OHCHR – Central Africa Regional Office (2008-2009)

Human rights context

 
The UN Subregional Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Central Africa was established in 2001 pursuant to General Assembly Resolution 54/55 A of 1 December 1999, at the request of Member States of the Economic Community of Central African States to strengthen security, stability and development in Central Africa by promoting respect for human rights and democracy. The Centre covers Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda and Sao Tome and Principe. Covering the four countries where OHCHR does not have a presence (the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Sao Tome and Principe) has proved to be one of the Centre’s greatest challenges.

The Centre’s priorities include strengthening the rule of law and democracy, increasing awareness on human rights issues through human rights training and education programmes, disseminating human rights materials, building the capacity of governments, parliamentarians, the police and civil society organizations, supporting the establishment of national human rights institutions, and advocating for a human rights-based approach to UN programming in the subregion.

Most countries in Central Africa have ratified the key human rights treaties and made public pledges to implement them domestically, although much remains to be done in terms of transforming international obligations into domestic law. While human rights and democracy challenges persist, some countries enjoy a relatively high degree of political freedom and fundamental liberties and governments broadly tolerate activities aimed at sensitizing the population about their rights. However, such liberties are restricted in several countries. Internal and external conflicts have been used as a pretext to restrict human rights. Many minorities face discrimination in accessing social, economic and cultural rights, particularly in terms of education, health and housing. Exploitation of resources is a major issue, especially as communities are being displaced. Torture, child trafficking, slavery and sexual exploitation continue to be reported from some parts of the subregion.

Most countries of the subregion have established national human rights institutions based on the Paris Principles, while others have created institutions within government departments or ministries to improve human rights promotion and protection. Some of these institutions have addressed specific human rights cases and trends and have been instrumental in the promotion of human rights, but generally appear to shy away from dealing with sensitive or high profile cases. Elections have been taking place periodically in most countries and the democratic space generally seems to be expanding, but more progress needs to take place. Some parts of the subregion have a vibrant civil society,which has helped open up the political space and encouraged a constructive human rights dialogue. Nonetheless, in some countries, journalists and human rights defenders have been restricted in their work, and there have been arrests of leading human rights figures.

Achievements

 
Throughout 2007 in particular, the work undertaken in the field of democracy and human rights,mainly on the fight against impunity, prevention of torture, discrimination, human rights training programmes on gender issues and transitional justice, raised the Centre’s profile throughout Central Africa, enabling it to expand its network of partners. The adoption of the High Commissioner’s Strategic Management Plan for 2006-2007 led to the development of a three-year strategy for the Centre (2007-2009) aimed at strengthening collaboration with the UN Country Teams and ECCAS Member States, and building fruitful partnerships with national human rights institutions, civil society organizations, the media and the diplomatic community to promote and protect human rights and democracy in Central Africa.

Priorities

 
During 2008-2009, the Centre will engage more actively in Chad in addition to Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. Chad will be included in all regional capacity-building initiatives related specifically to conflict prevention, conflict resolution, peace and security.

In the Central African Republic, the Centre will provide support to the human rights component of the United Nations Peace-building Office (BONUCA) in informationgathering initiatives and public reporting, and will facilitate contacts with international organizations based in Central Africa,mainly in Cameroon.

The Centre will continue its activities in Cameroon, aimed at strengthening the capacity of parliamentarians to develop broad participation of the population in democratic processes. The Centre will also address the issues of impunity, discrimination, torture and administration of justice. As part of its efforts to help alleviate poverty, the Centre will foster cooperation with the UN Country Team to address gender-based violence and promote women’s rights and the right to education, particularly for young girls in northern Cameroon.

The Centre will pursue its efforts in Gabon toward strengthening the capacity and knowledge of Government officials and the growing number of civil society organizations to monitor and respond to human rights violations. The Centre will deliver human rights training programmes for the police, judiciary, security forces and prison officials to strengthen their knowledge in applying human rights standards, particularly the provisions of the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The Centre will also develop sensitization programmes, in collaboration with the Ministry of Communication, to increase awareness about human rights issues and knowledge of international and regional human rights mechanisms.

The Centre will also conduct an assessment mission to Equatorial Guinea to collect data on the human rights situation and explore ways of addressing the more pressing human rights abuses, with particular focus on migrants’ rights, gender-based violence, women’s education, prevention of torture, and detention conditions.

As a follow-up to the mission conducted in the Republic of the Congo in October 2007, the Centre will continue to support the establishment of a national human rights commission in compliance with the Paris Principles, and intensify its efforts to integrate a rights-based approach in UN Country Team programmes.