Defend the Human Rights of Adolescent Girls

Egypt - FGM:  As you may know from previous reports, our Middle East consultant traveled to Egypt and met with lawyers from our partner organizations, the Center for Egyptian Women's Legal Assistance (CEWLA) and the Egyptian Coalition for Children's Rights (ECCR) to work with them on the case of 13-year-old Soheir, who died after a doctor performed female genital mutilation (FGM) on her at the behest of her father in a clinic in Cairo.  Soheir's death highlights the immediate need for effective implementation of the 2008 FGM law in Egypt with 72% of procedures being performed by doctors in private clinics.

The doctor was interrogated and released on bail pending an investigation.  In July 2013, in collaboration with our partners, we issued an Action supporting their call for the father and doctor to be prosecuted for FGM and manslaughter. After issuing an Action Update in December 2013 (accessible here), urging the government to live up to its national and international obligations, the Ministry of Health and Population closed the doctor's clinic on February 5, 2014 pending further investigation by the Attorney General.  The Egyptian Medical Syndicate will also conduct a professional ethics investigation into the doctor's actions.

Equality Now will continue to work with our local Egyptian partners to monitor these investigations to ensure that they are properly conducted and that those responsible for Soheir's mutilation and death are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.  As medicalization of FGM is on the rise in Egypt, please continue to keep the pressure on officials to effectively enforce Egypt's anti-FGM law and full prosecute all violators.

Protecting the Girl Child:  Using the Law to End Child, Early and Forced Marriage and Related Human Rights Violations

Building on the body of Equality Now's work for the protection of girls' and women's rights, Equality Now's report (accessible here) illustrates the impact of child marriage on a girl's young life through case studies of Jamila married at age 10 and Sahar married at age 12 in Afghanistan; Perpetua married off at birth in Cameroon; Leila and Adriana both married at 14 in Guatemala; Asman in India married at 15; Rawan married at 16 in Jordan, Evelyn in Kenya who escaped marriage at 14 years old; Beatrice married at 14 in Malawi, Mariam married in 14 in Mali; Khadijetou married at 8 and Minetou married at 12 in Mauritania; Dewan in Papua New Guinea who barely escaped marriage, Hind from Syria married at 14; and Lulu married at 14 in Tanzania.  These were provided by our local partners who also made recommendations to their governments on critical steps to tackle the issue.  Issued on February 18, 2014, the report calls on all governments to support a comprehensive response to end child marriage and ensure a girl is healthy, safe, educated and empowered and her rights are protected.

"Child marriage directly affects approximately 14 million girls a year.  It legitimizes human rights violations and the abuse of girls under the guise of culture, honor, tradition, and religion.  It is part of a sequence of discrimination that begins at a girl's birth and continues throughout her entire life.  Furthermore, when  child bride gives birth, the vicious cycle of poverty, poor health, curtailed education, violence, instability, disregard for the rule of law and legal and other discrimination often continues into the next generation, especially for any daughters she may  have," said Jacqui Hunt, London Director, Equality Now.

Brazil - Sex Tourism:  We continue to work with a pro bono law firm on the civil case filed on behalf of several Brazilian girls who were sexually exploited by clients of a U.S. fishing tour company that ran sex tours to the Amazon. Employees of the company are alleged to have lured minors from nearby communities onto the fishing tour boats, where the girls were subsequently raped by clients of the fishing tours.  Oral argument on the defendant's appeal of the decision lifting the stay in the U.S. civil case took place in early January.  We hope to hear a positive decision saying that the case can move forward from the appeal court soon,

There has been significant attention in Amazonas recently regarding the significant delays in cases of child sexual exploitation in the Amazonas courts, including the criminal case against the defendant in our civil case.  Local and federal politicians are looking into this matter, and the Brazilian National Council of Justice has investigated these delays.  Our partner in Manaus, IACAS, has led efforts to call attention to this issue.  We have supported their efforts by sending a letter to Brazilian officials calling for them to immediately address the delays in these cases.

Thank you for your support of the AGLDF program, and thank you for your belief in the importance of our work.