Egypt: Doctor, parents of minor girl who died of genetial mutilation to stand trial

The retired doctor and the parents of the 12-year-old girl who died after Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) surgery will stand for a trial in Egypt. With the child campaigners vouching for jail terms to the ones responsible in order to deter others from performing the illegal practice, Egypt's Prosecutor General Hamada El-Sawy ordered the referral of all three people to the criminal court over the weekend. Parents of Nada Hassan Abdel-Maqsoud along with doctor Abdel Fadeel Rashwan were arrested last month after the girl's death at a private clinic in Manfalout, close to Assiut in southern Egypt. 

However, they were released on bail sparking public outrage. The doctor who performed the surgery on Nada causing her to bleed to death was bailed for $3,000. The executive director of the NGOs' Union Against Harmful Practices on Women and Children, Randa Fakhr El-Deen reportedly called the recent step by the court as a “serious step towards putting defendants behind bars”. The female genital mutilation was banned in Egypt in 2008.

Read - Egypt Upholds Sentence Of Top Customs Official On Corruption

Read - Egypt Court Acquits Mubarak's Sons Over Stock Exchange Case

FGM performed on 27 million girls in Egypt

But according to the survey by the United Nations in 2016 revealed that more than 27 million girls underwent the illegal process. Furthermore, 87 per cent of women and girls who had undergone the ritual which involves partial or total removal of external genitalia were from the age group of 15-49. The Egyptian government had further made the practice a felony in 2016 which would have led to sentencing the doctors who perform the surgery for at least seven years while those who request the operation, would be jailed for up to three years. 

However, according to activists, the law has not been implemented strictly and those who have been found guilty were subject to light penalities. According to international reports, the World leaders have pledged to eradicate FGM by 2030. The ancient ritual which is reportedly deeply entrenched in many places can also cause long-lasting mental and physical health problems. An investigation following Nada's death last month revealed that it was the parents who had requested the doctor to perform the surgery. The 70-year-old doctor had conducted the operation at a private clinic in Manfalout, close to Assiut in southern Egypt. The father of the girl had filed a complaint against the doctor after his daughter's death in January. 

Read - Egypt Extends Detention Of Activist Who Criticized President

Read - Egypt Court Acquits Former President’s Sons Of Corruption

(With agency inputs)