Following more than a decade of advocacy by women’s human rights groups, Indonesia’s parliament adopted long-awaited legislation against sexual violence.
A wide range of stakeholders in Mbabane, Eswatini came together to discuss the challenges they face in combating sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in the country.
On 21 November, the ICJ hosted a symposium with representatives of the Attorney General, Ministry of Justice, police, Human Rights Commission and Law Society on cases involving economic, social, and cultural rights and SGBV. The event was followed by an integrated meeting involving State officials in the justice sector to discuss the implementation of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence (SODV) Act was discussed.
The Kingdom of Eswatini faces widespread instances of SGBV and it is hoped that new initiatives, such the enactment of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence (SODV) Act in 2018, will be effective in addressing the scourge of SGBV in the country.
The symposium was led by Justice Qinisile Mabuza, Principal Judge of the Eswatini High Court and ICJ Commissioner, accompanied by ICJ Commissioners Justice Sanji Monageng of Botswana and Professor Michelo Hansugule of the University of Pretoria, and Justice of the High Court in Zimbabwe Amy Tsanga. The ICJ’s Senior International Legal Adviser Emerlynne Gil gave a presentation on gender stereotypes and international legal standards on SGBV ICJ Africa legal associate Khanyo Farisè and ICJ consultant Mary Pais Da Silva also participated in the symposium.
Speakers emphasized the critical role of the judiciary and other justice sector actors in ensuring that Eswatini meets its legal obligations under international human rights law, including standards governing the African region, to protect survivors of SGBV.
“The judiciary is a critical component in the intervention against SGBV. The judges have to know about human rights, appreciate what SGBV actually entails, understand what those violations mean, and the international standards and local roles where they exist. Judges also should be able to use jurisprudence from other jurisdictions to justify their decisions,” Commissioner Monageng said.
The participants of the symposium, were subsequently joined by representatives from the Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the One Stop Care Centre for sexual violence survivors, and the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office, came together to discuss the implementation of the SODV Act. Recommendations included better collaboration with judicial actors, the training of law enforcement agencies on receiving report of sexual violence, better case management and the development of forensic laboratories were made.
Contact
Khanyo Farisè (Legal Associate): e: Nokukhanya.Farise(a)icj.org
Shaazia Ebrahim (Media Officer): e: shaazia.ebrahim(a)icj.org
On May 29 2019, the ICJ facilitated a workshop with a number of justice sector officials and stakeholders who are active in the implementation of the Sexual Offenses and Domestic Violence Act (SODVA).
Building on previous engagements in 2018 and 2019, the participants decided on a clear plan of action for further coordination towards the eradication of sexual and gender based violence (SGBV) in Eswatini.
Participants in the meeting included representatives from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, the police, correctional services, the judiciary and the Medical and Dental Association of Eswatini.
The meeting, was opened by ICJ Commissioner and Principal Judge of the High Court of Eswatini, Justice Qinisile Mabuza.
“For too many years, the clamour for this law has been loud; now that we have it, we have to interrogate how efficiently we are using it and check for the gaps that we need to address. Its implementation is in our hands, and we cannot allow ourselves to fail those that need our protection; we cannot fall foul of failing in our duty,” said Judge Mabuza.
A draft report, commissioned by the ICJ, was presented by Nonhlanhla Dlamini, the Director of Swaziland Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA).
The report, provided participants with a contextual analysis of challenges faced by survivors of SGBV in accessing the justice system in Eswatini.
ICJ Legal Adviser Timothy Fish Hodgson discussed key provisions of the SODV Act and the need for their interpretation and application consistently with the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.
SWAGAA’s draft report revealed that despite the enactment of the SODV Act significant barriers to access to justice for survivors of SGBV remain.
These include:
Participants made practical recommendations of how challenges could be addressed in their particular environments. Stressing the need to ensure continued collaboration and momentum in the implementation of the SODV Act, ICJ Africa Director Arnold Tsunga observed that: “Whether this process actually builds towards better protection from SGBV for the marginalized in Eswatini and the SODV Act’s impact is dependent on how participants in this platform and other officials are able to adopt practical measures and implement them effectively.”
The Myanmar government’s recently announced plan to enlist civilians as a ‘regional police force’ in Myanmar’s troubled northern Rakhine State is likely to aggravate an already dire human rights situation, warned the ICJ today.
“In a country where the regular police and military are notorious for grave human rights violations, it’s difficult to extend the benefit of the doubt to poorly trained civilians,” said Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Asia Director.
“Establishing an armed, untrained, unaccountable force drawn from only one community in the midst of serious ethnic tensions and violence is a recipe for disaster,” he added.
Over the last month the region has experienced increased tension and violence including attacks on border police and allegations of human rights violations by security forces, including attacks on Rohingya villages and sexual assaults.
Humanitarian assistance and independent monitors, including the media, remain severely restricted in the area.
The Rakhine State police are recruiting civilians for the force along ethnic and religious lines, officially excluding Rakhine state’s Muslims, most of whom belong to the area’s persecuted Rohingya community.
Recruits will reportedly be armed and paid by the border police after undergoing abbreviated training.
The ICJ considers that a civilian regional police force necessarily lacks the adequate training and oversight to perform policing functions in accordance with human rights and professional standards on policing.
Moreover, there does not appear to be an appropriate accountability mechanism in place to deal with instances of misconduct and human rights abuses, the ICJ says.
Such a ‘regional police force’ will be dangerously under qualified and prone to committing human rights violations, especially as they will answer to the military rather than civilian government, the Geneva-based organization adds.
According to the ICJ, if a new security authority is contemplated, it must be a professional police force, whose members are recruited and trained in accordance with principles of non-discrimination and respect for human rights.
Police must also be accountable to the law and subject to administrative and judicial oversight.
The ICJ calls on the governments to establish and enforce effective reporting and review procedures for all incidents involving the use of force.
The government and police must ensure the following accountability measures are in place:
Accountability and oversight is essential to protect human rights and prevent escalation of conflict: a new force should not be raised without these guarantees, the ICJ says.
Contact
Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Regional Director for Asia & Pacific, t: +66807819002
Background
Under international law, any body authorized by the State to perform security functions and use force, including lethal force, must respect human rights in performing their functions.
The United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms set standards on the qualifications and the training of Law Enforcement Officials.
These Principles also provide standards on the use of force consistent with protecting the right to life.
Under the Principles, all law enforcement officials must receive continuous and thorough professional training, subject to periodic review. They must be screened and selected to ensure they have appropriate moral, psychological and physical qualities for the effective exercise of their functions.
Training must include appropriate guidance on the use of force with special requirements to carry firearms.
It must focus on issues of police ethics and human rights, especially in the investigative process, to alternatives to the use of force and firearms, including the peaceful settlement of conflicts, with a view to limiting the use of force and firearms.
The ICJ held a colloquium on this issue on 30-31 July. Judges, magistrates, lawyers, members of academia, and civil society leaders from SADC, ECOWAS and the East African Community attended the event.
The Acting Chief Justice of the Kingdom of Swaziland, MCB Maphalala and the Secretary General of ICJ, Wilder Tayler, officially opened the colloquium.
The participants discussed the concept of gender-based violence; the efforts to combat impunity in sexual offences and gender based violence at the national, regional and international level and made recommendations to eliminate the scourge.
One of the key objectives of the workshop was to contribute to the process of enacting sexual offences and domestic violence legislation in Swaziland.
The Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Bill of Swaziland is before the house of assembly, which has asked stakeholders to submit their views, on what should be included in the law.
The judges, lawyers and civil society leaders had robust and honest discussions touching on effective innovative strategies to combat sexual and gender based violence.
Some of the recommendations included the training of judicial officers to be gender sensitive, changing societal attitudes and prejudices, raising awareness amongst parliamentarians, creative interpretation and application of regional and international standards when adjudicating cases of sexual offences and gender based violence as well as observance of fair trial standards at the national, regional and international level.
The colloquium was made possible with funding from IrishAid.
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