Women’s rights organisations from across the continent are pressing the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) to delay endorsing the African Union’s (AU) new Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls, warning that the current draft contains dangerous legal loopholes.
The call comes as the PAP gathers for a high-level meeting in Midrand, South Africa, giving lawmakers a rare opportunity to hear directly from feminist movements, legal experts, and civil society groups who argue the document simply isn’t ready.
Campaigners fear that ambiguous wording in the text could be exploited by organized anti-rights groups to roll back hard-won protections, leaving women across the continent vulnerable to legal uncertainty.
Addressing parliamentarians, Mai Aman, a legal officer at Strengthening Regional Mechanisms, insisted that the draft needs a serious overhaul before it is signed into law.
“Across the continent, organised anti-rights actors are increasingly seeking to weaken established human rights protections by exploiting ambiguity in law and policy. That means every new legal instrument must be held to the highest possible standard. We cannot afford legal uncertainty where clarity is required. We cannot afford weakening of rights that generations of African women fought so hard to secure.”
–ChannelAfrica–
