AYV News, November 18, 2024
Fifty-one feminist movement partners across Sierra Leone have affirmed the significance of this transformative legislation and calling on the Parliament of Sierra Leone, in the strongest terms, to swiftly pass the Child Rights Act to safeguard the dignity, safety, and freedom of all children.
A crucial provision within it supports banning Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) for girls under 18, ensuring that every girl is protected from this irreversible practice, with the right to have autonomy over her body and to reach adulthood free to make her own choices.
The Child Rights Act 2024 is a groundbreaking piece of legislation strengthening the protection of all children in Sierra Leone. It sets out a robust foundation for child rights and sits in unified alignment with the international treaties of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of Children, and the Maputo Protocol, reinforcing Sierra Leone’s commitment to upholding the international frameworks that protect children from discrimination, abuse, violence or practices that compromise their physical and psychological well-being. See page 8 of this newspaper for more.
