Sierra Leone’s first lady refuses to condemn FGM without ‘reliable data’ on harms

Sierra Leone’s first lady Fatima Maada Bio says she wouldn’t openly condemn FGM until she saw ‘reliable data’ that it was harmful. Photograph: Ahmed Jallanzo/EPA View image in fullscreen Sierra Leone’s first lady Fatima Maada Bio says she wouldn’t openly condemn FGM until she saw ‘reliable data’ that it was harmful. Photograph: Ahmed Jallanzo/EPA Sierra Leone’s first lady refuses to condemn FGM without ‘reliable data’ on harms Exclusive: health professionals, survivors and politicians voice concerns in open letter over comments by Fatima Maada Bio, who denies supporting the practice The first lady of Sierra Leone has denied that she supports female genital mutilation amid rising anger around her perceived approval of the practice. But in an exclusive response to the Guardian, Fatima Maada Bio, the wife of President Julius Maada Bio, also said she would not openly condemn FGM until she saw “reliable data” that the practice was harmful. Now, a group of health professionals, survivors, human rights activists and politicians has written to the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (Oaflad) to raise concerns. Sent on 10 June, the letter demands clarification on public statements made by Maada Bio, currently president of Oaflad. More than 20 signatories, including Amy Smythe, who served as Sierra Leone’s first minister of gender and children’s affairs, and Isha Dyfan, a human rights lawyer and UN expert, wrote that “perceptions of support for FGM, whether direct or indirect, risk undermining years of advocacy … and creating misalignment with national, regional and international commitments”. Maada Bio, 45, a former film producer and actor who met her husband in the UK where she had fled as a teenager to escape a child marriage, has also attracted controversy for continuing her rental of a council flat in Southwark, London, for her children, who are British citizens. Southwark council this week confirmed it had repossessed the flat . An advocate for women’s rights and against child marriage, Maada Bio leads a campaign called “Hands off our girls” in Sierra Leone. However, since her husband was elected in 2018, she has refused to condemn FGM. FGM, or cutting, the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, can have serious long-term health consequences, including infertility. The practice is considered to be a grave violation of human rights and in 2012 the UN general assembly passed a resolution for a global ban. Sierra Leone has one of the highest rates of FGM in the world. A national survey found that the proportion of women who are cut decreased from 90% in 2013 to 83% in 2019; 71% of them were subjected to the practice before the age of 15. View image in fullscreen Soweis, or cutters, protest in Kenema after their head cutter was detained by police after a 28-year-old woman alleged to have been forcibly cut. Photograph: Umaru Fofana There is no law in Sierra Leone that criminalises FGM. It is often performed as part of