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African Commission on
Human and Peoples' Rights
Human
Collective
Rights our
Responsibility
para 9152 that States Parties must respect, protect and fulfil women's rights to nondiscrimination and the enjoyment of equality.
176. In applying a framework to deal with violence against women, the Commission stresses
the following palpable obligations that States must observe, specifically at least; a. First, to enact laws prohibiting all forms of violence against women and ensure
that existing legislation is amended as necessary, and monitored through
adequate functioning of legal processes;
b. Secondly, enforce existing legislation, including
investigation,
prosecution
of
perpetrators,
support! rehabilitation services for victims; and
through effective
reparation
and
c. Thirdly, to take specific measures to ensure gender-sensitive investigations
and prevent gender stereotyping and secondary victimization.
177. In the Communication at hand, the Commission remains guided by its decision that
violence against women constitutes discrimination.Ps
Now, in determining
discrimination under Article 2, the Commission follows the tests of discrimination in
its decision in Kenneth Good v Republic of Botswana,154 that a violation of the principle of
non-discrimination arises if: i) equal cases are treated differently; ii) a difference in
treatment does not have an objective and reasonable justification; and iii) if there is no
proportionality between the aim sought and the means employed.
178. Aligning with these tests, the following incidental questions are imminent to establish
the violation, namely, (i) whether women and male protesters had similar treatment;
and (ii) whether the treatment was 'fair and just', given that all women and men in the
scene were under the same circumstances, that is, exercising their political rights.
152UN Committee
on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), General Recommendation
No. 28 on the Core Obligations of States Parties under Article 2 of the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination against Women, 16 December 2010, CEDAW/C/GC/28,
available at:
https:11 www.refworld.org/docid/4d467ea72.html[accessed
9 April 2023]
154
Cited above, para. 219
The African Commissi
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