France: new case law on female genital mutilation

The French Conseil d'État adjudicated in December 2012 on three cases concerning female genital mutilation (FGM) and overruled the jurisprudence of the Cour nationale du droit d'asile. The Conseil d'État has decided that girls born in France threatened with FGM can constitute, under certain circumstances, a social group in the sense of the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and can therefore be granted asylum. However, the Conseil d'État has also established that girls will need to prove the geographic, sociological and family-related elements which constitute a risk for them personally. Moreover, if in the country of their nationality there is an area where they can reasonably establish themselves without running risks, asylum may not be granted. Finally, the parents of the girls will not be granted any form of international protection unless they harbour fears of serious, personal and direct persecution.

See the decision of the Conseil d'État here.

The French Revue des Droits de l'Homme has published an article analysing the new case law which is accessible here.

The Weekly Legal Update would like to thank Gilles Piquois, the French ELENA coordinator, for sharing this information. 

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