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| Commissioner Soyata Maiga (Photo credit: ACHPR) |
Few positive developments on the protection of
women’s rights in Africa
Few positive developments have been recorded since last Session
regarding the protection of women’s rights, Commissioner Soyata Maiga, the
Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa said on Thursday.
Despite the intensive advocacy campaign conducted by the mechanism of
the Special Rapporteur and the activities to combat gender-based violence
organised by NGOs, little has been achieved.
Maiga’s presentation on April 11 is part of the Activity Reports of
Special Mechanisms of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
(ACHPR) to which she is a member. The 53rd Ordinary Session of the
ACHPR is hosted by The Gambia from 9-23 April, 2013.
Criminal dimension
“With the situation in northern Mali since March 2012, gender-based
violence has taken a criminal dimension given the forced Islamisation imposed
on the people especially women,” she said.
She accuses the MUJAO terrorists and other jihadist movements of
perpetrating public beatings, gang rape, stoning of unmarried couples, unwanted
pregnancies, forced marriages, inhuman, cruel and degrading treatment.
She also blames Islamists for women’s inadequate detention conditions;
the distruction of health centres, schools, and women’s working tools such as
multifunctional platforms and credit institutions.
In light of these violations, she said, a panel discussion was
specifically organised on the situation of women in times of conflict. The
event serves as a basis of women delegates from Mali, Central African Republic
and Democratic Republic of Congo.
Ratify Maputo Protocol
It was meant to share the concerns and needs of women in the three
countries in terms of prevention, protection and participation in the ongoing
peace negotiation efforts in these countries.
Commissioner Maiga urges Member States of the
African Union to accelerate the implementation of the Solemn Declaration on
Gender Equality in Africa.
She challenged States which have not yet ratify
the Maputo Protocol to expedite efforts in ensuring the protection of women’s
right through greater access to justice by providing judicial assistance and
community legal services.
For countries that ratified the Protocol, she encourages
them to present without delay their periodic reports to the African Commission.
Involve women in
peace negotiation efforts
“Member States must legislate and adopt national
action plans for implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1325, to put an
end to violence against women and girls, and allocate necessary financial
resources to conflict prevention programmes and activities,” Commissioner Maiga
said.
She said the AU States must ensure the
involvement of women in peace negotiation efforts, protecting women’s rights
and putting an end to impunity for perpetrators of sexual violence.
They must also provide necessary financial resources for the economic,
social and psychological support of women victims of rape and other forms of
violence, she said.
She call on African Governments to ensure equal participation for men
and women at all levels of decision-making and the implementation of
legislation on women’s access to land and property.
For the African Commission, Maiga said, it must support the activities
of the mechanism of the special rapporteur to enable it participate in AU
programmes and strategies under the African Women’s Decade.
Written by Modou S. Joof
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