The High Court at Machakos has directed all parties in the case to file their written responses by 11 May 2018. The petitioner has the same amount of time to respond to the respondents and interested parties. This is a further extension of time given to the parties by Justice D. Kemei. The court also directed that the case be mentioned on 11 June 2018 when Justice Kemei will give directions on the hearing of the case seeking to legalise FGM.
The Court has further directed all the parties to file written submissions within 21 days. This is to address the issue of whether the matter raises a substantial question of law that ought to be heard by a bench of uneven number of judges.
The case (Petition 8 of 2017) filed on 25 July 2017 by Dr Tatu Kamau, seeks to allow adult women to practice FGM in accordance to their cultural right as provided for in the Constitution. KELIN and ISLA have filed a joint amicus brief on historical context of FGM as a form of violence against women and the positive obligation of state parties to enact laws against FGM.
To contribute to the discussion and for live updates follow KELIN on our social media platforms: Twitter: @KELINkenya and @ISLAfrica using hashtag #Don’tTouchFGMLaw and #EndFGM
Court documents:
For more information contact:
Carolene Kituku
Advocate and Human Rights Counsel
Kenya Legal and Ethical Issues Network on HIV & AIDS (KELIN)
4th Floor, Somak Building, Mombasa Road Tel +254202515790;
Email: ckituku@kelinkenya.org
