Abstract
In the current century, many countries in the global South have responded to female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C) by criminalization; this has relegated FGM to the realm of secrecy and rural areas. This chapter uses a conflux of sociological and criminological concepts—the product of which can be useful in understanding the shortfalls of the criminalization of cultural practices. Such an approach reveals that key variables have been excluded from previous strategies for preventing FGM. Therefore, there is a need to identify emerging issues and apply more appropriate approaches to the contextual factors responsible for the persistence of FGM/C in Kenya. Consequently, countries in the global South need to go beyond regulation and use multipronged strategies to effectively combat crimes born of tradition.
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Notes
- 1.
The shift of FGM from a communal ceremonial practice to a practice undertaken in private by medically trained doctors and nurses.
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Legislation
Children Act (Republic of Kenya) (2001).
Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act (Republic of Kenya) (2011).
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Bunei, E.K., Rono, J.K. (2018). A Critical Understanding of Resistance to Criminalization of Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya. In: Carrington, K., Hogg, R., Scott, J., Sozzo, M. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Criminology and the Global South. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65021-0_43
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