Amnesty International Ghana calls for measures to protect women and child rights

Amnesty International Ghana (AI Ghana) has urged the government to institute sufficient measures to protect the rights of women and children.

The global human rights body said the inhumane treatment meted out to women in several instances leading to their deaths called for stringent measures to protect their rights.

Mentioning the death of Madam Akua Denteh, the 90-year-old woman who was lynched to death last year and spousal abuse leading to the killing of some women in Ghana, it said, such acts pointed to the need for government to strengthen institutions mandated to uphold the rights of women.

Mr. Samuel Agbotsey, Campaign and Fundraising Manager of Amnesty International Ghana, made the call in an interview with the GNA during a ceremony to launch the annual reports on human rights of Amnesty International for 2020/2021, at Oyoko in the New Juaben North municipality.

Mr. Frank Doyi, Acting Director of Amnesty International Ghana who presented a summary of the report noted that existing inequalities had left marginalized communities, refugees, older people and women disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic with gender-based violence worsening the situation, especially in the Africa region.

He said the report showed a marked increase in Gender-based and domestic violence with many women facing increased barriers to protection and support as a result of restrictions on freedom of movement due to the pandemic.

According to the AI report, 21 women and children were killed by intimate partners in South Africa by mid-June, over 3,600 rape cases were recorded during the COVID-19 lockdown in Nigeria whiles in CAR 60 cases of conflict-related sexual violence including; rape, forced marriage and sexual slavery all between June and October 2020.

The situation, he said raised a huge barrier to the human rights and dignity of women everywhere and that Ghana was not an exception.

The human rights report is an annual report documented by Amnesty International to raise awareness on infractions of human rights the world over.

Source: GNA