frequency. Generally, the risks and complications associated with Types I, II and III are similar, but they tend to be significantly more severe and prevalent the more extensive the procedure. Immediate consequences, such as infections, are usually only documented when women seek hospital treatment. Therefore, the true extent of immediate complications is unknown (Obermeyer, 2005). Long-term consequences can include chronic pain, infections, decreased sexual enjoyment, and psychological consequences, such as post-traumatic stress disorder Dangers for childbirth Findings from a WHO multi-county study in which more than 28,000 women participated, confirm that women who had undergone genital mutilation had significantly increased risks for adverse events during childbirth. Higher incidences of caesarean section and post-partum haemorrhage were found in the women with type I, II and III genital mutilation compared to those who had not undergone genital mutilation, and the risk increased with the severity of the procedure (WHO Study group on Female Genital Mutilation and Obstetric Outcome, 2006). A striking new finding from the study is that genital mutilation of mothers has negative effects on their newborn babies. Most seriously, death rates among babies during and immediately after birth were higher for those born to mothers who had undergone genital mutilation compared to those who had not: 15% higher for those whose mothers had Type I, 32% higher for those with Type II and 55% higher for those with type III genital mutilation. It was estimated that, at the study sites, an additional one to two babies per 100 deliveries die as a result of female genital mutilation. The consequences of genital mutilation for most women who deliver outside the hospital setting are expected to be even more severe (WHO Study Group on Female Genital Mutilation and Obstetric Outcome, 2006). The high incidence of post-partum haemorrhage, a lifethreatening condition, is of particular concern where health services are weak or women cannot easily access them.” There is no doubt in my mind that Female Genital Mutilation violates the rights of women enshrined in articles 21, 24, 32(2), 33 and 44 of the Constitution. To the extent that girls and women are known to die as a direct consequence of Female Genital Mutilation, it contravenes article 22 which provides protection to the right to life. Female Genital Mutilation grossly violates the rights of women. The UN Interagency Statement on Eliminatic of Female Genital Mutilation states:“Female genital mutilation violates a series of well-established human rights principles, norms and standards, including the principles of equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex, the right to life when the procedure results in death, and the right to freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment as well as the rights identified below. As it interferes with healthy genital tissue in the absence of medical necessity and can lead to severe consequences for a woman’s physical and mental health, female genital mutilation is a violation of person’s right to the highest attainable standard of health. Female genital mutilation has been recognized as discrimination based on sex because it is rooted in gender inequalities and power imbalances between men and women and inhibits women’s full and equal enjoyment of their human rights. It is a form of violence against girls and women, with physical and psychological consequences. Female genital mutilation deprives girls and women from making an independent decision about an intervention that