The Perplexities of Law, Culture and Religion Towards the Prohibition of Female Circumcision in Nigeria

Abstract

In whatever name called female circumcision is prohibited by international human rights law, and most particular by all United Nations system. The International legal regime has absolutely elaborated provision toward effective prohibition of female circumcision. Nigeria has signed and ratified almost all human rights instruments and acceded to all commitment towards eradicating this global malaise. Towards this end Nigeria has enacted Violence against person (prohibition) Act, 2015 with a view of eliminating the practice of female circumcision. Thus, in spite of the promulgation of the VAPP Act 2015 the practice of female circumcision persisted unabated largely due to traditional and cultural factors on one hand and due to religious connotation of the practice on the other hand. The perplexities are the triple application side by side of enacted legislations, Islamic law and native law and customs of over 250 ethnic groups in Nigeria. Therefore, the legal prohibition is drastically ineffective and inadequate due to other factors, which includes the non-inclusion of the adherents of the practice in sourcing and developing the legal prohibition. Consequently, Nigeria has failed to meet its due diligence obligations. This paper therefore adopts doctrinal research methodology in reaching its conclusions and had administer some interview according to purposive sampling model to some identified respondents to dig and obtained some silent but insightful information. The paper found among other things that people are largely unaware of the prohibition of female circumcision, and there is no national legislation toward its prohibition.