Two women hurried into the meeting room of Colombia's Senate. The beads glistening around their necks and their red-and-blue attire stood out among the crowd of lawmakers in dark suits.
One of them, Claudia Quiragama, stepped up to the wooden podium at the center of the room. She pulled the small silver microphone closer to her mouth. It was a moment to celebrate.
Colombia had just become the first country in Latin America to pass a national law completely banning female genital mutilation (FGM).
Quiragama, an Embera indigenous leader, comes from a remote community where the practice still occurs. She hailed the moment as a turning point.
"I am grateful to all the lawmakers," Quiragama told the Senate on Wednesday. "This is what we need – to address the needs we face in our territory."
Wednesday marked the fourth and final debate for Colombia's Bill 440, known by its slogan "Ninas sin ablacion" (Girls without mutilation). After two years of campaigning, the bill passed unanimously. It now awaits approval from Colombian President Gustavo Petro.
Colombia is the only Latin American country where the practice is currently recorded, primarily within the Embera community in the western provinces of Choco and Risaralda.
The World Health Organization (WHO) considers FGM a human rights violation, defining it as the total or partial removal of external female genitalia for non-medical reasons, through methods such as cutting or burning. An estimated 230 million women and girls worldwide have undergone some form of FGM.
Until recently, the practice was believed to have disappeared in Latin America. However, in 2007, two girls in Colombia died from infections following the procedure. Their deaths were the first recorded cases in Colombia's recent history and brought the issue back into focus.
For nearly two decades, indigenous leaders and politicians have fought to end the practice. But they warn that traditions of secrecy remain a barrier.
