Honourable Attorney General and Minister of Justice of the Republic of The Gambia
Honourable Ministers
Honourable colleagues, Members of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
Excellencies representing the State Parties to the African Union
Excellencies Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps accredited to the Republic of the Gambia
Distinguished Representatives of the United Nations family and International Organisations
Senior Government Officials of the Republic of The Gambia here present
Distinguished Representatives National and International Human Rights Institutions
Distinguished Representatives of Civil Society Organisations
Distinguished invited Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
All other protocols duly observed:
Please allow me to humbly request all of you to observe a moment of silence as a symbol of respect for the lives of those who were recently attacked by armed groups.
On behalf of the African Commission and on my own behalf, I warmly welcome you all to the 56th Ordinary Session of the Commission in Banjul, The Gambia. You will recall that this Session should have taken place in the last quarter of 2014; however, due to circumstances beyond the control of the Commission, the Session could not hold as scheduled. I am very happy that despite the change of dates and venue, you all responded to our invitation once again and made it to Banjul. This clearly demonstrates the importance of each and every one of you here attaches to the work that the Commission does; which is, to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights in Africa. Your presence here also shows that all of you here today truly believe in the Commission’s motto that “human and peoples’ rights is our collective responsibility”.
Permit me to also express our heartfelt thanks and deep appreciation to the Government and people of the Republic of The Gambia for hosting the 56th Ordinary Session, and for putting the necessary facilities at our disposal to ensure the success of this Session.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests;
You will all agree with me that 2014 has been a challenging year for human rights promotion and protection in view of many human rights issues confronting the continent. Despite efforts marshalled from within the African Union (AU), regional bodies and international community, conflicts and reprisals continue to persist in many parts of Africa including Central African Republic, the Republic of Somalia and the Republic of South Sudan; Nigeria, Somalia and Kenya continue to battle with terrorism within their borders; Egypt and Libya have also been plagued with persistent political and economic instability since 2011. In all these situations, it is the population which bears the brunt of the impact.
Innocent victims of these atrocities are still waiting for those responsible to put a stop to their suffering. In Nigeria, the school girls abducted by the armed militia, Boko Haram since April last year, are yet to be brought back despite national and international efforts to do so; the peace process in South Sudan is still under negotiations whilst thousands are suffering on a daily basis; Central African Republic is also struggling with its transitional Government as peace is yet to come back to its citizens. It is imperative that a stop be put to all these atrocities now and not later.
Similarly, Ebola continues to threaten the health, life and dignity of African people in ways never imagined before. Ebola has eroded infrastructural and developmental gains that had been achieved and deprived communities of their livelihoods. The epidemic has engendered a climate of fear which impedes intra-trade, hampers the movement of people and goods, and threatens our African values of respect for the dead and how they are interred.
We continue to stand with the people of the Republic of Guinea, the Republic of Liberia, and the Republic of Sierra Leone in these difficult and trying times. We congratulate Nigeria and Mali on their rapid containment of the disease, which helped stop the spread and saved lives. We extend our appreciation to those sisterly countries and organizations that have extended assistance to the stricken countries, and urge them to step up their support. We exhort those who have not yet risen to the challenge to do so, and we urge State Parties and the entire international community to increase their efforts and resources to defeat this cruel disease that has claimed many lives, in some cases decimating entire communities. We also emphasize that in all the efforts being taken, special attention should be given to the many children who have been and continue to be orphaned.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
The African Charter enshrines and upholds the right of people to freely choose their own government. And, the position of the African Union on unconstitutional changes of government is clear: they shall not be tolerated. We, therefore, as indicated in our Press Release on the matter condemn in the strongest terms possible the 30th December 2014 attacks on Gambian soil. We must continue to send a sound and consistent message to the perpetrators, sponsors, supporters and sympathisers of such destabilizing forces whose objective is to derail the democratic and legitimate governments in place that the African Union and the African Charter only recognize regime change by the will of the people via the ballot box and not through the barrel of a gun.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
Despite these challenges, marked positive developments have also been registered n human rights promotion and protection during the last inter-Session period. Peaceful and successful elections were held in Botswana and Tunisia in October 2014 and we congratulate the Government and the people of these nations. I am also aware that this trend has continued into 2015. Zambia and Nigeria successfully concluded by-elections and Presidential elections in January and March 2015 respectively. The former was to find a successor to the late Zambia President, Mr Michael Sata, whilst the latter was a result of the end of the Presidential mandate of the incumbent. We congratulate Nigeria having shown that despite the internal challenges, democracy can still see the light of day in the interest of national development. We would also like to congratulate in particular, President Goodluck Jonathan, for his exemplary behavior in peacefully conceding defeat to the winner of the elections. Sudan is also on the list of countries due to hold elections, as well as Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, the Comoros and Togo. We strongly urge all these countries to also ensure that the elections are peaceful, and to respect the will of the people.
The Excessive use of force by law enforcement officials in some state parties is not only unjustifiable but also a violation of human rights including the non-derogable right to life. In all circumstances, not only during peaceful demonstrations but also in the course of routine police work, proper protection must therefore be extended by law enforcement officials to members of the public. In this regard, the Commission would like to reiterate its resolution adopted in the previous Session on the right to peaceful demonstration, and continues to call on States to observe their regional and international commitments.
Also, very concerning to the work of the Commission is the emerging phenomenon of targeted attacks against persons with Albinism, particularly within the Great Lakes region. To that end, the Commission also reiterates its Resolution on the Prevention of attacks and discrimination against persons with Albinism.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
Human rights defenders play a critical role in the promotion and protection of human rights, especially at nation state level. The Commission is therefore committed to ensure that human rights defenders are both safe and protected in their countries. Unfortunately, many human rights defenders continue to be victims of harassment and reprisals both by the State and the communities they serve. This counterproductive trend is worrying particularly because the Commission relies on these selfless individuals to monitor, report on and highlight human rights issues and violations for attention. The diminution of this space for collaborative work between the Commission and human rights defenders undermines the execution of the mandate of the Commission.
The Commission therefore calls upon State Parties to the African Charter to desist from engaging in reprisals against human rights defenders. The Commission wishes to further remind State Parties that human rights defenders are entitled to enjoy the right to equal protection of the law just like the rest of the citizenry of their countries. And, in addition to this, they need to be guaranteed this right to enable them to serve their societies without putting their lives or welfare at risk.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
The abolition of the death penalty—at least in practice—appears to be a trend that is spreading around the globe. The Commission has taken a clear position against the death penalty and is working, together with all stakeholders, to ensure that Africa becomes death penalty-free. We are convinced that there is concrete evidence to suggest that death penalty is not only undesirable but in some cases may constitute a violation to the right to life. Many irreversible mistakes have been made in the past with regard to this issue and this is why we are asking the State Parties to the African Charter to reject it. In this regard, the Commission welcomes the increase in the number of State parties that voted in favour of the UN Resolution calling for a global moratorium on the application of the death penalty in December 2014.
The Commission also welcomes the recent pronouncement by the Supreme Court of the Gambia to commute death sentences of seven (7) former death row inmates to life imprisonment.
At the same time, the Commission is concerned by the increasing resort to the imposition of the death penalty in some countries, we strongly urge these countries to desist from this, and to respect the Resolutions adopted by the Commission on this matter.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
Today, as I approach the end of my four year tenure as a member of the Bureau of the Commission, and as a member of the Commission, I want to take this opportunity to thank all partners who have provided support to the Commission and continue to walk alongside us as we do our work..
As you all know, the Commission is working together with Civil Society Organisations and National Human Rights Institutions to ensure that we pool our resources together in order to respond in a timely and effective manner to human rights violations occurring in the continent. Their support is highly appreciated.
At the international level, the Commission has been collaborating with the UN and other regional bodies in various matters of mutual concern. For instance, in 2013, the Commission and the UN renewed the Addis Ababa Roadmap to enhance collaboration between the two institutions, particularly their special mechanisms. It is my sincere hope that this cooperation will continue and be reinforced. The Commission has also worked closely together with its sister AU Organs with human rights related mandates, namely, the African Court and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Close cooperation and synergy are crucial for the effective protection of the rights of African citizens.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
With the generous commitment and expertise of my colleagues, the Commission has developed different soft laws, which are now ready for dissemination..
Other initiatives include a draft additional protocol on the abolition of the death penalty in Africa; a draft protocol on the protection of older persons in Africa, general comments on the right to life among others, needs the same engagement of the Commission to extend the protective legal framework for citizens of Africa.
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests:
As we consider the different agenda items for this Session, I call on each and every one of you to contribute to the debate, and to put forward ideas that will help us to collectively find lasting solutions to the Africa’s human rights challenges, to bring peace and stability to our continent and to take the human rights agenda forward for the benefit of Africa and Africans each and every one of us, beginning with the least empowered. I exhort all State Parties, partners and stakeholders to put all hands on deck to support the Commission in this worthy endeavor.
I thank you all for listening.
