Advertisement

Norway to bring in circumcision law

Richard Orange
Richard Orange - [email protected]
Norway to bring in circumcision law
The synagogue in Oslo - Senia L Flickr

Norway is planning to introduce new regulations on circumcision following a push to ban the practice from Norway's leading child rights official.

Advertisement

Health Minister Bent Høie said he would introduce new legislation on the non-medical circumcision of boys under 18 before April next year. 
 
“We will review submissions on the matter before we can decide what should be the government’s position. We aim to present a bill before Easter,” he told Aftenposten. 
 
Norway’s Children’s Ombudswoman Anne Lindboe this month reiterated her call for a ban on non-medical circumcision. 
 
“This is not due to any lack of understanding of minorities or religious traditions, but because the procedure is irreversible, painful and risky,” she told Aftenposten. 
 
Ervin Kohn, president of the Jewish community in Oslo, told the Jewish Telegraph Agency that he considers the issue “an existential matter” for the 700-strong group.
 
Some 2,000 Muslim babies and seven Jewish babies are circumcised in Norway every year.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also