By Desmond Lewis
Tokponbu Town, Kenema District – 24 June 2025: More than 40 underage girls were subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) during a large-scale initiation ceremony in Tokponbu Town, Kenema District, amid delays in the passage of the long-awaited Child Rights Act, 2022. The legislation, which seeks to criminalize the practice of FGM on minors, has yet to be enacted by Parliament.
Rights-based organizations have decried the incident, calling it a violation of children’s rights and a failure of protection mechanisms.
Doris Finda Kallon, Amnesty International’s focal person on FGM in the region, reported being alerted by a late-night call regarding the initiation. “I went to the Bondo bush the following morning and spoke with the leader, Amie Kallon,” she said. “She informed me that the initiation was district-wide and sponsored by a donor from the United States. Since it was free, many brought their children for initiation.”
Kallon described facing hostility from ritual elders when she questioned the legality and timing of the ceremony, which coincided with critical national school exams. “I was shocked to see so many minors, as well as a few young women above 18, being initiated,” she noted.
Massah Massaquoi, one of the initiators, acknowledged that many families took advantage of the free ceremony due to financial constraints. “When it’s offered at no cost, people come in droves,” she explained.
National Context and Global Alarms
According to the 2019 Government Survey, 61% of girls and women aged 15–19 in Sierra Leone had undergone FGM. The country ranks seventh globally in FGM prevalence among women aged 15–49, with a staggering 83% having undergone the procedure.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates over 230 million girls and women worldwide have been subjected to FGM across 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The procedure, which involves partial or total removal of the external female genitalia for non-medical reasons, is recognized internationally as a violation of human rights.
Call for Legislative Urgency
FGM continues to be performed despite widespread awareness of its health risks and psychological trauma. The delay in passing the Child Rights Act, 2022 has drawn concern from activists, who argue that decisive legal action is essential to protect vulnerable girls across Sierra Leone.
As the international community and local advocates push for reform, victims remain at risk in the absence of enforceable safeguards.