Accra, March 13, GNA - Professor Akua Kuenyehia, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Ghana, Legon on Monday said that women's rights continue to be on the fringes of the human rights debate.
She noted that an unfortunate dichotomy exists in human rights, which has not served the cause of women, saying there is a clear distinction between civil and political rights on one hand and economic, social and cultural rights on the other.
She said very often constitutions provide for the adjudication of civil and political rights while economic, social and cultural rights are provided for under Directive Principles of State Policy, which are ideals that the state should aim at.
Prof. Kuenyehia was speaking on the "State of women's human rights in Ghana: The law and its enforcement," at the 12th Speaker's Breakfast Forum in Accra. She said in spite of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, which states that "all human rights are universal, indivisible and inter-dependent and inter-related" and that "the international community must treat human rights globally in a fair and equal manner, on the same footing and with the same emphasis", while economic, social and cultural rights are provided under ideals that a state should aim at.
She said the Declaration rejected the divisions and hierarchies that had earlier been introduced into human rights. Prof. Kuenyehia noted, however, that the hierarchies continue and the mechanisms for enforcing civil and political rights continue to be better articulated than those for economic and social rights.
Prof. Kuenyehia noted that even though international human rights are framed without discrimination on the basis of sex, they have largely failed to work effectively to improve the situation of women.
She said women were not involved in the process of conceptualising and defining human rights and thus many issues of central concern to women, such as underdevelopment, illiteracy, the adverse impact of structural adjustment programmes and systematic violence, have not been defined as human rights issues, adding that it is only recently that these are being considered by governments.
She said international human rights law effectively excludes many acts of non-state actors and those that take place in the private sphere, especially in the family and thus the numerous violations, which are committed against women in their communities, their workplaces and their own families, are excluded from the operation of international human rights.
Prof Kuenyehia explained that it is with background that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women came into being She noted, however, that the convention, though a step in the right direction, has not really addressed the fundamental problem of marginalization of women.
She said this is partly due to the large number of reservations entered by some of the state parties, as well as the lack of political will on the part of governments to incorporate the provisions of the Convention into domestic legislation.
Prof. Kuenyehia told the forum that Ghana ratified the Convention in 1996 and by so doing, undertook to adapt its legislation and introduce new ones where necessary, to translate the rights contained in the convention into reality for Ghanaian women.
Prof Kuenyehia said since Ghana ratified the convention, both governmental and no-governmental organisations are initiating awareness programmes to encourage parents to send their girls to school and keep them there for as long as necessary to enable them to acquire qualifications and employable skills.
She said the country is on the right track in this regard, and that what is needed is consistency and the will, as well as the resources to sustain the programmes. "The benefit of education of women in any society cannot be overemphasised, it is therefore in our interest to ensure that the drive to educate women is sustained".
Prof. Kuenyehia noted that all over the world, social and economic conditions perpetuate the subordination of women, saying that to strive towards equality of men and women, it is necessary for adequate balance to be struck in the distribution of economic resources between them.
"Over the last few years, poverty is said to have acquired a feminine face and the feminisation of poverty is the direct result of the gender disparities in economic power sharing, she said. "Macroeconomic policies, which target the formal sector almost exclusively are also contributory factors to the feminisation of poverty".
Prof Kuenyehia said efforts are being made to address some of these issues, but wondered whether the programmes instituted are having the desired impact in addressing the socio-economic rights of women.
She said majority of Ghanaian women are rural dwellers who engage in agricultural activities but the issue of access to land has not really been addressed in any meaningful manner.
"The extensive involvement of women in food production and marketing is not really matched by their access to and control of productive resources". Prof Kuenyehia said access to land rights provides one of the most interesting insight into the real situation of women, adding, "they present a picture of what appears to be gender-neutral concepts whose application and operation are fraught with gender stereotypes".
"This is an area that needs a comprehensive overhaul both in policy and legislation, if women are to realise their rights", she said. Prof. Kuenyehia reminded the forum that the second Parliament is drawing to an end and for whatever reason Article 22 (2) of the Constitution has still not been made operational.
She warned that if this is not done, the situation would continue to be that a wife who is unable to prove some kind of substantial contribution, which is capable of monetary computation, will not be able to successfully claim a share in the property, which she and the husband acquire during the subsistence of the marriage.
Article 22 (2) states that "Parliament shall as soon as practicable after the coming into force of the constitution, enact legislation regulating the property rights of spouses".
Prof. Kuenyehia noted that the long-standing failure to protect and promote the human rights and fundamental freedoms in the case of violence against women should be a matter of concern to all nations, which should be addressed.
She said violence against women in all its forms is very prevalent in Ghana, adding that in the past, failure to deal with the problem was attributed to lack of basic data on the form, nature, extent and prevalence of the problem.
She said, however, that in a comprehensive country-wide study on violence against women, which was carried out in 1998, data has been collected and a rich source of information now exists to aid any intervention needed to deal with the issue.
Prof Kuenyehia noted that various legislative interventions have been introduced to address the specific forms of violence and mentioned Article 26 (2) of the Constitution, which states that, "all customary practices, which dehumanise or are injurious to the physical and mental well-being of a person are prohibited".
She also cited the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act of 1994 Act 484, which makes female genital mutilation a second degree felony with a minimum of three years imprisonment, saying the provisions of the Criminal Code on sexual offences have been considerably strengthened.
She said the nation-wide study on violence against women shows that the level of all types of violence against women and adolescent females is very high, and there is, therefore, the need for a comprehensive policy, as well as legislative intervention to deal with the problem.
"It is only when this is done that women will be free to enjoy their rights to bodily integrity". Speaking on the same topic, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, President of the Association of African Women Lawyers, noted that the 1992 Constitution attempted to reflect the country's obligations under the Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women by guaranteeing the observance of basic and fundamental human rights for all.
She mentioned a number of articles in the Constitution, which seek to entrench and enhance the rights of women in all facets of national development. Mrs Iddrisu, who is also the head of International Law Section of the Attorney General's Department, said the Intestate Succession Law and the package of Family Laws, sought to rationalise an equitable system of distribution of property on the death of a spouse.
She said the implementation and enforcement of these laws over the past 15 years, has however, been resisted by areas, which practice the matrilineal system of inheritance that do not recognise spouses and children's right to inheritance.
She emphasised that these laws have been important tool in promoting the rights of the "nuclear" as opposed to the "extended" family concept, which is widespread especially in the rural areas.
Mrs Iddrisu noted that if the country's legislators had adopted a more holistic approach towards the implementation of the Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, it would have provided an environment conducive to the enforcement of women's rights.
"The piecemeal approach towards gender issues does not enable effective gender mainstreaming in national development", she said. While she welcomed government commitment to the advancement of women's rights in the country, Mrs Iddrisu suggested the enactment of a bill to give legal backing to the principle of accelerated advancement of Ghanaian women.
She said the situation in Parliament is one that needs improvement since out of the 27 Parliamentary Select and Standing Committees five had only one female member while seven had two female members each.
Two committees had four women and nine had three women members while four committees, including the Defence and Interior, Youth, Sports and Culture, as well as the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and the Members Holding Offices for Profit, had no female member, she said.
Mrs Iddrisu said it has become apparent that the role of civil society is vital in the enforcement of human rights globally, and welcomed the activities of genuine non-governmental and voluntary bodies in the country in the area of gender equality.
She noted that these organisations have, more often than not, filled the void th at has developed in the awareness and implementation of women's rights. She said the enactment of legislation could not by itself create change, adding that laws can only provide the catalyst for change.
"The need, therefore, for governments to provide an enabling environment for the enforcement of laws is imperative and we call on our government and politicians to institute the appropriate framework and programmes to achieve this meaningful change.
In an opening address, Mr Justice Daniel Francis Annan, the Speaker, said the forum has been instituted as an integral part of Parliament's expanded outreach programme.
"We seek through these forums, to listen to and cross-fertilise ideas with a cross-section of people on matters we consider to be of national importance. "We have chosen this path of consultations and discussions in due recognition that democracy is basically about satisfying the aspirations and interests of the people."
Mr Justice Annan noted that the various roles of women collectively constitute the cornerstone of the very existence of society. He said, "most men, I believe, do recognise the indispensability of women in their lives and that without men womanhood will be incomplete, thus the very symbiotic relationship between the two sexes".
Mr S. K. Appiah, of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), in his introductory remarks, said Ghana, last Wednesday celebrated the "International Women's Day", an occasion devoted to taking stock of women's progress towards the goal of equal partnership with their male counterparts.
He quoted from an Oxfam brochure, which says that "women are half the world's population, comprise more than one-third of the official labour force, perform two-thirds of the world's working hours, receive a tenth of the world's income and own less than one- hundredth of the world's property". He said the statement is generally reflective of the current situation in Ghana and makes a very strong case for greater efforts to advance the cause of women in the country.
During discussions, the participants were of the view that there is the need for sustained efforts at building the capacity of women to enable them to play their role as equal partners in national development.
