III 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 494 

Denouncing female genital mutilation or cutting as a violation of the human 

rights of women and girls and urging the international community and 

the Federal Government to increase efforts to eliminate the harmful 

practice. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 10, 2020 

Ms. ERNST (for herself, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mrs. CAPITO, Mrs. HYDE-SMITH, 

Mrs. LOEFFLER, Mrs. FISCHER, and Mr. BRAUN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Denouncing female genital mutilation or cutting as a violation of the human rights of women and girls and urging 

the international community and the Federal Government to increase efforts to eliminate the harmful practice. 

Whereas female genital mutilation or cutting (referred to in 

this preamble as ‘‘FGM/C’’) is recognized internationally 

as a violation of the human rights of women and girls; 

Whereas FGM/C comprises all procedures that involve partial 

or total removal of the external female genitalia or other 

injury to the female genital organs for nonmedical reasons; 


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•SRES 494 IS 

Whereas an estimated 200 million girls and women alive as 

of January 2020 have been victims of FGM/C, with girls 

under the age of 15 representing 44 million of those who 

have been cut; 

Whereas more than 3 million girls are estimated to be at risk 

of FGM/C annually; 

Whereas the practice of FGM/C is mostly carried out on 

young girls between infancy and age 15; 

Whereas the practice of FGM/C is rooted in gender inequality 

and is often linked to other elements of gender-based violence and discrimination, such as child marriage; 

Whereas the World Health Organization asserts that 

FGM/C— 

(1) has no health benefits for women and girls; and 

(2) can have long-term impacts on the physical, psychological, sexual, and reproductive health of the women 

and girls who experience FGM/C; 

Whereas the impacts of FGM/C on the physical health of 

women and girls can include bleeding, infection, obstetric 

fistula, complications during childbirth, and death; 

Whereas, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund, 

FGM/C is reported to occur in all parts of the world, but 

is most prevalent in parts of Africa, the Middle East, and 

Asia; 

Whereas, although the practice of FGM/C is highly concentrated in specific regions and associated with several 

cultural traditions, it is not tied to any one religion; 

Whereas, in 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a report estimating that 513,000 

women and girls in the United States were at risk of, or 

may have been subjected to, FGM/C; 


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•SRES 494 IS 

Whereas, in 2015, the United Nations adopted a set of 17 

Sustainable Development Goals that includes a target to 

eliminate FGM/C by 2030, having previously recognized 

in 2010 that ‘‘the abandonment of this harmful practice 

can be achieved as a result of a comprehensive movement 

that involves all public and private stakeholders in society’’; 

Whereas the elimination of FGM/C has been called for— 

(1) by numerous intergovernmental organizations, 

including the African Union, the European Union, and 

the Organization of Islamic Cooperation; and 

(2) in 3 resolutions of the United Nations General 

Assembly; 

Whereas the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights 

Practices prepared by the Department of State include 

information on— 

(1) whether FGM/C is prevalent; 

(2) the type and category of genital cutting that is 

most common; and 

(3) international and governmental efforts to address the practice of FGM/C; 

Whereas the Federal Government recognized FGM/C as a 

form of gender-based violence in— 

(1) the United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally, released in August 2012 and updated in June 2016; and 

(2) the United States Global Strategy to Empower 

Adolescent Girls, released in March 2016; 

Whereas a Government Accountability Office report released 

in 2016 concluded that ‘‘State and USAID currently 

have limited international assistance efforts to address 

FGM/C’’; and 


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•SRES 494 IS 

Whereas, in 2012, the United Nations General Assembly designated February 6 as the ‘‘International Day of Zero 

Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation’’ to enhance 

awareness of, and encourage concrete actions by governments and individuals against, the practice of FGM/C: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) denounces female genital mutilation or cut3 ting as a violation of the human rights of women 

4 and girls; 

5 (2) affirms the importance of ending the prac6 tice of female genital mutilation or cutting globally 

7 for the safety and security of women; 

8 (3) calls upon the international community to 

9 increase efforts to accelerate the elimination of fe10 male genital mutilation or cutting; and 

11 (4) urges the Secretary of State and the Ad12 ministrator of the United States Agency for Inter13 national Development to incorporate coordinated ef14 forts to eliminate female genital mutilation or cut15 ting into the gender programs of the Department of 

16 State and the United States Agency for Inter17 national Development, respectively. 

Æ 


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