IGP Welcomes the Gambian Human Rights Activist Jaha Dukureh

On February 19, the Institute of Global Politics (IGP) hosted a conversation with human rights activist and author Jaha Dukureh, the founder and CEO of Safe Hand for Girls, a nonprofit organization focused on ending the harmful practices of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), child marriage, and all forms of gender-based violence. 

The discussion highlighted Dukureh’s new memoir,  I Will Scream to the World: My Story. My Fight. My Hope for Girls Everywhere, which details her journey as a survivor of FGM/C and child marriage, as well as her work in The Gambia to abolish these practices. The conversation was moderated by Rachel Vogelstein, director of the IGP Women’s Initiative and associate professor of professional practice at SIPA. 

Dukureh began by stressing her desire to end the silence on the harm caused by child marriage. Some 800 million girls have been forced into marriages against their will, granting their husbands the right to rape them systematically. “Adolescents can never give consent,” she said. “By staying silent, people would have continued to confuse it with consent.”

Dukureh played a decisive role in helping The Gambia outlaw child marriage in 2016. Reflecting on her experience, she noted that when she first began organizing, public discussion of child marriage in her native country effectively was prohibited. The media attention surrounding Dukureh allowed her to circumvent the ban and fight. Political timing also mattered: The country’s leadership was seeking positive international recognition, and banning child marriage presented an opportunity for the government to change its image. 

Yet Dukureh cautioned against overstating the power of legislation alone. “Laws are important, but they are not prevention,” she said. “Without community enforcement, laws are only declarations.” Beyond legislation, she emphasized the importance of shifting social norms.

“Norms don’t shift because they’re wrong. They shift when the cost-benefit analysis changes,” she explained. In many communities, child marriage is tied to economic survival rather than malice, Dukureh stressedEffective reform therefore requires a high degree of community ownership. 

But even successful reform efforts face resistance. Turning to the global rollback of women’s rights, Dukureh rejected the idea that backlash signals defeat. “Backlash isn’t a failure; it’s proof of impact. If we didn’t have an impact, there wouldn’t be any need to roll back the gains we’ve made,” she asserted. 

Yet she raised concerns about emerging threats, particularly the misuse of technology. Dukureh warned that artificial intelligence and digital tools are being increasingly weaponized against female human rights defenders to disarm and silence them, calling for reform.

Despite the global backlash against women’s rights, Dukureh remained optimistic. Asked what gives her hope, she said; “Young people, with their curiosity and understanding of the importance of these issues.”