Upper West chiefs vow to end Genital Mutilation

The Upper West Regional House of Chiefs has assured the public that the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in the region would soon be a thing of the past.

To achieve this, the house resolved to collaborate with health workers to assist law enforcement agencies in the fight against the practice.

This was contained in a resolution signed by Naa Banaamwin Sandu II, Paramount Chief of the Kaelo Traditional Area and Vice-President of the National House of chiefs after a brief meeting with chiefs of the House at Wa.

They warned that they would never condone and connive with any victim of the practice or perpetrator and his family to have the case settled in their palaces or out of court.

The meeting was a follow-up to a sensitisation seminar on harmful traditional practices for chiefs in the region, and which was organised by the Ghanaian Association for Women's Welfare at Wa in December last year.

The chiefs said they would seek the assistance of relevant Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) to organise sensitisation seminars for leaders of communities who follow the practice.

The chiefs said many people in the region were not aware that the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act of 1994 made FGM a second-degree felony and any person found guilty was liable on conviction to not less than three years imprisonment. They said they would continue to educate their subjects on the harmful effect of FGM and other traditional practices at meetings, durbars and at state functions.

"We will not hesitate to encourage victims of such practices to report cases to the Women and Juvenile Unit (WAJU) of the Ghana Police Service for prosecution", the resolution said.

The chiefs appealed to heads of educational institutions to educate their female students on the harmful effects of FGM and advise them to report to the authorities should their parents request them to undergo the ordeal. The resolution warned that parents would be held liable and forced to produce suspects to the mutilation exercise to face the law.