Promoting the human rights of women and girls through developing human rights jurisprudence and advancing the domestication of international human rights standards

Pages127-143
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Part III: From Aspirations to Entitlements
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11. Promoting the human rights of women
and girls through developing human
rights jurisprudence and advancing the
domestication of international human
rights standards
Background
In 1988, the Commonwealth Secretariat initiated a series of judicial colloquia to promote
the domestic application of internationally and regional agreed human rights norms.
Judges at the first colloquium in Bangalore, India, adopted the Bangalore Principles,
which call for the creative and consistent development of human rights jurisprudence
across the Commonwealth. The principles emphasise the need for practical measures
to ensure that international and regional human rights norms, to which many member
countries are state parties, are given full effect in national courts. The Bangalore
Principles were reaffirmed at subsequent judicial colloquia – Harare, Zimbabwe; Banjul,
The Gambia; Abuja, Nigeria; Balliol College, Oxford, UK; and Bloemfontein, South Africa
– which focused on different aspects of human rights jurisprudence.
In order to focus on advancing the rights of women and girls through judicial activism,
and building on the Bangalore Principles for the development of human rights jurispru-
dence, the Secretariat organised three regional judicial colloquia between 1994 and
1997. These were held: in Zimbabwe in 1994 for the Africa region, where the Victoria
Falls Declaration of Principles for the Promotion of the Human Rights of Women was
issued; in Hong Kong in 1996 for the Asia and South Pacific region, where the Hong
Kong Conclusions on the domestic application of international human rights norms
relevant to women’s human rights was declared; and in Guyana in 1997 for the
Caribbean region, where the Georgetown Recommendations and Strategies for Action
on the Human Rights of Women and the Girl-Child was adopted.
The Commonwealth Plan of Action (PoA) for Gender Equality 2005–2015, which was
adopted by Ministers Responsible for Women’s Affairs in 2004, and which provides the
mandate and remit for the Secretariat’s work in promoting the rights of women and girls,
recognises that women and girls experience different forms of discrimination during their
lives and that gender-based biases, inequalities and inequities intensify their disadvan-
tages. To ensure gender justice, the PoA calls for the employment of gender-sensitive
laws, customs/practices and mechanisms. The promotion of active dialogue and
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Part III: From Aspirations to Entitlements
engagement among members of the justice system, religious, cultural, traditional and
civil institutions and communities is a key recommendation.
The PoA identifies the addressing of the marginalisation of indigenous women, the
combating of trafficking in women and girls, the enactment and implementation of gender-
responsive laws, and promotion of human rights standards, particularly, CEDAW, as
other key issues for advancing women’s rights.
The Gender, Human Rights and Law section of the PoA received the support of law
ministers in 2005. Given this endorsement, there is close collaboration between the
Gender Section and the Justice Section of the Secretariat to implement the PoA.
In bringing together the Bangalore Principles, the Victoria Falls Declaration, the Hong
Kong Conclusions, and the Georgetown Recommendation and Strategies, along with
information on key initiatives supported by the Secretariat, this section demonstrates the
implementation of the spirit and intent of the declarations and strategies.
Bangalore Principles, 1988
1. Fundamental human rights and freedoms are inherent in all humankind and find
expression in constitutions and legal systems throughout the world and in the
international human rights instruments.
2. These international human rights instruments provide important guidance in cases
concerning fundamental human rights and freedoms.
3. There is an impressive body of jurisprudence, both international and national,
concerning the interpretation of particular human rights and freedoms and their
application. This body of jurisprudence is of practical relevance and value to
judges and lawyers generally.
4. In most countries whose legal systems are based upon common law, international
conventions are not directly enforceable in national courts unless their provisions
have been incorporated by legislation into domestic law. However, there is a
growing tendency for national courts to have regard to these international norms
for the purpose of deciding cases where the domestic law – whether constitutional,
statute or common law – is uncertain or incomplete.
5. This tendency is entirely welcome because it respects the universality of funda-
mental human rights and freedoms and the vital role of an independent judiciary
in reconciling the competing claims of individuals and groups of persons with the
general interests of the community.
6. While it is desirable for the norms contained in the international human rights
instruments to be still more widely recognised and applied by national courts,
this process must take fully into account local laws, traditions, circumstances and
needs.

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