Author: Nina Cornet Fontaine

ASF launches Justice ExPEERience, a network for human rights defenders!

Posted on by Nina Cornet Fontaine

La naissance du réseau Justice ExPEERience

Confronté à un environnement dynamique et en perpétuel changement, ASF a depuis plusieurs années amorcé un tournant stratégique important. Les réflexions et constats autour du rôle et de la mission d’ASF ont amené à repositionner l’organisation en tant qu’acteur.rice capable de mobiliser, de créer du lien et d’animer des dynamiques de collaboration entre des acteur.rice.s d’horizons divers. Que ce soit pour mettre en œuvre des projets, développer des approches transnationales, avoir une influence plus forte (plaidoyer), renforcer les actions collectives, ASF aspire à devenir un.e acteur.rice qui rassemble, qui anime non seulement des partenariats mais aussi des réseaux, sur la base d’expertises contextualisées.

C’est dans cette optique qu’est né le réseau Justice ExPEERience, qui vise à mettre en lien les acteur. rice.s de la lutte pour les droits humains et de l’accès à la justice à travers le monde, tout en leur permettant de conserver leur autonomie et en les encourageant à créer des dynamiques avec ou sans ASF. Afin de donner un support concret à ce réseau, ASF s’est également dotée d’un outil du même nom dédié à la création de liens durables de coopération et d’apprentissage entre pair.e.s : la plateforme digitale et collaborative Justice ExPEERience.

Développer des réseaux et des communautés de pratique

Outre son intérêt pour améliorer les échanges et le travail collectif en interne chez ASF, la plateforme Justice ExPEERience est avant tout un outil pour le développement de réseaux et de communautés de pratique. Mais qu’entend-on exactement par communauté de pratique ? Une communauté de pratique est un groupe de personnes travaillant dans un domaine similaire ou partageant des intérêts pour un même sujet, qui se réunissent pour échanger, apprendre de l’expérience des un.e.s et des autres afin de renforcer leurs savoirs et leurs compétences, de mieux réaliser leurs objectifs, voire de porter des projets communs.

Avec ses partenaires, ASF a ainsi constitué des communautés de pratique très actives dans plusieurs contextes. Justice exPEERience a notamment permis de développer une communauté de pratique en République démocratique du Congo (RDC) autour d’une action de contentieux stratégique mettant l’État congolais face à ses responsabilités en matière de détention préventive abusive et de mauvaises conditions de détention. D’abord constituée lors de rencontres physiques ponctuelles, cette communauté a pu poursuivre collectivement son action tout en assurant une continuité dans l’apprentissage des membres à travers la plateforme Justice ExPEERience. Disposer d’un outil de travail collectif en ligne fut crucial pour développer cette action qui regroupe des membres actif.ve.s dans les différentes provinces de la RDC.

Sur base des enseignements tirés de cette première expérience concluante, plusieurs nouvelles communautés de pratique commencent à voir le jour sur la plateforme, réunissant parfois des partenaires provenant de différentes régions voire de différents pays.

L’organisation de la plateforme Justice ExPEERience

La plateforme Justice ExPEERience permet donc de mettre en lien des acteur.rice.s des droits humains sur des projets spécifiques dans le cadre de communautés de pratique. Afin d’assurer des échanges structurés et organisés, elle est divisée en espaces, dédiés à des thématiques, des contextes ou des projets spécifiques. Il s’agit d’un véritable réseau social sur lequel chaque utilisateur.rice dispose de sa page de profil personnalisable, de ses espaces de discussion et d’échange et de plusieurs fils d’actualité associés aux thématiques sur lesquelles il.elle travaille.

La plateforme vise également à constituer, au fil du développement de toutes ces communautés digitales, un réseau bien plus large et international, amené à échanger sur des thématiques et enjeux globaux, que ce soit directement dans les espaces publics dédiés ou même aussi lors de rencontres virtuelles organisées sous la forme de webinar sur la plateforme. C’est d’ailleurs dans cette optique que la plateforme est rendue accessible en plusieurs langues, dont l’anglais, le français et l’arabe.

Une adaptation en continu

Justice ExPEERience offre beaucoup de perspectives à ASF et ses partenaires. La plateforme continue à être développée en prenant en compte les retours d’expérience de ses membres pour répondre au mieux aux besoins d’ASF et de ses partenaires. Elle est en évolution constante, de nombreuses améliorations et ajouts sont prévus, notamment le développement prochain d’une application mobile pour garantir une meilleure accessibilité de la plateforme partout dans le monde

Pour plus d’informations et inscription

Witchcraft representations and judicial treatment of the offence of Charlatanism and Witchcraft Practices in the Central African Republic

Posted on by Nina Cornet Fontaine
Pénalisation des Pratiques de charlatanisme et sorcellerie en République centrafricaine

Witchcraft, an omnipresent element of centrafrican culture and society

In the Central African Republic (CAR), witchcraft is omnipresent: it dominates and shapes the daily life of the population, especially in rural areas. Witchcraft representations, which are an integral part of Central African customs and practices, provide an explanatory framework for all life events: death, illness, accidents, professional or academic failures, etc. The successive crises that have shaken the country since 2013 have reinforced the use of witchcraft as an explanation for the diverse misfortunes the popluation has experienced. An increased involvment of religious bodies in the ‘fight’ against witchcraft has also been noted during that perido.

In the Central African Penal Code, Articles 149 and 150 condemn ‘charlatanism or witchcraft practices likely to disturb public order or harm people or property’, including practices that cause ‘serious injury or permanent disability’ or ‘death’. Accusations of witchcraft, based on these two vague and imprecise articles, are very common and frequently lead to an outburst of violence by popular vindictiveness against the accused person: exclusion, lynching, or even, in the worst case, brutal execution. These allegations are used to get rid of people who have become undesirable in the community and disproportionately affect the vulnerable and isolated, especially elderly women.

The judicial treatment of the offence of charlatanism and witchcraft practices

The legal vagueness surrounding charlatanism and witchcraft practices (CWP) is acknowledged by most actors in the Central African judiciary and is a breeding ground for arbitrary decision-making. Judges tend to rely on their own convictions and beliefs when dealing with witchcraft cases. Moreover, faced with the difficulty of providing material proof of an act of witchcraft, most judicial actors consider the confession of the accused person as the ultimate evidence, regardless of the motives of the accused in making the confession, which is often used for purposes of social appeasement and/or personal protection. Furthermore, social pressure from the community and the so-called protection of public order, which is invoked as a higher principle, have a strong influence on the judges’ decision-making and even divert the course of justice in order to satisfy the majority of the population.

Furthermore, judicial intervention is not in capacity to ensure the protection and reintegration of those accused of CWP. By prosecuting a person for CWP, the court attests to the reality of her or his witchcraft and the convicted person will remain vulnerable to further convictions and even further violence (even after release from prison). Justice also has the effect of formalising the omnipresence of the witchcraft risk, contributing to the effervescence of such types of discourse. In the event of an acquittal, the population, mostly distrustful of the judiciary, may seek justice for themselves, indirectly encouraged by the apparent passivity of judicial institutions in dealing with the violence inflicted on accused persons.

Action by ASF and its partners

Since 2021, thanks to the support of the European Union, ASF and its partners (Centre for the Promotion of Children’s Rights (CPDE), Organisation of Young Leaders for Development (OJLD), Maison de l’enfant et de la femme pygmée (MEFP) and Défis et Objectifs Centrafrique (DOC)) have been intervening at the heart of the state and community justice systems by promoting access to justice and the defence of women accused of CWP. The observations presented above are drawn from the study ‘Witchcraft representations and judicial treatment of the offence of Charlatanism and Witchcraft Practices in CAR’. This study was commissioned by Avocats Sans Frontières as part of the project ‘Contributing to the sustainable respect of the right to a fair trial and human rights for women accused of witchcraft in CAR’, in order to further inform the organisation’s action and future interventions in this area.

Consolidating discussions on transitional justice: the debate on access to land rights in the Acholi sub-region

Posted on by Nina Cornet Fontaine
Uganda land

This article was originally published in the Annual Report 2021 of Avocats Sans Frontières.

In recent years, numerous and continued conflicts about land use and ownership in the Acholi subregion have led to strong debate among the Ugandan population. But the discussions surrounding this issue have too often omitted to include it in the broader debate around transitional justice.

These land conflicts mostly find their source in the aftermath of the war that took place between the Ugandan Government and the rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) from 1987 until the 2006 ceasefire. During that period, the rebels of the LRA targeted civilians and waged attacks on schools, public places and communities. This led to massive displacement of local populations into refugee camps called Internally Displaced People’s camps (IDPs). The extensive displacement and the death of elders during that period has divested local communities of land ownerships.

Access to land plays a crucial role in recovering from the effects of such conflicts but there is a true need to establish a linkage between land rights and the promotion of transitional justice objectives such as restitution. The 2019 Uganda National Transitional Justice Policy acknowledges the need to mitigate land conflicts in conflict-affected communities either individually or collectively.

ASF undertook research on access to land rights and transitional justice in Northern Uganda to establish the nature of justice paths undertaken by people in the Acholi sub-region in reclaiming their land rights. Using a purely qualitative methodology, the research established that victims of land conflicts use either statutory or traditional mechanisms to pursue justice but that they are unable to address land disputes satisfactorily and amicably. In many cases, access to justice and judicial outcomes are dependent on the individual’s social status. Women and youth find it harder to obtain satisfactory remedies due to their higher degree of vulnerability.

ASF advocates for a comprehensive land restitution strategy to be included in the broader transitional justice process. This includes the pillars of transitional justice processes: acknowledgment of the wrong suffered, truth-telling, investigation, and documentation. It is crucial to intensify efforts to ensure that land rights are fully respected, enforced, and restored in the return communities. In addition, ASF calls for the Government of Uganda to redefine processes of land acquisition for multinational companies and investors in ways that are transparent, accountable, and involve local communities to reduce mistrust and help build confidence in ongoing development initiatives in the region.

Putting the interests of local populations at the heart of natural resource exploitation: Transparency, accountability and protection of rights

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Congo natural resources

This article was originally published in the Annual Report 2021 of Avocats Sans Frontières.

ASF has been active in the field of natural resource governance in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since 2018.
Its activities in this area are mainly concentrated in 3 regions: in the provinces of Ituri and Haut Uélé in mining sector and in the province of Central Kongo in the hydrocarbon extraction sector.

The action implemented by ASF and its partners in these three provinces is based on the fight against corruption and human rights violations caused by the activities of the extractive industry. This action is deployed mainly through three types of activities.

(i) ASF and its partners set up awareness and information campaigns for local communities on their procedural and substantive rights, as well as on environmental issues related to the natural resource governance.

(ii) Members of affected communities are encouraged to participate in the governance of natural resources in their region and to challenge their representatives to ensure that the principles of transparency and accountability are respected.

(iii) ASF and its partners strengthen the protection of the rights of local community members through the prevention and resolution of conflicts related to the exploitation of natural resources.

Recent legislative developments are moving in this direction. In 2015, a law on the general regime for hydrocarbons was enacted. This obliges oil companies to take into account the rights and welfare of local communities and to respect sustainable environmental management. In 2018, a law was passed to strengthen the rights of local communities affected by the mining sector. It aims to put in place regulatory mechanisms to reduce the negative impacts of mining projects on human rights and to ensure that local residents benefit from the economic profits of mining through the funding of various community development projects.
A solid legislative base to promote transparent management of natural resources that respects human rights and the environment exists in the DRC, but these laws have not yet produced the desired results.

This is why ASF is conducting advocacy work with local and national decision-makers. Several advocacy actions were carried out in 2021, in particular to ensure that compensation for environmental damage caused by extractive activities is effectively paid to local communities.

The penalisation of charlatanism and witchcraft practices: An obstacle to the realisation of the rights of women and minors in the Central African Republic

Posted on by Nina Cornet Fontaine

This article has been taken from the Annual Report 2021 of Avocats Sans Frontières.

In the Central African Republic (CAR), the practice of charlatanism and witchcraft is considered a crime under the penal code. The prosecution of suspected “sorcery” practitioners frequently leads to serious human rights violations and systematically impacts women and children. At the Bimbo women’s prison, half of the women in prison are condemned for alleged witchcraft offences. The repression suffered by those accused of witchraft can originate in formal justice but also in popular vindictiveness. People suspected of witchcraft are regularly subjected to humiliation and corporal punishment, sometimes resulting in death.

Such violence is rooted in structural inequalities and patterns of patriarchal domination against women and certain categories of people in vulnerable situations. This type of violence is therefore a consequence of social and cultural norms that hinder the realisation of womens’ and minors’ rights.

ASF’s objective is not to fight against these beliefs that are rooted in Central African society, but to fight against the “witch hunt”. ASF’s action in this regard is mainly based on three axes.

(i) With ASF’s support, civil society organisations run awareness and information sessions on these practices, their propensity to affect certain categories of the population and the disastrous consequences they can have on the lives of these individuals.

(ii) ASF works to provide holistic assistance to people accused of charlatanism and witchcraft. In collaboration with civil society organisations, actors in the criminal justice system, community leaders and NGOs, ASF ensures that people accused of charlatanism and witchcraft are identified as early as possible so that they can benefit from legal assistance from the moment they are taken into custody and during their possible pre-trial detention. It is also essential to assist these people as soon as possible to limit the consequences of such an accusation on their reputation, and therefore on their chances of integrating into the community or providing for themselves and their families.

(iii) ASF noted that the Central African legal arsenal was inadequate to deal with this social phenomenon. The offence does not have a clear definition and a wide range of evidence and clues can be used to prove the offence in court, despite the fact that it is not defined in the penal code. ASF is conducting research to gain a better understanding of the socio-cultural treatment of witchcraft and to eventually develop an advocacy strategy for a more human rights-based approach to these offences.

Fight for the decriminalisation of poverty and minor offences

Posted on by Nina Cornet Fontaine
poverty is not a crime

This article has been taken from the Annual Report 2021 of Avocats Sans Frontières.

In Morocco, as in other countries, ASF is committed to the decriminalisation of poverty and minor offences. These offences mainly affect vulnerable groups, particularly people in a precarious socio-economic situation and people who suffer discrimination on the basis of their gender, origin or sexual orientation. The criminalisation of these types of offences contributes greatly to congestion in prisons and therefore to prison overcrowding in many countries, particularly in Africa.

The Pan-African Campaign for the Decriminalisation of Poverty and Minor Offences, which originated in English-speaking Africa, was launched in Morocco in 2021 in the context of the global Covid-19 pandemic. During this period, the number of arrests has been on the rise and has put further strain on an already overburdened prison system. ASF and its partners, Adala and the Moroccan Prison Observatory (OMP), joined forces to strengthen the dialogue between civil society actors with the aim of defining a common strategy for advocacy and legislative reform.

The partners organised an experience sharing workshop between Tunisian and Moroccan actors to identify priorities and strategy for the campaign in both countries. In Morocco, the opportunity is all the more important as the country committed to reforming its penal code in 2013 by adopting the “Charter for the reform of the judicial system”. It is therefore essential for civil society actors to seize this moment to address the authorities, particularly the Ministry of Justice and the Parliament, to promote an overhaul of the penal code that takes into account the experiences of those subject to trial and the discriminatory nature of the criminalisation of poverty and minor offences, in order to respond to the problem of prison overcrowding in the country.