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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 21, 2007
Contact in Nairobi: Caroline Osero-Agengo'
Phone: +254 20-2719832
Cell: +254 722 865 248
E-mail: cosero_agengo@equalitynow.org
Countries
Make Headway as African Union Marks Second Anniversary of African Protocol
on the Rights of Women
Women's Coalition Worried as Pace of Ratifications and Domestication by
Countries Slows Down
Nairobi, Kenya–November 25 2007, marks the second anniversary of the entry into force of the African Protocol on the Rights of Women. In the two years since the Protocol came into force 23 countries have ratified it, and 43 have signed it. Much to the disappointment of African women’s rights organizations and civil society, a majority of the countries in the African Union, 30 specifically, are yet to ratify the Protocol.
To come into force the Protocol needed 15 ratifications. Solidarity for African Women’s Rights (SOAWR), a broad-based coalition of groups from across Africa who have worked on the Protocol since its inception, achieved that remarkable goal of 15 ratifications in November 2005. Commending the achievements made by SOAWR, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Prof Alpha Oumar Konare, stated in 2006 that, “The speed with which the Protocol came into force on 25 November 2005 set a new record for the ratification of Pan-African rights standards for the continent.”
In the first year that it came into force the Protocol was ratified by an additional 5 countries. In the past year only 3 countries – Tanzania, Ghana and Angola ratified the Protocol. Solome Nakaweesi-Kimbugwe, Executive Director of Akina Mama wa Afrika notes, “We are sensing a decline in the enthusiasm shown by countries to ratify the Protocol. This is unfortunate. If African governments are really committed to women’s equality then ratifying the Protocol is the most basic step they need to take to ensure that they meet universally accepted standards of gender equality.”
A significant achievement for SOAWR in the past year was when Gambia lifted its reservations, officially acknowledged by the African Commission in August 2007. As stated by Hannah Forster, Executive Director of the African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies, “By lifting the reservations that had been placed initially, Gambia has publicly recognized that reservations defeat the underlying purpose of the Protocol, and that they severely undermine the strength of the Protocol. South Africa remains to be the only country still with reservations placed on the Protocol. We urge South Africa to follow in the foot steps of Gambia and lift its reservations at once.” SOAWR also hopes that countries that have not yet ratified, do so completely and without any reservations.
On the eve of the second anniversary of the entry into force of the African Protocol on the Rights of Women, SOAWR is concerned about the urgent need for domestication of the Protocol. Once the Protocol is ratified in full, State Parties need to promote the standards set in the Protocol in their own countries. And as such, laws in member countries must align with the standards set in the Protocol. Unfortunately, this process of adopting Protocol standards within countries has been slow. Faiza Jama Mohamed, Africa Regional Director of Equality Now explains, “While the Protocol is the first human rights instrument to criminalize female genital mutilation (FGM), Gambia and Mali who have both ratified the Protocol, still have no laws banning FGM.” FGM continues to be practiced in these countries with prevalence rates, of 80% and 75% respectively, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The African Protocol on the Rights of Women is also known for its comprehensive provisions on reproductive rights. The Protocol allows for “medical abortion in cases of sexual assault, rape, incest, and where the continued pregnancy endangers the mental and physical health of the mother or the life of the mother or the foetus.” Again State Parties have been slow to adopt these standards set by the Protocol completely. For instance, while Lesotho, Mauritania and Senegal have ratified the Protocol, their laws prohibit abortions altogether. Additionally, 4 State Parties Libya, Malawi, Mali, and Nigeria, have limited provisions under their abortion laws. “These seven State Parties, must domesticate the Protocol by broadening their laws to address reproductive rights more comprehensively,” emphasizes Therese Niyondiko, Acting Executive Director of FEMNET. SOAWR hopes that the third year of the Protocol’s entry into force will be noteworthy with numerous ratifications and speedy implementation of Protocol standards in national laws.
Countries that have ratified the Protocol
1. Angola
2. Benin
3. Burkina Faso
4. Cape Verde
5. The Comoros
6. Djibouti
7. Ghana
8. The Gambia
9. Lesotho
10. Libya
11. Malawi
12. Mali
13. Mauritania
14. Mozambique
15. Namibia
16. Nigeria
17. Rwanda
18. Senegal
19. Seychelles
20. South Africa
21. Tanzania
22. Togo
23. Zambia
Countries that have signed but not ratified the Protocol
1. Algeria
2. Burundi
3. Cameroon
4. Chad
5. Cote d'Ivoire
6. Congo
7. Democratic Republic of Congo
8. Equatorial Guinea
9. Ethiopia
10. Gabon
11. Guinea-Bissau
12. Guinea
13. Kenya
14. Liberia
15. Madagascar
16. Mauritius
17. Niger
18. Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
19. Sierra Leone
20. Somalia
21. Swaziland
22. Uganda
23. Zimbabwe
Countries that have not signed or ratified the Protocol
1. Botswana
2. Central African Republic
3. Egypt
4. Eritrea
5. Sao Tome & Principe
6. Sudan
7. Tunisia
Coalition Members
African Centre for Democracy And Human Rights Studies (ACDHRS),
Akina Mama wa Afrika, Association des Juristes Maliennes, Cellule de
Coordination sur les Pratiques Traditionelle Affectant la Sante des Femmes
et des Enfants, BAOBAB for Women’s Human Rights, Centre for Justice
Studies and Innovations (CJSI), Coalition on Violence Against Women,
Eastern Africa Sub-regional Support Initiative (EASSI), Equality Now-Africa
Regional Office, FAHAMU, FAMEDEV-Inter-African Network For Women, Media,
Gender and Development, FEMNET-African Women’s Development and
Communication Network, Federation of Women Lawyers Kenya (FIDA-Kenya),
Foundation for Community Development, Inter-African Committee on Harmful
Traditional Practices (IAC), Human Rights Law Service (HURILAWS), Oxfam
GB, Sister Namibia, Strategic Initiative for the Horn of Africa (SIHA),
Union Nationale des Femmes de Djibouti, Voix de Femmes, University of
Pretoria Center for Human Rights, Women Direct, Women of Liberia Peace
Network (WOLPNET), Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF), Women’s
Rights Advancement and Protection Alternatives (WRAPA)
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