Ordre des Avocats au Barreau du Cameroun
COMMISSION DES DROITS DE L'HOMME et des Libertés
Cameroon Bar Association
Avenue Charles ATANGANA, derrière le Mess des Officiers - Olézoa
B.P. 13488 – Tél. : (237) 652 70 91 22/(237) 655 72 36 98/(237) 222 22 03 85
www.barreau-cam.org - e-mail : oabc@barreaucameroun.org
The President of Human Rights
And Liberties Commission
DECLARATION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES COMMISSION, ON THE OCCASION OF THE CELEBRATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE FIGHT AGAINST VIOLENCE COMMITTED ON WOMEN, ON NOVEMBER 25TH, 2019.
The international day for the fight against violence on women that we celebrate on November 25th 2019, gives us the opportunity to recall the dreadful number of women swimming in violence globally.
According to the report of the UNO, the number of women victims of violence are as follows:
- 54.54% of women are victims of physical violence;
- 50.24% of women are victims of economic violence;
- 24% of teenage girls have experienced breast ironing;
- 1.4 per cent of women have been victims of genital mutilation;
- 71% of the victims of human trafficking are women and girls, of which ¾ of them are being exploited sexually.
Barrister BISSOU Christian - Daniel President of the Human Rights and Liberties Commission
On November 25th, 1960, when the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo decided to kill the MIRABAL sisters with a machete, he was far from imagining that this day would be devoted to the fight against violence committed on women by the UNO, and that the MIRABAL sisters will become the symbol of this fight.
The 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women defines this violence as: "all acts of violence directed against the female sex and, causing or likely to cause sexual or psychological harm, or suffering to women". Including the threat of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty in public or private life".
To be complete on this definition, it would obviously be closer to that of Prof. Lori Heise who, to emphasize the level of "conjugal control defines violence to includes: "any act of force or coercion seriously endangering the life, body, psychological integrity or freedom of women and, committed in the name of the perpetuation of male control and power ..."
Violence against women, whether sexual, cultural, physical, economic or marital, has one ideological concept and that is: sexism.
Which is simply a means to strengthen and maintain the subordination of women.
It's consequences on peace, which in simple terms is defined as the "peaceful coexistence of people". On health, on women's universal schooling and social integrity, the effects of violence are catastrophic. The end results of these consequences on women are mostly the loss of autonomy, fear, stagnation, stigmatization, guilt, shame, loneliness and of course, it definitely prevents women and girls the opportunity of social construction, and the realization of their fundamental rights.
Barrister BISSDU Christian - Daniel President of the Human Rights and Liberties Commission