South Sudan to sign "International Bill of Rights for Women"

South Sudan to sign "International Bill of Rights for Women"

Friday, 24 February 2012 11:52 Source: Miraya FM - South Sudan

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Elias Nyamliel Wako, said that the government will soon sign and ratify the "International Bill of Rights for Women" in order to join the "Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Abuses Against Women" (CEDAW).

Addressing a conference for awareness on key international and regional instruments on women human rights; Nyamliel argued the government to commit to treaties it signs...

"The political leaders can join these treaties and conventions to be accepted internationally but the practice of discrimination and abuse of women at the level of the society especially in the rural areas may remain like it has not been dealt with. To avoid the contradictory stands of joining a treaty and not commit to its obligations, South Sudan must commit to the required submission of reports on measures it has taken to comply with the treaty obligation and the report must be accurate and reflect the reality on the ground."

Meanwhile, the Director of South Sudan Women Empowerment Network, Lillian Riziq, said joining the CEDAW will help empower women's rights.

She added that women are happy with the government to join the convention.

"When a country signs and ratifies this convention that means automatically we will have to consider them when drafting the transitional constitution and it's very comprehensive and it has a lot of benefits for the women especially when it talks about their rights and security."