MONROVIA — Two prominent organizations, the Organization for Women and Children (ORWOCH) and the Community Healthcare Initiative (CHI), have filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus against Hannah Tarr, the head of the Traditional Sande Society in Corpus Kpaans Town, and all those under her command.
By Lennart Dodoo
The Writ was filed before the1st Judicial Circuit, Criminal Court A of Montserrado County,
The petition, filed before His Honor Roosevelt Willie, alleges that Tarr and her associates are responsible for the abduction of four young women for alleged offensive behavior. According to the petitioners, the victims were forcibly taken for initiation into the Sande society, a traditional bush society operating illegally in Kpaans Town.
The petitioners, registered women’s rights organizations in Liberia, argue that the actions of Tarr and her group constitute a violation of the constitutional rights of the victims. They cite Article 13, 20 (a), and Article 21 (c), (e), (f) of the Constitution of Liberia, which guarantee the right to movement without restrictions, due process, and protection from torture.
Furthermore, the petitioners assert that the initiation process, which allegedly involves cutting and removing body parts without consent, violates Article 6 Section 4d of the Children’s Law of Liberia, which prohibits practices that may inflict physical or emotional harm on children.
Attorney Mmonbeydo Nadine Joah, representing the petitioners, argues that a writ of habeas corpus is necessary to compel the respondents to produce the abducted women and ensure their safe return. The petitioners seek not only the release of the victims but also accountability for the alleged violation of their rights.
In response to the petition, Tarr and her associates are expected to appear before the court to provide justification for their actions and to show cause why they should not be held in contempt for usurping the functions of the judiciary.
On February 6, 2023, the National Council of Chiefs and Elders of Liberia (NACCEL) made a historic proclamation to ban female genital mutilation (FGM) in Liberia. The international community welcomed the ban.
Liberia is one of three West African countries that does not have a law criminalizing FGM. In 2018, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf signed an executive order to ban FGM on girls under 18, but the ban expired in February 2019. In February 2022, Chief Zanzan Karwor, head of the Traditional Council of Liberia, announced a three-year suspension on FGM. Two anti-FGM bills are currently pending before Liberian Parliament, seeking to permanently outlaw FGM in the country.
The FGM bill before the national legislature is titled an ‘Act Prohibiting Female Genital Mutilation of 2022’. If it becomes law, it could fulfill the wishes of activists who have long campaigned for FGM to be outlawed in Liberia, a country. Supporters of FGM argued that the ritual involving the partial or total removal of the external genitalia is a key rite of passage. According to the WHO, it often causes health problems and can be fatal.
According to the World Health Organization, FGM comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The practice has no health benefits for girls and women and cause severe bleeding and problems urinating, and later cysts, infections, as well as complications in childbirth and increased risk of newborn deaths.
The practice of FGM is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women.
