Date of Award

1997

Document Type

Research Paper

First Advisor

Mike McBride

Second Advisor

Wendy Furman-Adams

Abstract

In May 1996 a controversial and heavily publicized case went before the United States Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) Board of Appeals (BIA). The case involved a young woman seeking asylum in the U.S. What drew attention to the case was the basis upon which she was seeking asylum: membership in a particular social group. This category in and of itself is not uncommon. But, the social group that she claimed to be a member of was: “Young women of the Tchamba-Kunsuntu Tribe” who have not had FGM [female genital mutilation], as practiced by the tribe, and who oppose the practice. Her case is a result of gender-based persecution. However, there is no category specifically framed to meet the circumstances of her case, with respect to the abuses that she faced only due to her gender. Fauziya Kasinga is a native of Togo; more specifically, she and her family are members of the Tchamba-Kunsuntu tribe in Northern Togo. This tribe traditionally participates in acts of female genital mutilation and arranges polyamorous marriages. The tribe determines women’s social positions by that of their fathers, husband, or next in the patriarchal line of authority. Due to her guardian’s strict adherence to tribal customs, Ms. Kasinga was quickly forced into a marriage with a 45-year-old man in which she became his fourth wife. A condition for the marriage was to undergo female genital mutilation. The resolution to Ms Kasinga’s case questioned if female mutilation is a form of prosecution and a cause for granting refugee status. Then there is the question of the need for a special category to consider gender-specific abuses must also be addressed. These are the questions that nineteen-year-old Ms. Kasinga brought before the INS board and what this paper will be exploring.

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