Youth Join SOAWR Members during

Annual Conference

One of the coalition’s strategies on ex-

panding their constituency aimed at engaging the youth in the campaign to

promote the human rights of African

women. The annual review had in atten-dance four youth participants who were

winners of last year’s Essay contest titled

“What the Protocol means to me”

Below are excerpts of articles the youth wrote about their experiences of engag-

ing with SOAWR members.

From the 18th to 20th January 2012

SOAWR convened its annual review

and agenda setting workshop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The meeting whose

objective was to review the coalition’s

past two years activities reflected on member’s experiences and best prac-

tices at the regional and national level,

and adopted an action plan which included a road map to be implemented

during the year.

In ambit of the annual review meeting,

Coalition members also engaged in

advocacy and lobby meetings targeting embassies of countries that have not

ratified the Protocol.

Other activities that SOAWR members

engaged in included participation at the

African Union Summit which carried the theme “Boosting Intra-African

Trade.” and this provided an opportu-nity for FEMNET a SOAWR member,

to launch on 19th January 2012 a multi-

country research report and documen-tary on promoting women’s economic

empowerment through gender respon-

sive trade. For a full report of the above events please visit: http://

www.soawr.org/resources/

SOAWRJan2012AU%20Summit.pdf

The annual review meeting was partici-

patory and consisted of panel presenta-tions, working group discussions, and

strategy building sessions. One of the

issues discussed was progress on ratifi-cation of the Protocol. A representa-

tive of the AU Commission, Mr Ade-

wale Inyanda spoke about an initiative

Leah Chatta Chipepa (AMwA), Uganda and

Adewale Iyanda,,AU legal Counsel Office-

Addis Ababa-Ethiopia at the Annual meeting

that the AUC is leading on ratification and

domestication of AU treaties which in-

cluded development of a model law on ratification. He also highlighted some of

the challenges that countries face in ratifi-

cation of treaties and underscored the fact that SOAWR had done exceedingly well

in advocating for ratification of the

Women’s Rights Protocol and that there was a lot to learn from the SOAWR cam-

paign.

During a session on Domesticating the

Protocol, regional efforts and country

experiences were discussed including plans for a mult-sectoral framework train-

ing as a way of domesticating/

implementing the Protocol in selected countries that have ratified it. Members

also heard about outcomes of the second

domestication meeting held last year in Nairobi for 16 countries and training of

lawyers from 12 countries on application

of the Guide to Using the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa for Legal Ac-

tion.

The meeting took time to explore new

strategies of engagements and new con-

stituencies in the Protocol campaign. Is-sues discussed included use of opportuni-

ties to include elections and use of the

social media as an advocacy tool.

The meeting ended with development of

an annual action plan and election of new members into the SOAWR Steering Com-

mittee.

SOLIDARITY FOR AFRICAN WOMEN ’S R IGHTS PUBLICATION

ENGLISH EDITION

UPCOMING EVENT

The Summit of the African Union 9th to 16th July 2012, to

be held in Malawi. for informa-

tion visit http://www.au-summit2012-malawi.mw/

SOAWR Annual Review meet-ing takes place in Addis Ababa

1

2

South Sudan awareness raising on international/regional instru-

ments

2

SOAWR participates in the Africa UNiTE Campaign to

End Violence Against Women

3

COVAW convenes public forum on Protocol in Arusha

3

FEMNET Gives Visibility to

the Africa UNiTE Campaign

3

Tanzanian Youth Speak out in

Favor of AU Women’s Rights

Protocol

4

Advocacy for Ratification of the Protocol

4

Equality Now convenes Second Training for lawyers on Using

Protocol for Legal Defense

4

POWA, ACDHRS & WLSA hold side Event on CEDAW

and The Women’s Protocol

5

Women First Coalition em-barks on a Media Campaign to

Demystify and Popularize the

Protocol in Uganda

6

In the News

Statement Condemning strip-ping of women in Malawi

6

A New Victim in an Uneven

War

6

New members elected into

SOAWR Steering Commit-

tee

7

SOAWR Annual Review Meeting takes place in Addis Ababa

JANUARY-MARCH 2012

Four winners of the Youth Essay at the

SOAWR meeting

Believing that Women's Emancipation

is the Key-Jerry Laurence Lemogo

(Cameroon)

Young people are as it is said in my

country, Cameroon, the spearhead of the nation. They are ingredients to add

in every development achievement on

the African continent which is at the search of emergence. It is exactly in

support of this spirit that SOAWR

invited the African youth to reflect on the methods and strategies for the ap-

propriation of the Protocol. It is through

the ratification and domestication of this legal instrument which in our judg-

ment is unavoidable for factual contri-

bution of women in Africa to develop-ment.

Keys to the success of the Protocol

The Protocol needs to deploy more efficiently on the continent and thus the

of new methods towards (continued on

page 2)

Page 2

South Sudan – Awareness Raising on International and Regional Instruments on Women’s Human Rights

As a new nation, the Republic of

South Sudan has a lot of international

obligations to fulfill. Having applied

for membership into the East African

community, and having been ac-

cepted as a member of the African

Union as well as the United Nations,

South Sudan is clearly ready to take

its place on the international land-

scape. One of the key issues that

South Sudan will have to address as a

new member of the world’s family of

nations will be to ensure that the

human rights of women are upheld

particularly by ratifying international

conventions and declarations.

It is in light of the above that the

South Sudan Women Empower-

ment Network organized a two day

workshop on key international and

regional instrument on women’s

human rights from 22nd to 23rd Feb-

ruary, 2012 in Juba. The conference

examined regional, international and

national best practice towards achieving

ratification.

Alexandriah Muhanji, Equality

Now Program Officer, representing

the SOAWR coalition shared

SOAWR’s work on ratification,

Annual meeting ...continued...

domestication and implementation of the

African Women’s Rights Protocol; and

outlined steps South Sudan needed to take

in depositing its instrument of ratification.

The meeting raised concerns about the

increase of cases of violence, discrimina-

tion and women’s subordination. Partici-

pants urged the government to prioritize

and commit to contribute to a safe and se-

cure environment for women and children

in South Sudan. For women’s rights to be

realized, the meeting recommended that

the government ratify CEDAW, the Afri-

JANUARY-MARCH 2012

ratifying the Protocol, the resistance that it is faced with in the African Union member coun-

tries, SOAWR commitment and the innovative

solutions that it purports to achieve.

Life Before, During and After SOAWR Meet-

ing - Nonyelum Umeasiegbu (Nigeria)

Over the two days of the meeting I watched in awe as women activists defied even the barriers

of language to share progress, successes, lessons

learnt and most importantly, plan for 2012 cam-paign actions. The goals and objective were

clear in every dialogue; to sign and ratify the

Protocol in countries which have not, and to implement and domesticate its articles in coun-

tries that have.

My awe listening to these dialogues inspired

me. I was inspired by the various activities

being implemented across the continent, by the achievements being attained, and by the enthusi-

asm of the people doing them.

I also got the opportunity to experience firsthand

lobby and advocacy strategies. We paid a visit

to the Embassy of Egypt. The conversation was

engaging and we left with a commitment from the Ambassador to push for the government’s

ratification of the Protocol in light of the new

emerging era in Egypt.

I consider myself now a supporter of the

SOAWR coalition and will work both with SOAWR and individually to promote the

Protocol and its articles among youth in my

country.

My Addis experience - Anthony Itodo Samuel (Nigeria)

As a youth participant at the SOAWR confer-ence, I was practically in unfamiliar territory,

surrounded by women who are giving so much

in the service of bettering the lives of other women. While I listened I was impressed with

the efforts of members of the coalition across

several parts of Africa. The experience brought me in live contact with real change-makers,

something I have longed to be, a longing to

translate the several ideas I have articulated in my essays into reality. I remain committed to

promote African women’s rights.

Some of the opportunities that exist in the coun-

try include the constitutional making process.

Hence it was stressed that it is a responsibility

of the government with the help of civil socie-

ties to ensure that the above instruments are

ratified and are reflected in the new constitu-

tion.

The meeting ended with development of a com-

munique which highlighted that (1) the govern-

ment needs to conduct massive awareness rais-

ing on roles and responsibilities of government

and civil society on ratification, domestication

and implementation of all the relevant interna-

tional human rights instruments discussed at the

meeting; (2) the Republic of South Sudan rati-

fies and domesticates the three instruments,

mentioned above, without reservations and

draws up a national action plan on implement-

ing UN Security Council Resolution 1325; (3)

Civil Society organizations lobby for a joint

initiative with the key actors within the govern-

ment of the Republic of South Sudan in order to

ensure that minimum standards are reflected in

the new constitution and national laws and poli-

cies.

For a full copy of the communique and work-

shop report please visit: www.sswen.org

improving women’s status on the continent. This new strategy must evolve around the following axes:

1. Harmonizing different ministries’ agendas on

promotion of women’s rights 2. Engaging the youth: the youth must be involved in

the Protocol campaign. This echoes the African Charter

on the Youth in its article 23 sub-paragraph (c) which provides that it is necessary ‘to put in place awareness

raising programmes to get girls and women to know

their rights and the equitable opportunities to participate as equal members of the society.

Participation at the SOAWR meeting a Privilege and insightful Experience-Nelly Farah Nguegan ,

(Cameroon)

Given the definitely practical approach of the strategies adopted, one realizes the importance of lobbying in all

the forms of public action. The approach and the strate-

gies that are appealing to decision makers and leaders is paramount to the NGO movement in general, SOAWR

in particular. At the end, attending those various ses-

sions showed us that there is always a solution to the challenges that impose themselves. There are ways to

get things moving. There is a way to achieve gender

equality. In all aspects, this experience reshapes our perspective of the future and challenges. It enabled us to

track real success stories and to learn from their experi-ence. We have been able to appraise the issue of

Ms. Alexandriah Muhanji, Equality Now Pro-gram Officer, making a presentation at the con-

ference

Most, if not all, of these issues raised are addressed in

the AU Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, which is why it becomes even more important for Afri-

can citizens to be aware of it, and to push for its ratifica-

tion and implementation.

Hearing such appalling experiences of VAW brings a

human face to campaigns such as UNiTE. It highlights the urgency of zero tolerance, the urgency of NOW.

The urgency of not only Speaking OUT and Breaking

The Silence, but of taking ACTION. Of each and every one of us taking responsibility; responsibility for the

way we raise our sons, the values we instill in our

brothers, the way we treat our sisters and our daughters. Let us UNiTE to bring an end to such a heinous crime

until we can say that no man or woman suffers from it.

If not us, who? If not now, when ?

RAISING HER VOICE PROJECT

SOAWR Participates in the Africa UNiTE Campaign to End Violence Against Women

Background

The Regional component of the United Nations Secretary’s global UNiTE campaign- Africa

UNiTE, was launched on 30 January 2010 by the

UN Secretary General and the African Union Commission Chairman, in Addis Ababa Ethio-

pia. The campaign builds on the AU’s policy

commitments on ending violence against women and girls as in the spirit of the Solemn Declara-

tion on Gender Equality in Africa and the AU

Protocol on Women’s Rights in Africa. The overall objective of the campaign is to address

all forms of violence against women and girls in

Africa through prevention, adequate response, policy development, implementation and ending

impunity.

In order to raise awareness on ending violence

against women and to accelerate efforts and

implementation of commitments in Africa, a Climb to the Mount Kilimanjaro was organized

from 5 to 9 March 2012, under the theme ‘Climb

Up, Speak Out !’ as major advocacy events of the Africa UNiTE Campaign were also staged

throughout the continent.

SOAWR Engagement

SOAWR as a member of the Africa UNiTE regional Steering Committee organized a series

of side events with the support of Equality Now.

The side events, whose objective was to publi-cize the campaign, highlighted some of the work

that SOAWR members undertook and how it

contributes to ending violence against women and girls in Africa. The opportunity also served

as an advocacy moment to push for ratification

and implementation of the African Women’s Rights Protocol. The SOAWR activities under-

taken during the UNiTE campaign are detailed

below.

TREK UP KILIMANJARO 5TH MARCH

2012

On the 5th March 2012, 75 men, women and

youth commenced a three day trek to the top of Africa’s highest mountain – Mt. Kilimanjaro,

standing at 19,341-ft above sea level.

The climbers represented 36 African countries

and signified Africa’s commitment to ending

violence against women and girls in our conti-nent. The Climbers

were flagged off by

H.E. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President

of the Republic of

Tanzania, at the

Marangu Gate.

H.E. Jakaya Mrisho

Kikwete flags off the

campaign event

SOAWR members (Equality Now and

COVAW Kenya) at the flag off ceremony

at the Foot of Mt Kilimanjaro

There were also various solidarity climbs and events taking place across the continent. To

mention a few, the Kenya Chapter of Africa

UNiTE organized a walk on March 7th prior to International Women’s Day. Cameroon organ-

ized a Mt. Febe Climb on March 10th. Burundi

also organized a similar climb. South Africa organized bunjee jumping and Ethiopia held a

5k Women’s Run on March 11th.

Public Forum on the AU Protocol

Survivors Speak OUT!

The Coalition on Violence against Women (COVAW Kenya), on behalf of SOAWR, held a

public forum on the 7th of March 2012 to popu-

larize the AU Protocol on the Rights of Women while linking it to commitments by Govern-

ments to end Violence against Women and

Girls.

Women participants at the Public Forum

“I was beyond repair. But there is no beyond for God.” Those were the powerful and profound

words of one of the many survivors who coura-

geously recounted harrowing tales at the Public Forum. Over 200 women were in attendance,

and the energy in the room was palpatable.

Emotions were high as incidences of gender based violence were shared. Many of the inci-

dences resulted in loss of property, loss of rights

to inheritance, sexual and gender based acts of violence during post election violence in Kenya,

unsafe abortion, and lack of economic clout

among many other aspects.

Page 3

FEMNET put in place a communication strategy to

ensure that the campaign was widely known, but most importantly that it was inclusive and owned by

African citizenry. There were constant updates on

twitter, blogs, photos uploaded to facebook and videos to YouTube. A map was also put in place

that could locate various solidarity climbs and

events. All these can be accessed at the links below:

www.facebook.com/femnetsecretariat www.facebook.com/Solidarity-for-African-

Womens-Rights-SOAWR

www.youtube.com/femnet1 http://femnet.wordpress.com

www.femnet.crowdmap.com

Though the climb was a major event in this cam-

paign, it is simply the beginning of this campaign’s

fight to end violence against women and girls on our continent. Perhaps this is the legacy that we can

leave behind for future generations, an Africa free of gender-based violence.

And if not now, when? And if not us, who? Let’s

UNiTE to end all forms of violence.

For more information on the campaign please visit:

www.africaunitecampaign.org

FEMNET Gives Visibility to the Africa

UNiTE Campaign

RAISING HER VOICE PROJECT

International Women’s Day Celebration in Solidarity with the Africa

UNiTE Campaign Siha -Tanzania

Advocacy for Ratification of the Protocol

Page 4

In January 2012, SOAWR members lobbied ambassadors of several countries that have not ratified the Protocol.

In teams of 5-6 representing different countries and a youth member, SOAWR mem-bers met with ambassadors and deputy ambassadors of Egypt, Mauritius, Sierra Leone

and Tunisia. Members received cordial receptions and good dialogue with the various

officials who gave assurances that their countries were committed to ensuring women enjoy their human rights and promised to follow-up with their respective capitals on

expediting the deposit of their instruments.

SOAWR members with Egyptian Ambassador, H.E. Mohamed Fathi Edress

Training for Lawyers on Protocol Manual for Legal Action

Equality Now con-vened the 2nd Lawyers

training on use of the

Protocol for legal action in Arusha, Tan-

zania, from 26-27

March 2012. Eight-een lawyers from

Ghana, Lesotho, Libe-

ria, Malawi, Mozam-bique, Namibia, Nige-

ria, South Africa,

Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone bene-

fited from the training.

Justice Gérard Niyungeko, President of the African Court on Human and

Peoples’ Rights (in photos), officially opened the training and welcomed

collaboration with Equality Now and SOAWR in advancing the objec-tives of the African Court. He encouraged lawyers from countries that

have ratified the Protocol Establishing the African Court on Human and

Peoples’ Rights (The Protocol to the Court) and signed the declaration giving individuals and NGO’s access to the court to file cases before the

Court.

The lawyers were trained on using the Protocol in litigating on behalf of women and girls before national and regional judicial mechanisms. The

meeting learned that in the 10 countries represented in the training that

had ratified the Protocol there has been no jurisprudence that makes reference to the Protocol, even though there were a number of reported

cases which made reference to international human rights instruments

including the Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination

against Women (CEDAW).

Faiza Mohamed , (EQUALITY NOW /SOAWR) hands a copy of the

manual to Justice Gerard Niyungeko (President of the African Court on

Human & Peoples Rights at the Lawyers training

One of the major challenges that was identified for having contributed to

the above was the inadequate capacity of application by lawyers and

judges on the use of human rights instruments while litigating.

Participants were further equipped with practical steps to identify and select cases to be filed in national and regional courts through a moot

court exercise. The case that was mooted was from Sierra Leone and was

being handled by one of the participant from that country representing AdvocAid which provides legal aid. from Sierra Leone.

As a way forward participants developed action plans which incorpo-rated strategies on creating awareness on the Protocol to fellow lawyers,

filing of cases in national and regional courts on women’s violations and

lastly popularizing the Protocol and advocacy so as to pressure on gov-ernments to enact new laws and policies that reflect the rights provided

for in the Protocol.

On the occasion of the International Women’s Day (8th March) the Network against Female Genital Mutilation (NAFGEM) in collaboration with Equality Now organized

a community march and celebrations which were part of Africa UNiTE campaign to

End Violence against Women. About 500 people were in attendance, including school children, former circumcisers, activists, government officials, and well-wishers whose

ages ranged from 3 to 83.

Students presented pictoral presentations in a competition dubbed “in their own

words” on what they consider Violence against Women (VAW) to be. Some depicted their mothers being beaten by their fathers. Others depicted the inequality of workload

among men and women, depicting a mother carrying a hoe, her baby, food on her

head while the husband walks idly

by.

Some shared their views of VAW in

writing. Some of the issues men-

tioned included early marriage, fe-male genital mutilation (FGM),

unwanted sexual advances, and being

pulled out of school as that would kill their dreams of becoming the

president!

The District Commissioner, Anna Rose Nyamubi, was on hand to offer support to the

women in her constituency and renew her commitment to them. Also present was a

male member of Parliament, Hon Aggrey Mwari, from Siha who urged community members not to wait for opportunities to be given to them, but rather to grab opportu-

nities as they come. He also reaffirmed his commitment to bring forth and champion issues in Parliament such as land and property inheritance and other VAW issues

affecting the women in the district.

Women’s groups and students performed skits, sang songs, recited poetry, and made

statements urging an end to all forms of discrimination and VAW/G. The message

came out loud and clear: “Let’s UNiTE to bring an end to VAW/G!”

RAISING HER VOICE PROJECT

People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA), in

collaboration with the African Centre for De-

mocracy and Human Rights Studies (ACDHRS)

and Women and Law in Southern Africa

(WLSA), all members of SOAWR, held a paral-

lel side event during the Commission on the

Status of Women’s (CSW) 56th Session, in New

York on 29 February, 2012. The meeting was

attended by over 100 participants, including high

level senior government officials and representa-

tives of civil society organizations from around

the world. The meeting discussed the progress

made in implementing the African Women’s

Ms Florence Butegwa, UN Women Representative to

the AU and UNECA and Ms Sixolile Ngcobo, Oxfam,

speak about the potentials of the Protocol to guarantee

rights for women

Rights Protocol and CEDAW, the tools used, and

the challenges that member states are facing.

Specific focus was on the 3 countries represented

on the panel; the Gambia, South and Zambia.

From the presentations, the 3 countries seem to

have done fairly well in working towards the

implementation of the two instruments, with The

Gambia having successfully domesticated both

CEDAW and the AU Women’s Protocol through

their Women’s Act of 2010. Zambia on the other

hand, has also enacted a number of laws includ-

ing the Anti-gender Based Violence Act of 2011,

and the Anti-Human Trafficking Act No. 11 of

2008 which are both comprehensive pieces of

legislation providing for the prohibition and pre-

vention of gender-based violence.

According to the South African Minister of

Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities;

‘the legal framework is one of the country’s suc-

cess stories’, with the government having made

strides in ensuring that legislation is aligned with

the Constitution and international norms on

women’s rights. However, despite all the

‘THE AFRICAN WOMEN’S PROTOCOL AND

CEDAW: OPPORTUNITIES, GAINS AND

CHALLENGES’

Hon. Lulu Xingwana, Minister of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities, South Africa, Ms Edwidge E M K Mutale, Permanent Secretary Gender and Child Division, Zambia and Dr.

Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice President and Minister of Women’s Affairs, The Gambia at the side-

event

legislative progress and gains made, all countries cited challenges in ensuring effective

implementation due to prevailing negative traditional and cultural attitudes and lack of

adequate funding.

Ms Florence Butegwa (Representative of UN Women to the African Union and UN-

ECA) presented on opportunities that countries could leverage on to ensure the effec-

tive promotion and protection of women rights in Africa, through introducing the UN

Women multi-sectoral framework approach manual on implementing women’s rights

provision in Africa. She reported that UN Women, SOAWR, Oxfam and the AU Com-

mission’s Women’s Directorate had partnered and were going to hold a first training

on adopting a multi-sectoral approach on women’s rights. The discussion led to Zam-

bia and the Gambia indicating interest in taking part in the pilot training on the ap-

proach set to take place in Nairobi in April 2012. South Africa was already one of the

countries selected to take part in the training.

Page 5

ALLIANCES FOR AFRICA (AFA)-Nigeria

AfA under the RHV (Raising Her Voices) Nigeria and in collaboration with the National Coalition on Affirmative Action (NCAA) held a legislative advocacy meeting in Lagos on 16 March 2012 to

urge the Lagos State government to pass the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill into Law.

TRAINING/CAPACITY BUILDING

The Gender Justice in Africa Initiative Case and Selection forum held a meeting on the

21st March 2012 in Arusha, Tanzania. The meeting which was organized to coincide

with the 24th ordinary session of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ rights in

Arusha reviewed regional justice mechanisms as forums for protecting gender justice

particularly the African Court. Participants identified key areas of focus that women’s

groups and lawyers can monitor over the next 12 months.

For more information on the above initiative please visit www.alliancesforafrica.org

For a long time knowledge of the Protocol on the Rights of Women has been very low within the public and particularly at the

grassroots level. In order to increase support and create public demand for domestication of the Protocol, the Women First Coali-

tion spearheaded by Akina Mama wa Afrika embarked on a campaign to popularize the Protocol through talk-shows hosted on

local radio stations in 3 regions of the country. The goal was to take the Protocol closer to the grassroots, de-mystify and explicitly

show its relevance to empowering grassroots women and girls.

The guests on the talk-shows included members of the coalition representing the Uganda Women’s network (UWONET), Muslim

Centre for Justice and Law; and Action for Development (ACFODE). On one of the talk-shows in Northern Uganda commissioned

by UNWONET, it was noticed that many of the callers responding to the show were male inquiring about issues related to their

female relatives such as a sister, mother or daughter. The issues were related to women’s ownership and control of property, defile-

ment, cohabiting and concerns that the Maputo Protocol bearing an ‘external’ name (Maputo) was foreign and that not much had

been done for elderly women and widows. They also recognized that though there were laws in place to prevent Violence against

women and defilement the offences were still on the increase In another talk show organized by Muslim Centre for Justice and

Law (MCJL) the emerging issues were around fears by men on women’s liberation. The male callers were skeptical that women’s

empowerment was more with holistic development rather than women’s ‘misbehavior’ as a result of controlling their bodies, re-

sources etc. The women who called in were supportive of the Protocol and its potential in helping them achieve economic empow-

erment and to actively participate, add their voice in matters of decision making within homes.

During the talk show organized by ACFODE the callers were concerned that legalizing abortion was dangerous as it would be mis-

used and that domesticating the Protocol might turn out to be a backlash for women because women had been given power but so

far they were misusing it.

By and large, the issues raised focused on Sexual and Reproductive Rights, access to and control of property and the underlying

fears expressed by men were as a result of threats on the institutionalized patriarchal tendencies that influence stereotypes and be-

liefs such as women’s submissiveness and their role as secondary citizens. The organizers’ assessment is that the meetings were a

great success since the Protocol was successfully popularized and it is hoped that greater awareness for its relevance to promote

women’s rights in the different contexts will be appreciated.

RAISING HER VOICE PROJECT

Women First Coalition embarks on Media Campaign to Demystify and Popularize the Protocol in Uganda

Page 6

IN THE NEWS

Statement Condemning the Recent Stripping of Women in Malawi

In January, the SOAWR coalition launched a campaign in solidarity with the women of Malawi in particular to ensure their rights

and dignity are respected and protected. The coalition vehemently condemned the stripping of women wearing trousers and short

skirts by male vendors in three major cities in Malawi namely; Lilongwe, Mzuzu and Blantyre. A protest statement which was

endorsed by 100 people was circulated to the media and several Malawian embassies in countries where SOAWR members are

present. The statement urged the government to act swiftly in ending this violation, preserving the human rights of women and

prosecuting the perpetrators of the violence. Read the full statement at http://www.soawr.org/resources/StripMeNotfinal.pdf

Cote D’Ivoire Ratifies the AU Protocol Sudan-A New Victim in an Uneven War ?

In a press release issued on 23rd march 2012 SOAWR congratulated

The Republic of Cote D’Ivoire on its ratification of the Protocol to the

African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of

Women in Africa. The instrument of ratification was deposited to the

AU Commission on March 9th 2012. From Last year, Equality Now on

behalf of SOAWR, has been engaging the government to expedite the

deposit of its instrument. Cote D’Ivoire has become the 32nd Country to

ratify the Protocol.

See SOAWR Press Release on http://www.soawr.org/resources/CoteDIvoire.pdf

The Strategic Initiative on Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA)

has urged and called on the Sudanese government to urgently re-

form the Sudanese criminal code and abolish the Public Order Re-

gime in particular the state-based public order laws and four articles

(151, 152, 154,156) of the criminal code that emphasize restrictions

on women’s dress, conduct and manner of social interaction and

allow the Public Order Police unlimited authority that often leads to

the violent and humiliating persecution of women in public includ-

ing lashings.

For a detailed analysis of the public order regime see SIHA’s report

titled Beyond Trousers: the Public Order Regime and the Human

Rights of Women and Girls in Sudan available at http://

www.sihanet.org/index.php?option=com_docman&Itemid=6

In another talk show organized by Muslim Centre for

Justice and Law (MCJL) the emerging issues were

around fears by men on women’s liberation. The

male callers were skeptical that women’s empower-

ment was more with holistic development rather than

women’s ‘misbehavior’ as a result of controlling

their bodies, resources etc. The women who called in

were supportive of the Protocol and its potential in

helping them achieve economic empowerment and

to actively participate, add their voice in matters of

decision making within homes.

During the talk show organized by ACFODE the

callers were concerned that legalizing abortion was

dangerous as it would be misused and that domesti-

cating the Protocol might turn out to be a backlash

for women because women had been given power

but so far they were misusing it.

By and large, the issues raised focused on Sexual

and Reproductive Rights, access to and control of

property and the underlying fears expressed by men

were as a result of threats on the institutionalized

patriarchal tendencies that influence stereotypes and

beliefs such as women’s submissiveness and their

role as secondary citizens. The organizers’ assess-

ment is that the meetings were a great success since

the Protocol was successfully popularized and it is

hoped that greater awareness for its relevance to

promote women’s rights in the different contexts will

be appreciated.

Solidarity for African Women's Rights (SOAWR) is a coalition of 39 civil society organizations across the continent working to ensure that the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa remains on the agenda of policy makers and to urge all African leaders to safeguard the rights of women through ratification and implementation of the Protocol.

Women First Coalition embarks on Media Campaign to

Demystify and Popularize the Protocol in Uganda

Continued from page 3

Coalition Members

African Centre for Democracy And Human Rights Studies (ACDHRS), African Women’s

Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), African Women’s Development

Fund (AWDF), Akina Mama wa Afrika (AMWA), Alliances for Africa, Association des

Juristes Maliennes (AJM), Action for Development (ACFODE), BAOBAB for Women’s

Human Rights, Cellule de Coordination sur les Pratiques Traditionelle Affectant la Sante

des Femmes et des Enfants (CPTAFE), Centre for Justice Studies and Innovations (CJSI),

Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW), Collectif des Associations et ONGS

Féminines de Burundi (CAFOB), Eastern Africa Sub-regional Support Initiative (EASSI),

Equality Now, FAHAMU for Social Justices, Federation of Women Lawyers Kenya

(FIDA-Kenya), Forum Mulher, Girl Child Network (GCN), Human Rights Law Service

(HURILAWS), Inter-African Committee on Harmful Traditional Practices (IAC), Inter-

African Network For Women, Media, Gender and Development (FAMEDEV), Legal and

Human Rights Centre (LHRC), NGO Gender Coordination Network (NGOGCN), Oxfam

GB, People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA), Sister Namibia, Strategic Initiative for the

Horn of Africa (SIHA), Tomorrow’s Child Initiative (TCI), Reproductive Health and

Rights Alliance (RHRA), Uganda Women's Network (UWONET), Union Nationale des

Femmes de Djibouti (UNFD), University of Pretoria Center for Human Rights, Women

Direct, Voix de Femmes, Women of Liberia Peace Network (WOLPNET), Women and

Law Southern Africa (WLSA), Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF),

Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternatives (WRAPA), Women NGO’s

Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL)

New members elected into SOAWR Steering Committee

African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET)

Alliance for Africa (AFA) - Nigeria

Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW)- Kenya

Fahamu for Social Justices

People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA) - South Africa

Inter-African Network for Women, Media, Gender Equality and Development

(FAMDEV)

Equality Now, the SOAWR Secretariat, remains as a member of the committee and

will continue supporting its work.

SOAWR Secretariat c/o Equality Now

P.O. Box 2018-00200; Nairobi, Kenya Phone: +254-20-2719832; Fax: +254-20-2719868

E-mail: info@soawr.org; Website: www.soawr.org

Status of the Protocol

In March 2011

In March 2012

Total Signatures 46 46

Total Ratifications 30 32

State Parties to the Protocol Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Co-moros, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Democratic Re-public of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozam-bique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sey-chelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda,

Zambia, Zimbabwe