Brussels, 01/03/2010 (Agence Europe) - The European commissioner for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship, Viviane Reding, announced on Monday 1 March that she planned to take measures to harmonise sanctions throughout the EU in order to combat genital mutilation. “Female genital mutilation is a brutal crime that cannot be accepted, either in the European Union or anywhere in the world”, she said, speaking at the 54th session of the United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women. Viviane Reding therefore said that, on Friday 5 March, she would present a “Women's Charter”, followed by the publication of a comprehensive “Gender Equality Strategy”, which will include a “multi-disciplinary package of actions, which may include European level harmonisation of criminal offences and sanctions in the field of female genital mutilation”. Over 25% of women living in Europe have suffered physical violence at least once in their adult lives and 10% have suffered sexual violence. Every day, some 6,000 women in the world fall victim to genital mutilation. (B.C./transl.jl)