The Recognition Of The Human Rights Of African Women
Keywords:
Recognition, human right, African womanAbstract
This paper gave an overview of recent trends in international human rights law with a view to knowing how the rights of women in Africa are balanced against State and customary laws. Women's rights to self-determination are embedded in several international treaties, such as the International Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and the Dakar Declaration. The right encompasses the right for recognition and opportunities to challenge existing laws so as to bring meaningful change to women's lives.
References
Gierycz, Dorota, Human Rights of Women at the Fiftieth Anniversary of the UN, Human Rights of Women, International Instruments and African Experiences, Zed Books, 2002.
See case No.35 Ephrahim v Pastory and Kaizilege, High Court of Tanzania.
It must be observed that the criteria of a certain status need not necessarily be prescribed by international law. For example the African Union have indeed been instrumental in raising awareness on the rights of African women, and developing a legal framework to ensure that there is a continuity of legal reform in respect of the rights of African women. Its preamble justifies the adoption of the Optional Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, precisely to promote and allow women to fully enjoy their rights. Theoretically, it may be viable, but certainly for any legal mechanism to take effect it ought to be administered by legal experts and by outside intervention.
Sethni H., Smitu Kothari and, Rethinking Human Rights: Challenges for Theory and Action, The International Human Rights in Context, Henry J. Steiner and Philip Alston, Oxford University Press, 1996.
Engle, Karen After the collapse of the Public/Private Distinction: Strategising Women's Rights, International Human Rights in Context, Oxford University Press, 1996.
See CEDAW provisions. http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/ cedaw/states.htm.
See the UN Division for the Advancement of Women, elaborating on the 12 critical areas of concern. http://www.un.org./ womenwatch/daw/beijing/.
See CEDAW provisions. http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/ cedaw/states.htm .
See Aukot, Ekuru, The Constitutionalisation of Ethnicity: Protecting Ethnic Minority in Kenya, The University of Nairobi Law Journal, Vol.1, 2003.
