Decius wrote:
] Acidus wrote:
] ] ] ATLANTA - Genital piercings for women were banned by the
] ] ] Georgia House Wednesday as lawmakers considered a bill
] ] ] outlining punishments for female genital mutilation.

] Sounds like they didn't know what the hell they were passing.

The Yahoo URL for this story is dead, by the way.

Also, this story is very old news. The Georgia legislature hasn't been in session for months now. The AP story on this topic ran back in March 2004. If you look at the cited URL, you'll see "20040324", which just happens to be the date of the story.

Here's what is essentially the same AP story:

March 24, 2004, Wednesday, BC cycle

HEADLINE: Georgia House bans genital piercings for women
DATELINE: ATLANTA

BODY:
Genital piercings for women were banned by the Georgia House Wednesday as lawmakers considered a bill outlining punishments for female genital mutilation.

The bill would make such mutilation punishable by two to 20 years in prison. It makes no exception for people who give consent to have the procedure performed on their daughters out of religious or cultural custom.

An amendment adopted without objection added "piercing" to the list of things that may not be done to female genitals. Even adult women would not be allowed to get the procedure. The bill eventually passed 160-0, with no debate.

Amendment sponsor Rep. Bill Heath, R-Bremen, was slack-jawed when told after the vote that some adults seek the piercings.

"What? I've never seen such a thing," Heath said. "I, uh, I wouldn't approve of anyone doing it. I don't think that's an appropriate thing to be doing."

The ban applies only to women, not men. The bill has already been approved by the Senate but now must return to that chamber because of the piercing amendment. Both chambers of the Legislature must agree on a single version of a bill before it can go to the governor for final approval.

The bill is HB 1477. You can read the full text at

http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2003_04/fulltext/hb1477.htm

which, to me, is an extraordinarily slow web site. So, here is the full text of the bill, as presented at the above web site. This version does not contain the aforementioned amendment. Nevertheless:

04 LC 19 6149

House Bill 1477
By: Representatives Mobley of the 58th, Thomas of the 43rd, Post 1, and Anderson of the 100th

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT

To amend Chapter 6 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to sexual offenses, so as to enact the "Amirah Joyce Adem Act;" to create the offense of female genital mutilation; to provide a penalty; to provide that certain acts shall not constitute affirmative defenses; to provide for exceptions; to provide that certain statutory privileges shall not be available; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Amirah Joyce Adem Act."

SECTION 2.
Chapter 6 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to sexual offenses, is amended by inserting at the end thereof a new Code Section 16-6-25 to read as follows:
"16-6-25.
(a) A person commits the offense of female genital mutilation when:
(1) Such person circumcises, excises, or infibulates, in whole or in part, the labia majora, labia minora, or clitoris of a female;
(2) Such person is a parent, guardian, or has immediate custody or control of a female child under 18 years of age and causes or permits the circumcision, excision, or infibulation, in whole or in part, of the labia majora, labia minora, or clitoris of the child; or
(3) Such person removes or causes or permits removal of a female child under 18 years of age from this state, for the purpose of circumcising, excising, or infibulating, in whole or in part, the labia majora, labia minora, or clitoris of the child.
(b) A person convicted of the offense of female genital mutilation shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 30 years.
(c) It is not an affirmative defense that the conduct described in subsection (a) of this Code section:
(1) Is required as a matter of custom, ritual, or standard practice; or
(2) Was consented to by the child or by the child´s parent, guardian, or custodian.
(d) A surgical procedure is not a violation of this Code section if:
(1) The procedure is medically necessary to preserve the physical health of the child and is performed by a physician licensed to practice in this state or a physician in training under the supervision of a physician licensed to practice in this state; or
(2) The procedure is performed on a child who is in labor or who has just given birth, is performed for medical purposes connected with that labor or birth, and is performed by a physician licensed to practice in this state, a physician in training under the supervision of a physician licensed to practice in this state, a nurse midwife licensed to practice in this state, or a nurse midwife in training under the supervision of a nurse midwife licensed to practice in this state.
(e) The statutory privileges between patient and physician, between husband and wife, and between client and professional counselor as provided in Chapter 9 of Title 24 shall not be available for excluding or refusing testimony in any prosecution for a violation of this Code section."

SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

You might be inclined to read some more recent news on the subject. For example,

http://www.prickmag.net/piercingnewsfeature.html

ends with this update:

A multi-organizational rally was held in support of women's rights at the Capitol on March 31. Representatives from Beyond Your Ears, Kolo, Psycho Tattoo, Sacred Heart, Virtue & Vice, Piercing Experience and more rallied with many of Atlanta's pierced community. They were there to demonstrate against the "piercing" language amendment, and to support the original intent of SB 418 - to protect young women and girls from abuse and disfigurement. Although the weather ended in a cold rain storm, they held out until the last minute before they turned into the Capitol to interact directly with legislators.

The hard work paid off. The piercing amendment was removed, but the FGM Bill failed on the last day of the General Assembly. It nearly passed without the piercing amendment, but was amended again, putting it in yet another committee where it died in deliberation.

The piercing community would like to see the bill come back to life with its original intent and clear language to prevent another last minute "piercing" ban. They ask for the same support that was enlisted against the piercing amendment for the bill when it returns.

RE: Georgia House Bans Female Genital Piercings