Press Releases

Ahead of the International Day of Zero Tolerance of female genital mutilation, Amnesty International and the European Women’s Lobby challenged the EU to lay out its vision for ending female genital mutilation and other forms of violence against women. A video has been launched on this occasion.

The European Parliament has selected a new Chair, Mikael Gustafsson who pledged his support for our campaign.

In November, the END FGM European Campaign met Robert Visser, Director of the European Asylum Support Office in Malta and organised two events on gender-sensitive asylum procedures.

On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Amnesty International calls for Europe to become a zero tolerance zone by signing the Council of Europe treaty to prevent violence against women.

Following a meeting with the newly established European Asylum Support Office (EASO) Amnesty International and a coalition of NGOs will host a seminar on the challenges and opportunities of integrating gender into the Common European Asylum system.

The END FGM Campaign is searching for high profile designers to create something special out of the rose petals that were signed by people across Europe last year.

Thanks to the high votes from our supporters, EU Commission President Barroso responds to issue of violence against women. Watch the video response!

END FGM has recorded a YouTube video question on violence against women. If you vote for our question, we will get an answer from President Barroso to the question of European action to tackle violence against women!

A team of 21 young girls and women jogged to raise awareness of female genital mutilation in Brussels on 25 September 2011.

NGOs and professional organisations working or interested to work against FGM are invited to join the END FGM European Campaign as associate partners. Find out more!

Organisations are invited to access funds to start projects to progress the work to eliminate female genital mutilation in the EU.

The European Institute for Gender Equality has launched a call for a new "Study on mapping current situation and trends of female genital mutilation".

Indonesian authorities must immediately repeal the newly issued government regulation permitting female circumcision, and instead enact specific legislation with appropriate penalties prohibiting all forms of FGM.

A judge in the United Kingdom presiding over an asylum case told a woman asylum seeker, “If you’d experienced that rape the way you describe [it] I don’t think you’d be looking as well as you are now.”

On the eve of World Refugee Day, which is marked on 20 June, the European Asylum Support Office will take charge of supporting the asylum processes of the EU. The current discriminatory and incoherent provision of protection across the EU and the lack of expertise on gender-related persecutions are putting individuals at risk.

Entitled "Female Genital Mutilation: Progress-Realities-Challenges", the statement by UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan E. Méndez connects FGM to torture and raises the obligations of countries to prevent and protect young girls and women from this practice.

The European Commission’s proposal to address the rights of victims and ensure harmonisation of protection of those rights across the EU27 Member States has identified the issue of women and girls living in Europe affected by the practice of female genital mutilation.

Read an interview with the Hungarian Helsinki Committee's Gábor Gyulai on the lack of mechanisms and training in Hungary to deal with women and girls at risk of female genital mutilation. (In English and Hungarian)

The EU and the rest of the world are celebrating 100 years of International Women’s Day. We remind the EU of its commitments to combating violence against women and in particular, female genital mutilation.

6 February is the International day of Zero Tolerance of female genital mutilation. A number of events will be held by NGOs across the EU and beyond. Find out if there is an event near you!

6 fevrier: Le GAMS Belgique marquera la journee internationale contre les mutilations genitales feminines par un colloque sur le sujet <> le 4 fevrier qui sera suivi par une piece de theatre et un defile de mode le 6 fevrier.

On the eve of Human Rights Day, Amnesty International calls on the EU to heed the voices of over 24,000 people across Europe, including EU decision-makers, who signed a rose petal to support an EU-wide strategy against female genital mutilation.

On the occasion of International Day of Elimination of Violence against Women, Amnesty International’s END FGM European Campaign has launched a Europe-wide action to raise at least 8,000 signatures on rose petals in solidarity with the 8,000 girls and women worldwide who are forcibly subjected to the practice of female genital mutilation every day.

An Amnesty International report on sexual health and reproductive rights details the practice of female genital mutilation in Indonesia. The report calls on the Indonesian government to enact specific legislation to combat this practice.

Amnesty International’s European Campaign to end female genital mutilation (FGM) commends the European Commission for presenting an action-oriented strategy to combat violence against women in its strategy to promote gender equality.

Deux jeunes femmes sierra-léonaises, déboutées de leur demande d'asile, sont enfermées au centre 127bis depuis plusieurs mois et risquent d'être éloignées prochainement. Pour l'une d'entre elles, l'éloignement est prévu le 17 septembre 2010. Celle-ci a été appréhendée à la frontière et s'est retrouvée en centre fermé, où elle a entamé la procédure d'asile.

Theresa, une jeune femme Sierra Léonaise, âgée de 27 ans, vient d'être déboutée d'une demande d'asile introduite sur base du risque d'excision en cas de retour au pays. Elle est actuellement détenue en centre fermé 127 bis à Zaventem depuis plus d’une semaine et doit être expulsée très prochainement.

END FGM European Campaign and its 11 partner organisations have called upon EU Member States to ensure that human rights violations such as female genital mutilation, are addressed in the EU's common position on the Millennium Development Goals at the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on 14 June 2010.

Amnesty International Ireland has welcomed the commitment given by Minister Mary Harney yesterday to publish legislation to ban female genital mutilation.

7 April is World Health Day. On this occasion, END FGM European Campaign is addressing the right to health and the millennium development goals as they relate to female genital mutilation.

END FGM evaluates the Roadmap for Equality between women and men 2006-2010 and recommends specific actions for future initiatives.

Ahead of the EPSCO Council on International Women’s Day on 8 March 2010, Amnesty International calls on the EU to ensure that the European Monitoring Centre on Gender-Based Violence addresses all forms of violence against women, including female genital mutilation.

END FGM launches a strategy that offers concrete recommendations for European governments and EU institutions to prevent FGM and protect women and girls at risk of, or living with, FGM.

Female genital mutilation will be raised this weekend at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland through a debate among attending world leaders. Larry Cox of Amnesty International USA and FORWARD UK's volunteer Julia Lalla-Maharajh will be speaking at the debate.

People under fear of female genital mutilation “must be given protection in Europe”, says Commissioner-Designate for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström

END FGM European Campaign welcomes Commissioner-Designate Viviane Reding’s commitment to taking "concrete action on FGM”.

On the eve of International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women, END FGM Campaign calls upon European states to engage with African nations at the upcoming International conference to prevent and protect against female genital mutilation at home and abroad.

Partner organisations from across Europe meet in Lisbon to formulate the priorities for the END FGM campaign strategy which will be launched in the beginning of year 2010.

END FGM European Campaign launches its website www.endfgm.eu which will track the response of EU institutions to the issue of female genital mutilation in Europe.

Eight young Amnesty supporters took to the streets of Dublin on 1 June to brave this year’s Flora Women’s Mini Marathon in support of END FGM European Campaign.

END FGM campaign responds to the adopted resolution on ‘Combating female genital mutilation in the EU’ which was voted in the European Parliament plenary on 24 March 2009.

Ahead of the vote on the report ‘Combating female genital mutilation in the EU’ in the European Parliament session on 23 March 2009, END FGM IN EUROPE campaign urges MEPs to renew their commitment to end female genital mutilation.

In advance of International Women’s Day, the END FGM campaign team launches its first initiative which calls upon MEPs and candidates for the European elections to sign up to a Declaration of Intent. This Declaration of Intent calls for 5 specific measures that the next European Parliament must take to deal with female genital mutilation.