prison after she performed female genital mutilation (FGM) on four girls.
Maria Lokeris, a resident of Nakonyen Village, Katikekile Parish, Tapac Sub County in Moroto District, was convicted last week after pleading guilty to the charge. She was sentenced by Ms Emmy Soyeko.
The prosecution, led by Moroto Resident State Attorney Innocent Obale, informed the court that Lokeris mutilated four females aged 13 to 15 on Thursday, November 3, and was apprehended following a tip-off. She was immediately arraigned in court and punished.
“As the ministry in-charge of women and girls affairs, we commend this sentencing because it’s now very clear that FGM doesn’t serve any purpose other than harming the body of a girl and jeopardising her life,” Mr Frank Mugabi, the Gender ministry’s public relations officer, said in a press statement.
He add: “It’s fulfilling for the survivors to see the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act, 2010, come into play. We also encourage the communities to continue being vigilant and report cases of FGM to the nearest authorities.”
Mr Mugabi said besides being a violation of the human rights of women and girls, FGM has adverse effects, both in the short and long-term.
“The immediate health effects such as heavy bleeding, possibility of infections and risk of diseases, and other health consequences, continue throughout the woman’s life causing complications during childbirth, development of fistula and even death. There is also mental and psychological trauma that many women who have undergone FGM experience,” he said.
Mr Mugabi further said FGM has social consequences such as many girls dropping out of school and not fulfilling their dreams.
According to the World Health Organization, FGM includes all non-medical operations that involve partial or entire removal of the female genitalia or other injuries to the female genital organs, as well as any hazardous procedure to the female genitalia.
Joint Effort
Since 2009, the ministry has been implementing the UN Joint Programme (UNFPA/UNICEF) on FGM, focusing on the development of a conducive legal and policy framework, strengthening access to services by survivors, increasing awareness among communities on the dangers of FGM, and gathering evidence in form of data and case studies to facilitate advocacy interventions.
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