A feminist perspective to enhancing access to justice for women in The Gambia's transition : Lessons from Uganda

Abstract

Access to justice for women is a fundamental right recognised under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa. The study explores a feminist perspective on enhancing the right to access justice in the context of transitional justice. By drawing insights and lessons from Uganda's transitional justice process and applying a feminist-centric approach to analyse women’s right to access justice in transitional justice contexts, the study examines a pathway to enhancing access to justice for women who have experienced sexual and gender-based violence perpetuated during former President Yahya Jammeh's dictatorship rule in The Gambia which was defined by numerous human rights violations. The study takes into account the underlying factors of patriarchal systems and structural inequalities in the pursuit of justice by women and proposes recommendations using a human rights-based approach.