From frameworks and norms on SGBV to action

FAWE continued its work in the country encouraging victims of sexual and gender based violence to come before. FAWE partnered with other organizations such as the Rainbo Centre to provide free medical facility and the Lawyers Centre for Legal Assistance (LAWCLA) to provide legal assistance to victims. A case in point is that of a 10 years old girl (at the time of the assault in 2003), who was raped by a 60 year old man in her community. Despite repeated court appearances by LAWCLA personals, the case is still been dragged on because overnight, the files – all the documents – relating to the case disappeared from the magistrate court.

The Rainbow programme of the International Rescue Committee established Centres in different parts of the country. These Centres are safe, private and friendly places were survivors of sexual assaults can get free help after an incident of rape or other forms of sexual assault. In 2007 alone, 1,176 clients accessed these centres (this is up from 989 in 2006) all of whom were women. 760 of them were between the ages of 0- 15 years at the time of the sexual assault. 63% of the clients reported having been raped by people they can identify. The youngest client to access the centre was 2 months old at the time of the assault. Only 13 cases were successfully convicted in Kenema and Kono courts with perpetrators sentenced to between nine months to seven years imprisonment.

The horrific and brutal experiences of women during the war made it necessary to examine whether the laws of Sierra Leone offer adequate protection in relation to sexual and gender based violence. Organizations realized that this epidemic in our societies should be stopped once and for all. This was not an easy thing to do. We were asked to identify the gaps in the laws of the land, areas which are discriminatory against women and which consciously or unconsciously are helping to perpetuate sexual and gender based violence. LAWCLA in collaboration with FAWE and the 50/50 group of women with funds provided by the Westminster Foundation of Democracy came together and put forward an abridged and simplified version of a book entitled “Unequal Rights and Discriminatory Laws against Women in Sierra Leone”. Country wide sensitization campaigns were undertaken. Other organizations also jumped on the band wagon and the out going President during the March 8th International Women’s Day celebration asked that the three Bills be tabled to Parliament through an Emergency Order.

BACKGROUND TO THE THREE GENDER ACTS

The Domestic Violence Act 2007 (Act No 20 Of 2007), The Devolution Of Estates Act 2007 (Act No. 21 Of 2007) And The Registration Of Customary Marriage And Divorce Act 2007 (Act no.24 of 2007) commonly known as the Gender Acts were passed into law by the Sierra Leonean Parliament on 14th June 2007 with the full support of all the major political parties. The Bills were drafted through the joint efforts of the Parliamentary Human Rights Committee and the Law Reform Commission working with the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs and Civil Society Organizations. The Bills also benefited from extensive consultation with the stakeholders in all 12 districts, including lawyers, human rights groups, women’s groups, key community figures and grassroots men and women. Finally, all three Bills were considered by the Human Rights and appropriate advice was given. Together, the three new Acts make extensive headway into domesticating the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) signed and ratified by Sierra Leone in 1988. The intention of the laws was to ‘push for a system that safeguards women’s rights and interests more effectively’.

In Sierra Leone, inequalities between men and women are some of the worst in the world with the country being placed bottom of the UNDP Gender Development index in 2007. By the end of her life span, nearly all Sierra Leonean women would have suffered from some form of sexual or gender based violence. In practice, domestic violence is surrounded by a culture of silence. As has been reported earlier, the blame is heaped solely on the survivor, who is generally shamed and stigmatized for reporting incidents and may be divorced by their husband or disowned by their family for doing so. Even when incidents are reported to the Family Support Unit (FSU) of the Police, the formal justice system is chronically weak, beset by delays, human rights abuses and procedural improprieties such that access for the most vulnerable is systematically prohibited. The traditional justice system is the normal recourse for most of the population which is characterized by little or no gender sensitivity. The enactment of the Devolution of Estates Act brought about an end to legalised discrimination against women in the field of intestate succession, but the practice of discrimination continues as traditions have not yet changed. Women in many places are ejected from the home on the death of their husband and not entitled to the joint marital property. Rates of child marriage and forced marriages are high, and women frequently cannot prove customary marriages when they need to rely on them for financial support.

WHAT ARE THESE THREE ACTS?

The three Acts dealt with areas that have been of serious concern to the women folk. They are: Registration of Customary Marriage and Divorce Act, Devolution of Estates Act and the Domestic violence Act.

REGISTRATION OF CUSTOMARY MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE ACT:

The recent population census conducted revealed that women constitute about 52% of the Country’s population which is an indication that most women who contract marriages normally do so under customary law and are more vulnerable to most of the problems associated with this type of marriage. Though custom is constitutionally recognized customary marriages vary from tribe to tribe and are mostly unwritten.

The passing of these laws make for certainty thereby indicating very important points:

- The Act has a minimum age of marriage which is eighteen years. The age in the Act is in line with international standard that defines a child as any person who has not yet attained the age of 18 years.

- Certainty in terms age would allow a woman who is mature enough to enter in to a contract; which means, if the husband dies she will be in a position to inherit the property of her late husband.

- The Act is also important as it allows the girl child to have a reasonable education before contracting any form of marriage.

- The Act also aims to reduce maternal mortality rate as girls aged 10-14 are 5 times more likely to die during child birth than women in their 20’s.

- The Act also makes room for the bride’s consent which is absent in most customary marriages contracted.

- The Act now allows women to own property and not as in the past when they the women were considered to be property that can be inherited by their late husband’s brother under certain customary practices.

- The return of the bride price or dowry when a woman divorces has forced a lot of women to stay in unhappy marriages because most of them cannot pay back the money, however the new bill if passed in to law states that the bride price or dowry need not be repaid.

- The registration process will also serve as a means of check in ensuring that the parties are not underage.

DEVOLUTION OF ESTATES ACT:

This has to do with what happens when a man dies without writing a will. Frustratingly even under the general law which is the operational law women have been discriminated against. With the passing of the Act into law, the present law under the Mohammedan marriage law which states that women and girls are not entitled to property, cannot take over the estates of their late husbands and with no specific rule(s) as to how property can be shared will be laid to rest. Within the Administration of Estates Cap.45 of the Laws of Sierra Leone 1960, the man inherits 100% of his wife’s property when she dies, whiles at the death of the husband, 1/3 of the property of the husband’s estate will go to the woman if there are children and half if there are none.

- This Act will also protect illegitimate children or children born out of wedlock and man and woman who have been together for over 5 years.

- Men and Women will be treated equally.

- The Act makes it an offence to remove a surviving wife or child from the property or matrimonial home before the properties are distributed

- Heavy penalty against whosoever that intermeddles with the estates of the deceased without any lawful justification

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT:

Domestic violence is a serious concern in Sierra Leone and it is much more than physical violence. It also comprise of sexual, emotional, psychological and even economic abuse. The prevalence of domestic violence has had a serious effect on sexual violence as wife battering and sexual offence are on the increase. The Police do not normally intervene in domestic violence except if the assault is of a serious nature or leads to death.

The Act defines domestic violence as any act or threat of any such act

1. Physical or sexual abuse

2. Economic abuse

3. Emotional, verbal or psychological abuse including any conduct that makes another person feel constantly unhappy, humiliated, ridiculed, afraid or depressed or to feel inadequate or worthless

4. Harassment; including sexual harassment and intimidation

5. Conduct that in any way harms or may harm another person, including any omission that results in harm and either (a) endangers the safety, health or wellbeing of another person (b) undermines another person’s privacy, integrity or security or (c) detracts or is likely to detract from another person’s dignity or worth as a human being

Punishment for as act as stipulate in the Act (s.3) is a fine not exceeding Le 5,000.000 (approx $1,650) or by imprisonment not exceeding 2 years or by both such fine and punishment.

The passing of this Act, introduces new means of dealing with domestic violence:

- With the court rooms now inundated with too many cases that they can actually handle some minor offences can be dealt with by an out of court settlement.

- With serious offences the matter can be prosecuted by the court of law under a new criminal offence titled “domestic violence” with adequate penalty against the perpetrator/accused if there is a conviction

- The Police that initially treated most of these cases with levity now have a role to play

- Medical personnel are now also involved as both medical and psychosocial therapy will be administered to victims of domestic violence.

THE ROLE OF LOCAL COUNCILS, WOMEN AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTNERS IN THE WHOLE PROCESS

Being the highest political authority by virtue of the Local Government Act No.1 of 2004, Councils as well as other partners have an important role to play in ensuring that these are fully implemented. In May 2004, democratic elections of 19 local councils were conducted for the first time since they were abolished in 1972. These local councils replace the now defunct Management Committees previously appointed by the President.

This new arrangement creates a participatory local governance structure where people (including previously marginalized groups like women) can actively participate in the political process at the local level; though disappointingly only 61 (Sixty One) women are Councillors out of a total of 469 (Four Hundred and Sixty Nine) leaving their male counterpart dominating with a total of 408 (Four hundred and Eight).

The Local Government Act (No 1) of 2004 that was enacted in February 2004, repealed enactments (laws) under which various local authorities were established. Though the Act itself recognizes the important roles that women can play in local governance, not much is given within the Act though in some instances the Act has been gender sensitive.

With a Constitutional Review Committee being set up to review the 1991 constitution, it is imperative that women wriggle their way through the committee to present their case. Chapter three of the 1991 Constitution provides for respect and protection of basic human rights and freedoms of individuals in Sierra Leone. Section 15 states that regardless of (male or female) a person has rights to enjoy all these basic rights. Section 27(1) of the constitution of Sierra Leone provides that:

“No law shall make any provision which is discriminatory either of itself or in its effect”

Unfortunately for the women folk section 27(4) weakens the above mentioned safeguard by stating that the constitution which is the most powerful law in the land can discriminates against women if it deals with Adoption, Marriage, Burial ,Sharing and distribution of property upon death as well, as well as local traditional.

With this constitutional provision in place advocacy for the implementation of these laws will be a mere waste of time .Hence strong representation must be made to the Law Reform Commission to expunge section 27(4)(d)to give these Acts the required effects. The need for strong political will to implement the Acts is also important.

CHALLENGES IN IMPLEMENTATION AND STRATEGIES FOR TAKING THIS WORK FORWARD

The new laws could, if properly implemented, lead to a considerable shift in the power dynamics of society. This however will not happen overnight. Putting these laws into practice will require a long –term investment to changing culturally ingrained practices that condone and sometimes perpetrate violence against women and girls. Attempts to change customs are likely to be controversial and inspire resentment and anxiety, particularly among men. If the new acts are to be meaningful, considerable inter-agency efforts will have to be made to bring about significant behavioral change and to strengthen the bodies charged with putting the new laws into action so that redress can be obtained. A three years roll out plan for the MSWGCA and other partners setting out what needs to be done, by when and by whom have been developed. Priority areas are enforcement, public education and data collection/monitoring.

LEGAL TECHNICALITIES: A number of issues are general to the enforcement of all three Acts. Legal technicalities must be put be place. Also, the clarification of the status of the registration of customary marriage and divorce Act which experienced some difficulties in the drafting process should be made. The Gender unit of the Ministry of Social Welfare Gender and Children’s Affairs should be the central coordinating body and in order for it to effectively do this capacity building of the section, social workers and probation officers should be done. The FSU and Sierra Leone police should also be strengthened. Under common law, domestic violence has been illegal for many years and yet very few prosecutions were ever brought. Domestic violence persists and acceptance is prevalent. In order for this to change, potential perpetrators need to see that it is no longer acceptable and that they will be punished if they inflict such harm.

ENSURE COURTS ARE FULLY PREPARED TO HANDLE CASES: Provisions should also be made to ensure that courts are fully prepared to hear cases. Cases under the Acts are heard by various different courts. For example, cases under the domestic violence act go before the magistrate court or the high court or in accordance with the local courts Act can go before the local courts. It is vital that all these bodies are fully equipped to handle all matters before them relating to the three acts consistently and with due expedition. Family cases are particularly sensitive, usually involving strong emotions, and often involving power relations, and need to be handled with care and rapidity. Training of court management staff as required by the Domestic Violence Act (s.23 (b)), is necessary to achieving this.

ENSURE EXPEDITION OF CASES: The MSWGCA should look into the possibilities with regards to special courts being set aside for cases under the gender acts. Cases under the domestic violence Act will also need to be handled with particular expedition and possibly fast-track, as lives may be in danger and the welfare of children will in many cases be seriously disrupted. Under this act, application for protection orders must be held in closed session.

LEGAL SERVICES FOR COMPLAINANTS: As well as the possibility of establishing a special unit within courts to assist on cases, the MSWGCA will work with bodies currently providing some legal aid or paralegal services to ensure that such services incorporate complainants under the gender Acts and that accessibility to such services is as comprehensible as possible and are of a high standard and integrated with other services for survivors.

FREE MEDICAL TREATMENT AND CERTIFICATE: S-7 of the Domestic violence act states a victim assisted by the police is entitled to a free medical treatment. In the context of a severe lack of basic medical care national wide, this will be a considerable challenge. Some of the greatest challenges include distance for sufferers from medical facilities and shortage of medical personnel. S.7 of the Domestic violence Act also entitles victims of domestic violence who are provided by the Police with a medical form to be supplied with a medical report free of charge within 14 days. There being a severe problem of lack of doctors in Sierra Leone, it is already difficult for victims of sexual violence to obtain reports in a timely manner and there is usually a considerable cost attached.

SAFE HOMES: One of the main challenges in cases involving violence within the home is the absence in Sierra Leone of any kind of safe home to which victims can flee and remain safe in terms of emergency. Those who are most vulnerable often have no –one to turn to and are force to return to the home of the perpetrators. Two safe homes are currently being built. There is a need for more safe homes to be constructed. Also additional protection options need to be discussed with chiefs, traditional and religious leaders and women’s groups to develop a system of protection at the village level.

OTHER INITIATIVES: National Gender Based violence committee action- the national Gender Based violence committee is a multi - stakeholders’ body comprising of key players in gender –based violence (GBV) prevention and response in Sierra Leone. In order to ensure that the complex needs of GBV survivors are adequately addressed and in a coordinated manner and to develop new sustainable ways of introducing and integrating GBV services and activities into public health care system and other national structures. Membership comprises of representatives of the Ministry of Justice, Sierra Leone Police, Justice Sector Development Reform Programme, FAWE to name a few. The group is currently working on a national action plan as a framework for the implementation of all GBV activities in the country for final endorsement by the President of the Republic.

ROLLING OUT OF THE GENDER ACTS: Awareness raising campaign of the Gender Acts in the Bombali district was carried out by with funds provided by the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives. The active participation of men (as they are mostly the community leaders) and boys was engaged. The programme was officially launched by the first lady of the republic in December. Speaker after speaker spoke of the need for the public to be made aware of the new laws and to ensure they are implemented.

CONCLUSION

Awareness raising, community mobilization and education and training are needed to ensure that all key actors- government officials, educators, employees, media, parents, families and communities work to eliminate attitudes and practices which negatively affect women and girls. The active engagement of men and boys in this work is critical.

No single intervention will end sexual and gender based violence against women. This requires a holistic approach, with interlinked strategies including

1. Revised legal and policy framework

2. Strengthening institutional accountability

3. Changing public awareness through advocacy campaigns

4. Working with community leaders and partnering with men and youth

5. Strengthening social support services and supporting research and data to empower women advocates.

The challenges to be tackled in the implementation of the acts are the provision of material and technical support to the Ministry of gender. There is also a need for a harmonized strategy to carry the act forward.

* Eileen Hanciles, Executive Director of FAWE.

*Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/

Sources for this article include:

1. Sierra Leone- Truth and Reconciliation Report

2. UNIFEM

3. UNFPA

4. IRC - Rainbo Centre, Sierra Leone, 2007/2008

5. Reports from National Committee on Gender Based Violence in Sierra Leone -2008

6. FAWE News- Stop The Abuse, 2004

7. The ZONTIAN - The Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls -July 2007