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Women’s Human Rights and HIV/AIDS The costs of marital rape in Southern Africa By guest author Nada Ali Published in The Independent August 18, 2008 - For years now, women’s groups in Southern Africa have campaigned tirelessly to ensure that the Southern African Development Community adopt the Protocol on Gender and Development. Yesterday, the SADC finally took that historic step. Member states will be obliged to amend their laws to ensure equal rights for women across a wide range of issues, from provisions that require member states to enshrine equality in their constitutions, to firm commitments to reduce maternal mortality by 75 per cent. But while that’s a cause for celebration, the Protocol still does not refer explicitly to domestic violence, and it still doesn’t oblige states to introduce legal provisions that criminalise marital rape. August 18, 2008 Commentary Printer friendly version SADC: Adopt Gender and Development Protocol Summit Leaders Should Act on Equality for Women Southern African leaders should adopt the proposed Gender and Development Protocol at their upcoming summit after amending it to include crucial provisions deleted in 2007, Human Rights Watch said today. One of the most important provisions that should be put back in to the protocol would commit states to criminalize marital rape. August 14, 2008 Press Release Printer friendly version Comments to the Malawi Law Commission on the development of HIV and AIDS Legislation HRW sumbits comments to the Law Commission about its report on HIV and AIDS legislation, alerting the Commission to potential concerns and assisting it to strengthen the human rights protections provided by the proposed legislation. June 24, 2008 Legal Submissions Printer friendly version Women and HIV/AIDS By Nada Ali Published in The Post The Human Rights Council reviewed Zambia’s report under its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism in Geneva last Friday (9 May), and adoption of the report took place this week on Wednesday (14 May). Here in Lusaka, women, including those who describe themselves as “living positively,” are struggling to come out of the shadows that still obstruct the government’s efforts to fight HIV/AIDS. May 16, 2008 Commentary Printer friendly version Universal Periodic Review of Zambia Human Rights Watch's Submission to the Human Rights Council In Zambia, where 17 percent of the adult population is living with HIV/AIDS, women face grave gender-based abuses, in particular domestic violence, which hinder their ability to access or continue using life-saving HIV treatment. Despite Zambia’s impressive roll-out of HIV treatment, the country’s health system and legal framework fail to address these barriers to women’s HIV treatment and as a result, some women living with HIV miss out on life-saving HIV treatment. May 5, 2008 Written Statement Printer friendly version Written Testimony to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on the Human Rights Concerns of Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs Accurate and objective sexual education is critical to advancing public health and promoting human rights. This fact is widely accepted within the international community and is supported by the provisions of fundamental human rights instruments. Indeed, the current federal policy of funding abstinence-only programs while failing to fund comprehensive sexuality education raises serious human rights concerns. Federal abstinence-only programs threaten a number of basic human rights, including the rights to health, information, and nondiscrimination. April 30, 2008 Written Statement Printer friendly version Open civil society letter to the participants of the “Capacity building workshop on human rights and gender in HIV legal frameworks” In light of the importance of a robust legislative response to the epidemic and strong action on behalf of the most affected communities, we draw your attention to serious human rights concerns that have been raised with respect to the N’Djamena “model law” and the national HIV laws that have followed it. This meeting is a vital opportunity to update these laws so that the region of West and Central Africa reflects the very best guidance on how countries respond to HIV with legislation. April 15, 2008 Letter Printer friendly version Universal Periodic Review of South Africa Human Rights Watch's Submission to the Human Rights Council Emerging from a history of institutionalized racial inequality, South Africa has made admirable progress in transforming the state and society to ensure respect for fundamental rights, including freedom of expression, an independent judiciary, and free and fair elections. Nevertheless, widespread poverty, unemployment, persistently high levels of violent crime, and gender inequality continue to inhibit the full enjoyment of human rights. April 7, 2008 Written Statement Printer friendly version Zambia: Abuses Against Women Obstruct HIV Treatment The Zambian government is failing to address the life-threatening obstacles facing Zambian women living with HIV who experience domestic and gender-based violence, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Gender-based violence and insecure property rights are preventing Zambian women from accessing life-saving antiretroviral treatment. December 18, 2007 Press Release Printer friendly version Hidden in the Mealie Meal Gender-Based Abuses and Women’s HIV Treatment in Zambia
HRW Index No.: A1918 December 18, 2007 Report Download PDF, 692 KB, 98 pgs Purchase online Download E-Book SADC Gender and Development Protocol: How it can Save Lives By Nada Ali, Women's Rights Division Africa researcher Published in Zambia Daily Mail TODAY, the heads of state of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) meet in Lusaka to discuss – among other issues – a key weapon in the war on poverty and disease: women’s equality. August 16, 2007 Commentary Printer friendly version Côte d’Ivoire: Peace Process Fails to Address Sexual Violence National Authorities and International Community Must Act to Reverse Impunity Pro-government and rebel forces in Côte d’Ivoire have subjected thousands of women and girls to rape and other brutal sexual assaults with impunity, Human Rights Watch said in a new report issued today. Despite recent progress in the peace process, the latest accord fails to address this widespread sexual violence or the need for accountability. August 1, 2007 Press Release Also available in 
Printer friendly version World Bank: New Policies Backslide on Family Planning Open Letter to the Board of Directors of the World Bank We are deeply concerned with reports that the draft Health, Nutrition and Population Strategy for the World Bank, which we understand the Bank’s board will review in mid-April 2007, misses the opportunity to support access to family planning and contraception as keys to combating global poverty. This potential omission stands in sharp contrast to the World Bank’s World Development Report of 2007, which emphasizes access to comprehensive sex education, contraception, and safe abortion as essential to reducing poverty. We urge you to ensure that the Bank’s health strategy reflects this crucial link explicitly. April 16, 2007 Letter Printer friendly version World Bank: New Policies Backslide on Family Planning Continued Support for Access to Contraceptives, Safe Abortion Crucial to Development By failing to explicitly support continued access to family planning and contraception, new World Bank policies, as drafted, would undermine a key strategy in the fight against global poverty, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the bank’s board of directors. April 16, 2007 Press Release Printer friendly version U.N.: AIDS Fight Depends on Respect for Rights Refusal to Consider Most Vulnerable Threatens U.N. Declaration Objections to recognizing the human rights of girls and women and those most at risk of HIV infection are threatening to derail this week’s United Nations meeting on AIDS, Human Rights Watch said today. June 1, 2006 Press Release Printer friendly version U.S.: Restrictive Policies Undermine Anti-AIDS Efforts Amicus Curiae Brief Highlights Negative Impact on Public Health Interventions by Mandatory Anti-Prostitution Pledge In an Amicus Curiae brief issued today, Human Rights Watch and 22 organizations stated that USAID’s mandatory anti-prostitution pledge “runs counter to U.S. and internationally recognized public health practice, and human rights standards protecting the right to health.” The groups expressed concern that the anti-prostitution pledge precludes recipients of U.S. funds from using the best practices at their disposal to prevent HIV/AIDS among populations at high risk of HIV/AIDS, and serves to stigmatize those populations. November 9, 2005 Press Release Printer friendly version Human Rights Watch Honors Ugandan AIDS Activist Outspoken Defender of Women Living with HIV/AIDS On November 8, Human Rights Watch will give its highest recognition to Beatrice Were, a leading advocate for the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda. October 27, 2005 Press Release Printer friendly version Human Rights Watch Honors Global Rights Defenders Efforts of Iran, Sudan and Uganda Activists Recognized Human Rights Watch’s highest honor in 2005, the Human Rights Defender Award, will go to three courageous human rights activists from around the globe whose efforts illustrate major human rights challenges in the world today. October 27, 2005 Press Release Also available in 
Printer friendly version The hidden costs of the DRB By Janet Walsh Published in Daily Monitor The Domestic Relations Bill, which has languished in the Uganda Parliament for more than a decade, would afford women and girls greater equality in matters relating to marriage, divorce and family property. Importantly, it would also criminalise marital rape. Debate on the bill was scheduled for May, but has been postponed until this month. June 7, 2005 Commentary Printer friendly version Letter: Ugandan Bill Would Save Lives Letter to the Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda Legislation on marital rape and equality in the family could save the lives of countless women and girls, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to the speaker of Uganda’s Parliament. The letter urged the Ugandan parliament to debate the long-pending Domestic Relations Bill in the current session of parliament, and to enact and implement this legislation. May 31, 2005 Letter Printer friendly version | |  | |
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