Civil society press for gov’t's protection of female rights defenders.

Gathered under the banner of the Network of Central African Human Rights Defender, REDHAC, the roundtable talks, brought together experts, administrative authorities, civil society organisations, media persons, political actors, students, religious and traditional authorities, lawyers and representative of the regional Branch of the Cameroon Human Rights Commission. 

It was held under the theme: "The protection of Women Human Rights Defenders as a guarantee of the preservation of social cohesion and peace in Cameroon".

REDHAC, in gathering the participants, had as mission, to redress some of the constitutional and conventional obligation the State must have neglected or forgotten to apply when it comes to the female citizens

Speaking on behalf of REDHAC, Barrister Alice Lol, said the Constitution of Cameroon of January 18, 1996, enshrines the protection of women. 

The same, she said, applies to United Nations Resolution 1325 of October 2000, the Maputo Protocol of the African Union of July 2003, the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders of April 1998, the Kigali and Grand Baie Declaration of April 1999 and the Report of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Situation of Women Human Rights Defenders in Africa of April 2019 which are regional instruments and international organizations for the promotion of women, particularly Women Human Rights Defenders.

She said, United Nations Resolution 1325 guarantees the advancement of women and ensures their full participation and representation in conflict resolution, peace and national reconciliation processes. 

The Maputo Protocol goes in the same direction with an emphasis on the involvement of women in the management of public affairs. 

On the other hand, she added that, the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, the Kigali and Grand Baie Declaration and the Report on the Situation of Women Human Rights Defenders in Africa, highlighted the need to adopt legal provisions to the protection of Women Human Rights Defender

However, in Central Africa, democracy activists are sometimes unaware that they are Women Human Rights Defenders, hence their under-representation both politically and in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, social cohesion, peace and national reconciliation, she said.

This, the civil society leaders have said, is partly due to insufficient political will of governments; and on the other hand, ignorance by women of the existence of the aforementioned legal instruments and their role in favour of women. 

"We want the State to come back to its promise made in the constitution to protect women human rights defenders, there is a lot going wrong that we need not to talk of, but we are here because, it's is the women's month and we need them to know their importance, we need the change," erstwhile journalist, Gustave Azebaze said

Aside lack of political will on the part of the government, women human rights defenders said, they feel threatened each time, they are out on the field simple because of their gender. 

Sharing her experience, the Country Representatives of the International Commission for Human Rights, Jokes Quinivet Kaah Baneh, revealed that, she has been placed most time at a disadvantaged position when trying to exercise her duty as a human rights defender. 

"People turn to devalue your work simple because you are a woman," she said. 

Jokes used the opportunity to call on the powers that be to see into it that, the right of the women in the defending those in need are equally protected.