Appeal for a worldwide ban on Female Genital Mutilation by the United Nations General Assembly

We, the undersigned, human rights activists and citizens worldwide, joining together after years of struggle for female genital mutilation to be recognized and condemned as a violation of the human right to physical integrity, and conscious that a United Nations ban will give new strength and impetus to the efforts that are still needed to end the practice worldwide;

- call upon the United Nations General Assembly to adopt a Resolution in 2011 to ban female genital mutilation worldwide;

- call upon all governments, and upon all international and regional organizations, to support and promote the adoption of this Resolution;

- invite all citizens of the world to support this initiative and sign the appeal to put an end to this widespread and systematic form of violence committed against women and girls, in violation of their fundamental right to physical and personal integrity.