The African Women Protocol as Supplemental to the African Charter and Other Human Rights Instruments: A Brief Analysis

Abstract

The African women’s Rights Protocol was adopted in July 2003 and
came into force in November 2005 as a response to widespread
human rights violations sustained by women in Africa.The purpose of
this article was to succinctly canvass the issue of whether the Protocol
is able to remedy the inadequacies of the African Charter and other
human rights instruments in terms of guaranteeing the rights of African
women. The article found out that the Protocol is a landmark treaty in
a number of respects either by conferring new rights or broadening
the scope of rights of women in existing treaties. Specific areas to
which the Protocol has added value to the existing human rights
instruments include violence against women, harmful practices,
women’s reproductive rights and HIV/AIDS. In some cases, however,
the Protocol is found to contain protections below the existing
treaties as can be exemplified by its failure to expressly recognize the
right of women to vote or to participate at the international level and
the right of women to an equal share of the common property at the time of
dissolution of marriage. In terms of establishing a treaty monitoring
body to improve states’ compliance with their treaty obligations, the
Protocol has not come up with a distinct body as opposed to CEDAW
and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The
article contended that cultural and religious practices as well as lack
of universal ratification could hamper the smooth implementation of
the Protocol. To overcome these setbacks, the article, inter alia,
recommended that the Protocol should be ratified by the remaining
states with minimum possible or no reservation(s) and cultural and
religious resistance should be lessened through continuous awareness
creation and dialogue.