FGM in Latin America among the Embera People in Colombia, Panama, and Ecuador

Latin America is not a region where FGM is heavily practiced. In general, countries in the region do not have special laws on FGM but do have general laws on bodily harm and mutilation. FGM is however, traditionally practiced among the indigenous Embera people in the three countries they inhabit : Colombia, Panama, and Ecuador. This BBL explores the extent to which, and the ways in which FGM is practiced in Latin America within the Embera people. It also discusses the Risaralda court case following the death of three Embera baby girls as a direct consequence of FGM. Why was there prosecution with no conviction? What was the judicial message conveyed? Were these indigenous girls adequately protected under Colombian Law? How did the national and international communities react after this human tragedy? How is the malpractice of FGM evolving in the Embera communities? Will they abandon FGM within our generation and before 2030? The presentation will be followed by a Q&A session.

Welcoming Words

Edith Ruguru Mwenda
SENIOR COUNSEL, LEGAL VICE PRESIDENCY, WORLD BANK
Edith Ruguru Mwenda is a Senior Counsel at the World Bank, she joined the World Bank in 2001 and has worked as an operational lawyer in Africa and in the Caribbean. She has been for many years the Gender Advisor for the Legal Department and the Gender Group at the World Bank and has a passion for Gender Based Violence related issues, including GBV and development, codes of conduct to prevent GBV as well as the operationalization of GBV issues in World Bank operations. Edith holds a LMB from the university of Nairobi, a LMM in Banking and finance from the University of London (Queen Mary College) and a LMM in International Environmental Law from the George Washington University. She is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya.

Panelists

Lorruama Ferreira Oliveira
LAWYER AND INDIGENOUS WOMEN RIGHTS SPECIALIST
Lorruama Ferreira Oliveira is a Brazilian lawyer from the Pataxó Nation. She holds a law degree from the Fortium Law School in Brasilia. She is currently an associate counsel at Safe-Carneiro Law Firm and has developed a strong interest in women’s rights in indigenous populations in Brazil and elsewhere. She is also an LLM candidate at the University of Brasilia (UnB) where she intends to study more specifically indigenous women’s rights and the tensions between community rights and civil/citizen’s rights. She regularly participates in the works of the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development’s FGM/C Legal Working Group.
Lou M.C. Granier
INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANT AND GENDER SPECIALIST
Lou M. C. Granier is a French International Consultant in Development specialized in Gender. She holds a master's degree in Development Management from the London School of Economics, and a joint degree from Queen Mary University of London in Economics and Politics. She then specialized in Gender programming and GBV at the George Washington University. She is specifically dedicated to work toward the eradication of FGM/C and has been working with the World Bank, NGOs, and the National Committee to Combat Harmful Practices in Guinea Bissau while developing operational work in Mali and in Guinea. She is also a member of the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development’s FGM/C Legal Working Group. #EndFGM #SDG5.3
Esmeralda Luiz Gonzales
NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF CRIME PREVENTION AND CONCILIATION, MINISTRY OF JUSTICE AND LAW, COLOMBIA
Esmeralda Ruiz Gonzàles is a lawyer from the National University of Colombia where she specialized in family law, gender and human rights. She is currently the National Director of Crime Prevention and Conciliation in the Ministry of Justice and Law and First Deputy Defender for children and women in the Office of the Ombudsman. For 15 years she was responsible for the area of gender, rights and violence at the UNFPA in Colombia, developing innovative initiatives for Latin America and the Caribbean such as work with the High Courts of Justice and the National Gender Commission of the Judicial Branch. Likewise, she worked on the project for the "Eradication of female genital mutilation in indigenous communities" among others.

Moderator

Diana Jimena Arango
SENIOR GENDER SPECIALIST, WORLD BANK
Diana J. Arango is the Sr. Gender-Based Violence and Development Specialist in the Gender Cross-Cutting Solutions Area at the World Bank Group. She has more than 10 years of experience working on development issues including gender-based violence, specifically within the context of humanitarian settings. Before joining the World Bank Group, she was a Research Scientist at George Washington University's Global Women's Institute leading research on violence against women and girls in conflict settings.