79th ORDINARY SESSION OF THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS BANJUL, THE GAMBIA 14 May–3June 2024

Honourable chairperson, honourable commissioners, excellencies, state delegates, distinguished representatives from human rights organizations, institutions and civil society, and all those concerned with the state of women’s rights in Africa, thank you for this opportunity to participate in this auspicious occasion by presenting the following statement. 

Introduction 

The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network) is a women’s network created by women’s rights activists from Somalia, Somaliland, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan and Eritrea. For the past 25 years we have held a unique position conducting research and advocacy while working as a feminist regional civil society network with over 100 member organizations operating in the politically volatile contexts of the Greater Horn of Africa. 

We submit this statement to the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to shed light on the dire human rights situation experienced by women and girls in the Horn of Africa, particularly in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. Over the past year conflict, insecurity, and heightened militarization in these nations have intensified the many intersecting challenges women and girls face, including rampant gender-based violence (GBV), conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), pervasive cultural norms that perpetuate discrimination and marginalization, limited access to education and healthcare, and precarious economic conditions that exacerbate their vulnerability. These obstacles greatly interfere with women and girls’ ability to access the human rights enshrined in the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa. In this statement we underscore our unwavering commitment to amplify the voices of women and girls and advocate for tangible reforms that dismantle systemic injustices, promote gender equality, and ensure the full realization of human rights for all individuals in the region. 

Ethiopia 

Ethiopia is currently facing a grave and complex situation characterized by widespread turmoil resulting from internal conflicts that have deeply affected the entire country. The root causes of this turmoil can be attributed to several systemic factors, including historical and contemporary injustices, deep-seated social norms, power struggles, issues surrounding identity, religious tensions, accelerated inflation, and fragmented control of the federal government within the regional states. The prevailing militarization in the country has further exacerbated pre-existing gender inequality and raised significant concerns about the safety of women and girls across the nation.  

The breakdown of law and order, coupled with the escalation of internal conflicts, has resulted in a heightened risk of violence against women. The Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA) provided legal aid services for 4,700 cases of gender-based violence within a year. These figures only represent the reported cases to EWLA in the locations where they work, indicating that there are likely many unreported and unknown cases across the country. Disrupted social structures and weakened security apparatus have created an environment where women are more vulnerable to various forms of abuse, including physical, sexual, and psychological violence.  

Instances of gender-based violence, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, and forced displacement, have tragically become normalized in this tumultuous period. According to the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, widespread occurrences of sexual violence linked to the conflict in the Amhara region have been reported. Since July 2021, over 200 cases of rape have been registered at different health facilities. SIHA acknowledges that the country has taken key strides such as setting up the National Dialogue Commission, the Transitional Justice Policy, Anti GBV Policy as well as in the final stages of developing a National Actional Plan on WPS. However, these mechanisms should be gender-informed, credible, inclusive, contextualized, and in line with international human rights frameworks. 

Somalia 

Somalia remains deeply concerned about the continued prevalence of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) against women, girls, and marginalized communities. Particularly alarming is the recent wave of femicides. In a period of three months (January – March 2024), six women were killed by their spouses with three of these gruesome deaths occurring in January alone. We urge the Somalia State government to prioritize upholding their obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights by strengthening legal frameworks to address SGBV, strengthen prevention, and ensure survivors’ access to justice and support services through allocation of sufficient resources. In Somaliland, the situation is particularly alarming, as evidenced by the data from the Somaliland National Human Rights Commission’s Annual Report for 2023. The report reveals a worrying trend, with 607 SGBV cases reported in 2023, compared to 580 in 2022 and 188 in 2021. These escalating figures accentuate the urgent need for decisive action. In this context, the absence of adequate legal mechanisms to combat SGBV and hold perpetrators accountable is highly concerning as it leaves survivors without recourse, further perpetuating impunity. 

Sudan 

Since the outbreak of the globally neglected war in Sudan, in April 2023, a year later, the situation in Sudan has become increasingly violent, with widespread violence and violations of the rights of all people, especially those of women and girls. The violence of combat has created massive damage for civilians, who have been caught in the crossfire, and who have suffered from deprivation caused by the damage of war. This has included a lack of access to medical care, with the vast majority of hospitals and centres for medical care closed due to the war, many of them destroyed or looted. SIHA has managed to document 170 cases of SGBV – which is in no way representative of the dire number cases of SGBV in need of medical attention – since the war began and has managed to assist about 50% of the survivors in these cases to receive medical services. It has also included an increasingly dire food situation, with large swathes of the population facing a food crisis or even famine in the coming months. Over the course of this war, violence against women has proliferated, perpetuated by all armed parties. Moreover, the RSF has used rape as a weapon of war and a means of controlling the population. In addition, there has been a steep increase in the number of women abducted as part of this war—these abductions count as enforced disappearances in many cases, with many of these women also forced into slavery during their imprisonment, since they were expected to provide domestic labour for their captors and at times, even have sex with them. There have also been high profile cases of femicide, as well as many women who have died as a result of injuries inflicted as part of rapes and sexual assaults. 

Conclusion 

As a feminist women’s rights organization, we urge the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to prioritize the plight of women and girls in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. Addressing the pervasive challenges we face, requires comprehensive and sustained efforts at both national and international levels. To create a future where women and girls in the Horn of Africa can thrive free from fear, discrimination, and oppression, we must work collaboratively to dismantle systemic barriers, promote gender equality, and uphold the inherent dignity and rights of all individuals. 

Recommendations 

We therefore conclude this statement with the following recommendations for the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 

1. Support advocacy through the African Union channels to increase state accountability for reducing sexual violence through policy reform and state compliance with the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights alongside other regional and international conventions and commitments. 

To apply increased pressure on the government of Ethiopia to:  

1. In line with the nation’s duties as a signatory to the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), fully domesticate the Maputo Protocol within Ethiopia’s legal framework and lift all reservations to the Maputo Protocol. 
2. To investigate the use of sexual violence against women as a weapon during the conflict and hold perpetrators accountable, in accordance with Ethiopia’s commitments under Articles 4 and 11 of the Maputo Protocol.
3. Provide comprehensive support for survivors of sexual violence, in accordance with Ethiopia’s commitments under Article 4 of the Maputo Protocol.
4. Expedite the implementation process for the Agreement for Lasting Peace, particularly Article 4 of the Agreement, on the protection of civilians, in accordance with Ethiopia’s commitments under Article 23 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 

To apply increased pressure on the government of Somalia to:  

1. Ratify the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), without reservations, as this is in alignment with the nation’s duties under Articles 1 and 18 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
2. Enact the Sexual Offence Bill that has been long promoted by women’s rights activists/organizations and civil society in Somalia and Somaliland, in accordance with Articles 1 and 18 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
3. End impunity for agents of the security apparatuses and hold militarized perpetrators and others accountable for the crimes of sexual violence, in accordance with Articles 3, 18, and 19 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
4. Subject the perpetrators of sexual violence to the statutory court ruling and prevent customary courts from handling cases of sexual violence, in accordance with Articles 3, 19, and 26 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 
5. Implement and immediate ceasefire in Las’Anod and develop mechanisms that equally include women in the transition to peace, in accordance with Article 23 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 

To apply increased pressure on the de facto government of Sudan to:  

1. Ratify the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), without reservations, as this is in alignment with the nation’s duties under Articles 1 and 18 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
2. Implement an immediate cease-fire throughout the country, ensuring humanitarian aid reaches those in need, combined with a short- and long- term transitional process toward a peaceful and stable democratic governance system, which equally includes women and civil society, in accordance with Sudan’s commitments under Articles 16 and 23 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 
3. Implement the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which aligns with Sudan’s duties to its people under Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 
4. Amend the Criminal Act and the Criminal Procedure Act to ensure survivors are protected from adultery charges and guaranteed access to justice through formal court trials that diligently follow legal due process, in accordance with Articles 3, 18, and 26 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. 
5. Amend the National Intelligence Security and Service Act and the Military Forces Act to abolish impunity for all forms of violence and harassment (including sexual violence) committed by military and security sector staff against civilians in accordance with Articles 3, 18, 19, and 26 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.  

We wish the African Commission fruitful deliberations.

Thank you

UPDATE: We are glad to announce that following this statement, the ACHPR adopted our recommendations in Resolution ACHPR.Res.588(LXXIX) 2024 on Sudan. More details here: https://achpr.au.int/en/adopted-resolutions/human-rights-situation-republic-sudan-achprres588lxxix-2024