“Do not violate women!” African women warn Donald Trump

African women have taken note of the inauguration of Mr. Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States and now warn him to desist and abstain from any forms of objectification and/or violation of women and girls during his tenure as president.
With this latest development that has garnered keen global interest, the pan-African regional organization, African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) is cautioning the newly elected president of the US to govern with a studious commitment of upholding respect and rights for women in America and globally.
“As the new president of one of the most powerful countries in the world, it is paramount to observe and understand that women the world over deserve respect and dignity at all levels and must be granted equality at all spheres and be free of all forms of violence and discrimination” said FEMNET’s Executive Director, Dinah Musindarwezo.
Within a hotly contested election year, FEMNET has keenly observed the disturbing revelations of violation and disregard for women that has elicited deserved indignation both in the US and globally.
“It is our firm submission that the government of President Donald Trump must adhere to uphold and respect universal principles of human rights and women’s rights as enshrined in universally accepted principles of which the US is boldly a part of”, said Dinah.
“Women of Africa have been peeved by the apparent sexist, misogynistic and utter violation of women as exemplified and revealed during the US election campaigns of 2015 and especially as advanced presumably by President Trump”, she added.
In light of widely reported cases of sexual and violations, misogynistic statements and concerning attitudes to the emancipation of women in the US, FEMNET affirms the explicit responsibility of the newly elected government of Mr. Trump to take note of universally adopted instruments of women’s rights and aspire towards safeguarding them.
“It is in the US that all women of the world have converged annually in New York at the United Nation’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) for the last 60 Years. It is in New York that women of the world deliberate, strategize and collaborate to make the world safer, just and equal for women and girls in the world. We hope that President Donald Trump will take note of this and treat this process with the commitment and support as it has been in the past” said Dinah.
FEMNET urges the new government of president Trump not to overlook core international human rights instruments, take a specific focus on the International Bill of Human Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and most importantly, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
“It is not by chance that the world adopted and continues to agitate emancipation and gender equality in numerous platforms. For this reason, we emphasize that the United States, being a world Super power must within this new government of Mr. Trump amplify efforts to end all forms of violence and discrimination of women in the US and globally” added Dinah Musindarwezo.
For More information or to request an interview, contact:
Mildred Ngesa, Head of Communication, FEMNET: communication@femnet.or.ke/ ngesamildred@gmail.com +254 727 137 853
About FEMNET
Since inception in 1988, the African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) continues to play a leading role in building the women’s movement in Africa and ensuring that African women’s voices are amplified and influence decisions made at national, regional and global levels, which have direct and indirect impact on their lives.
As a pan-African membership-based organization working to advance women’s rights, FEMNET has a mandate to mobilize African women to hold governments accountable to commitments previously agreed upon to achieve gender equality and women’s rights including: the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the AU Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol) and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
FEMNET’s vision is an African society where gender equality is achieved and women and girls enjoy all their rights and live in dignity. It’s mantra is women’s rights are human rights, its’ mission is to mobilize African women for the achievement of gender equality and the realization of women’s and girls’ rights at all levels. For more information visit: www.femnet.org