Published Online:July 2025
Product Name:The IUP Journal of Law Review
Product Type:Article
Product Code:IUPLR090725
DOI:10.71329/IUPLR/2025.15.3.117-129
Author Name:Shraddha Satyawan Jagtap
Availability:YES
Subject/Domain:Law
Download Format:PDF
Pages:117-129
This paper examines female genital mutilation (FGM), which is rampant globally, through the lens of human rights. More than 4.4 million girls are at risk of FGM in 2025. It is gender based violence that causes physical as well as psychological damage; it also violates a wide range of human rights. Various International Conventions—such as the CRC, CEDAW, the Maputo Protocol, the Beijing Declaration, and the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicines—are complemented by the Indian legal frameworks like the POCSO Act and Mental Health Act. FGM is a form of sexual abuse under POCSO Act and Child Mental Health. This paper highlights the often overlooked mental health burden carried by survivors, emphasizing the need for accessible mental health support. It argues that FGM violates fundamental rights including bodily integrity, freedom from torture and cruelty, and the right to life with dignity, while calling for a global commitment to end FGM.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. In its most severe form, a woman’s or girl’s external genitalia are removed and stitched together, leaving only a small space for intercourse and menstruation. It is done in 28 African countries under the guise of cultural tradition or cleanliness.