(Hartford Courant) The federal government has long outlawed female genital mutilation on women under age 18 but cases are difficult to prosecute unless there’s also a state law banning the practice.
At least 28 states have passed bills enshrining the ban into state law. “Connecticut needs to join the ranks,” says Dorothy Cutter of Somers.
Cutter was one of the activists who came to the state Capitol Monday to testify before the legislature’s public health committee in support of House Bill 5142. The measure, introduced by Rep. Kurt Vail, R-Stafford, would ban female genital mutilation in Connecticut.
Officials from the Connecticut Hospital Association and Planned Parenthood of Southern New England expressed reservations about the language of the bill, even though both organizations are opposed to female genital mutilation.
