Agency and vulnerability in the intersection of abortion law and refugee experience in Kenya
Posted: 23 September, 2024 Filed under: Pawi Fortune | Tags: abortion, abuse, Africa, Dadaab, defilement, displaced persons, Federation of Women Lawyers (Fida – Kenya) & 3 others v Attorney General & 2 others, forced prostitution, foreign domination, gang rape, health care services, healthcare services, Kakuma, Kenya, maternal deaths, mental health, Ministry of Health Guidelines on the Management of Sexual Violence in Kenya, physical trauma, rape, refugees, safe abortion services, Sexual Offences Act, sexual violence, state of unrest, unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, unwanted pregnancy Leave a comment
Author: Pawi Fortune
Kabarak University Law School
The number of refugees in Africa has been on the rise[1] with many people being morphed into refugee status by various reasons such as a state of unrest, foreign domination and internal/external aggression.[2] In pursuit of safer grounds, ‘aspirant refugees’ flee to other countries hoping for better conditions than that from which they fled. However, even in countries of asylum, displaced persons face a precarious existence devoid of guaranteed safety or survival. Dadaab and Kakuma, critical refugee sanctuaries in Kenya, shelter a diverse population of refugees fleeing instability in countries such as Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan.[3] Nonetheless, mistakenly believing this new land to be a haven, refugees are subjected to unimaginable sexual violence, a cruel irony that erodes their dignity and sense of self to a degree that renders their prior persecution almost preferable. This paper aims serve as a lamentation, a call for help reflecting the pain of survivors of sexual violence in refugee camps who have succumbed to the dangerous consequences of unsafe abortions or lack of it due to inaccessibility of the appropriate health care services.
Internet Shutdowns in Sudan: From Authoritarian Tool to Weapon of War
Posted: 30 August, 2024 Filed under: Razan E H Ali | Tags: censor information, civil unrest, control, displacement, dissent, elections, electoral fraud, electronic communication services, freedom of expression and access to information on the Internet, human rights violations, humanitarian crisis, internet blackout, internet shutdowns, Model Law, national security, periods of conflict, political transition, refugees, Sudan, war-related information Leave a comment
Author: Razan E H Ali
LLM Candidate, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria
Introduction
Internet shutdown or blockage means the deliberate suspension or termination of internet and electronic communication services, making them inaccessible or practically inoperable for a particular group of people or geographic area, usually to control the flow of information.[1]
This exercise has been used by governments as a tool to suppress dissent, censor information, conceal serious infringements of individual rights, and evade accountability for human rights violations, especially during periods of conflict, civil unrest, and contested political transitions.[2]
Will South Sudan be ready for its first democratic elections comes 2023?
Posted: 14 January, 2022 Filed under: Garang Yach James | Tags: 2023, civil wars, communal conflicts, democratic elections, national elections, Permanent Ceasefire, Permanent Constitution, R-ARCSS, refugees, Repatriation of refugees, Republic of South Sudan, Security Sector Reform, social disorder, Transitional Period, Transitional security arrangements 6 Comments
Author: Garang Yach James
South Sudanese Political and security analyst and PhD Student, University of Juba, South Sudan
Summary
This article discusses key requisite benchmarks for the success of first democratic elections towards the end of the Transitional Period in 2023. The author argues that the conduct of credible democratic elections is conditional on certain processes being successfully completed. The article posits that in lieu of faithful implementation of these processes, the conduct of first national elections in South Sudan is likely to birth mock democracy and would be a recipe for recycling of conflict. The article finally gives three recommendations as a path out of the series of transitional governments.
Requisite benchmarks for democratic elections in South Sudan
Since independence, South Sudan has never conducted general elections in its capacity as a sovereign State. Instead, the country has experienced multiple communal conflicts and civil wars which threatened prospects for democratic elections. In attempts to establish peace and security, the two agreements namely; ARCSS and R-ARCSS expected to transition the post-conflict state to democracy have been signed but none of the said agreements has transitioned the state to secure and peaceful South Sudan. To do this, the Revitalised Transitional Government of Nation Unity( RTGoNU) stands a chance of leading a successful transition provided that the following necessary benchmarks are achieved.
Did the recently concluded South Sudan’s fifth Governors’ forum address the elephants in the room?
Posted: 6 December, 2021 Filed under: Garang Yach James, Joseph Geng Akech | Tags: Administrative Areas, ‘Permanent’ constitution building, Chief Administrators, democratic governance, economic reforms, governance, Governors’ Forum, Humanitarian relief, internally displaced people, law reforms, peace, R-ARCSS, refugees, Republic of South Sudan, Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan, Revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity, RTGoNU, social services, sustainable peace, Transitional justice mechanisms, Transitional security arrangements, UNDP, United Nations Development Programme 1 Comment
Author: Joseph Geng Akech
South Sudanese human rights lawyer and PhD candidate, University of Pretoria, South Africa
Author: Garang Yach James
South Sudanese Political and security analyst and PhD Student, University of Juba, South Sudan
Summary
The government of the Republic of South Sudan recently organised a week-long conference of its 10 State Governors and Chief Administrators representing the three Administrative Areas. The aim was to discuss the role of States and local governments in the implementation of the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS). After a week of intense deliberations, the Forum released resolutions and recommendations on various aspects of peace, governance, social services and economic reforms. This paper critiques the Forum’s outcome arguing that the Forum failed to address the ‘elephants in the room’. For instance, the resolutions and recommendations did not articulate and in some instances, failed to mention, as priorities, aspects of the transitional security arrangements, transitional justice, permanent constitution building, humanitarian assistance and the return of internally displaced people and refugees as well as institutional and law reforms.
African countries need to ensure that the health of refugees is protected during the COVID-19 pandemic
Posted: 21 June, 2021 Filed under: Omotunde Enigbokan | Tags: accessing healthcare, Africa, African Commission, coronavirus, COVID-19, gender-based violence, government, health care, health services, human rights, pandemic, refugees, status, UN, UNHCR, vaccination, women, World Health Organisation, World Refugee Day Leave a comment
Author: Omotunde Enigbokan
Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria
The protection of the right to health for refugees in Africa requires urgent attention, especially in this period when evidence shows that new variants of the coronavirus are spreading. As we celebrate World Refugee Day on 20 June 2021, and against the backdrop of the UNHCR’s theme ‘Together we heal, learn and shine’, it is pertinent that we interrogate how African countries are ensuring that the right to health for refugees, is guaranteed. This is particularly important with the development of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide, and in the onset of the administration of these vaccines in Africa.
Challenges faced by refugees in Africa
Existing research underlines the need for heightening refugees’ access to health facilities. Research further shows that refugees have been particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. This situation is further compounded by the fact that many refugees live in overpopulated camps or reception centres, where they lack adequate access to health services, clean water and sanitation. This makes them more vulnerable to contracting COVID-19.
The Global Compact on Refugees: A breakthrough opportunity in addressing the protracted refugee crises in East Africa
Posted: 4 October, 2019 Filed under: Juliet Nyamao | Tags: Agenda for Sustainable Development, climate change, climate changes, East Africa, Ethiopia, flee, fleeing war, forced displacement, Global Compact on Refugees, human rights violations, humanitarian funding, Kenya, migration, New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, refugee camps, refugee self-reliance, refugees, SDG, sub-Saharan Africa, sustainable development, Uganda, UN, United Nations, war 2 Comments
Author: Juliet Nyamao
Human Rights Attorney, Kenyan Bar
In recent years, the world has witnessed an explosive increase in the number of refugees and internally displaced persons. The upsurge in forced displacement has increased the demand for humanitarian assistance and strained the limited resources of host nations, majority of which are developing economies. The resulting economic strain compelled the international community to develop sustainable mechanisms for protecting refugees and displaced persons in alignment with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Read the rest of this entry »
The right to health for refugees in South Africa: Concrete reality or wishful thinking?
Posted: 13 December, 2017 Filed under: Cristiano d'Orsi | Tags: 2003 National Health Act, African Charter of Human and Peoples’ Rights, CEDAW, domestic law, health services, healthcare services, ICERD, ICESCR, National Strategic Health Plan, OHCHR, political rights, refugee convention, refugees, right to health, right to health care, SAHRC, socio-economic rights, South Africa, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, xenophobia 1 Comment
Author: Cristiano d’Orsi
Research Fellow and Lecturer at the South African Research Chair in International Law (SARCIL), University of Johannesburg
Scope of the study: How the ‘right to health’ is intended in this work
South Africa (SA) is one of the largest economies in Africa. Since December 2010 the country is a member of the informal association of five major emerging world economies (BRICS) and the only African country to be a member of the G20, the major international forum for economic cooperation and policymaking.
At the end of 2016, SA was reported to be hosting 91,043 refugees.
Although SA has ratified a good number of human rights legal instruments since the end of apartheid, in 1994, , the actual implementation of the rights enshrined in some of them still remain problematic. One such right is the right of refugees to have access to adequate healthcare in the country.
This situation occurs also because access healthcare services in SA, as with many other fundamental rights in the republic, has historically been biased in terms of a number of arbitrary grounds (p. 55).
Why has the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive not been applied during the migration crisis in order to receive Syrians and other asylum seekers?
Posted: 10 June, 2016 Filed under: Clara Burbano-Herrera | Tags: asylum, civil war, Council of the European Union, Directive on Temporary Protection, EU, EU states, European Asylum Support Office, European Commission, Europol, Frontex, immigration, irregular border crossings, Kosovo, Mediterranean, migrants, migration crisis, refugees, Syria, Turkey, UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, war, Yugoslavia 1 Comment
Author: Clara Burbano-Herrera
Fulbright Fellow, FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University; Visiting researcher, Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law (Heidelberg); and FWO Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Human Rights Centre, Ghent University
The EU Border Agency Frontex indicates that a total of 1.83 million irregular border crossings were detected at the EU’s external borders in 2015, compared to 283 500 in 2014. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 1 015 078 people reached Europe irregularly in 2015 by crossing the Mediterranean, while a further 3 771 are believed to have drowned attempting the same journey. The main country of origin of applicants in EU+ countries (the 28 EU Member States as well as Norway and Switzerland) was Syria.
The idea of an African passport and the freedom of movement of persons in the continent: Only wishful thinking?
Posted: 22 February, 2016 Filed under: Cristiano d'Orsi | Tags: Africa, African Charter, African passport, African Union, asylum-seekers, AU Executive Council, Declaration on Migration, EAC, ECOWAS, federation, freedom of movement, ICCPR, ICRMW, IDP, International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, migration, Protocol on Facilitation of Movement of Persons, refugees, regional integration, SADC, territory, United States of Africa, USAf 4 CommentsAuthor: Cristiano d’Orsi
Post-Doctoral Researcher and Lecturer, Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (South Africa)
“Hail! United States of Africa-free!
Hail! Motherland most bright, divinely fair!
State in perfect sisterhood united,
Born of truth; mighty thou shalt ever be.”
This is the incipit of the poem Hail, United States of Africa, composed in 1924 by M.M. Garvey, a famous Pan-Africanist leader.
This poem is considered to have initiated the concept of United States of Africa (USAf), a federation, extensible to all the fifty-four sovereign states, on the African continent.
In 2002, at the launch of the African Union (AU), President T. Mbeki, its first chairman, proclaimed that: “By forming the Union, the peoples of our continent have made the unequivocal statement that Africa must unite! We as Africans have a common and a shared destiny!”[1]
After that occasion, the concept of USAf has been highlighted in a more concrete way by other African leaders, such as A.O. Konaré in 2006,[2] M. Gaddafi in 2009 –the first to mention the possibility to issue a unique passport for the entire continent-[3] and, more recently, by R. Mugabe.[4]
AfricLaw 
Right to participate and citizenship: Liberians yearn for an inclusive vote in 2023
Posted: 6 January, 2023 | Author: AfricLaw | Filed under: Uncategorized, Urias Teh Pour | Tags: 2023, African Charter on Democracy, African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Alien and Nationality Act of 1973, citizenship, civil war, Elections and Good Governance, Gabriel Shumba and Others, General Comment 25, human rights, Human Rights Committee, inclusive vote, Liberia, migrant workers, Mtikila v Tanzania, New Elections Law, refugees, Right to participate, right to vote, Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties | 1 CommentExecutive Director, Independent National Commission on Human Rights (INCHR), Liberia
For the first time in the political history of Liberia, Liberians in the diaspora are making a strong case for their inclusion in the 2023 general and presidential elections. This call has come at the time when the Alien and Nationality Act of 1973 which prohibited dual nationality has been amended. The amended Act, Alien Nationality Law of 2022, provides that ‘any person who acquires another in addition to his or her Liberian citizenship shall not [be] deemed to have relinquished his or her Liberian citizenship.’
The passage of this law led to a wave of calls for the democratisation of electoral politics, considering the huge population of Liberians living abroad and their aspiration to participate in elections to elect their leaders at home. The Liberia Demographic Survey of 2021 projected Liberia’s population at 5.18 million. There are approximately 1.2 million Liberians and people with Liberian heritage scattered all over the globe, with the majority living and referring to the United States as their home. Some statisticians have predicted that the on-going population and housing census would exceed the projected number.
Read the rest of this entry »