Brussels, 26/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - A clear strategy aimed at banning female genital mutilation on EU territory and the need to acknowledge the problem in EU immigration law and cooperation agreements - these are the main requests set out in a resolution aimed at stamping out the practice of female genital mutilation. It was adopted by 647 votes to 10 and 24 abstentions by the European Parliament during its plenary session in Strasbourg.
The Parliament calls in particular on the European Commission to include a clause aimed at stamping out female genital mutilation in cooperation negotiations and agreements with the countries concerned. It also recommends the creation of a European health protocol for following up the issue and a database on this phenomenon, which will be used for the establishment of statistics and implementation of targeted information action depending on the immigrant communities concerned.
The EP notes that, each year, 180,000 women emigrants in Europe undergo or are faced with the risk of genital mutilation. It also specifies that requests for asylum submitted by parents because of the threat they face in their countries of origin for having refused to consent to sexual mutilation for their child must be examined on a case by case basis taking into account the quality of the request, and the character and credibility of the asylum seeker. (G.B./transl.jl)