The organisation in
its annual review of human rights in the region on Tuesday said rights
defenders in Africa were persecuted and harassed for standing up and speaking
out against governments.
Amnesty
International has said that armed conflicts and state repression were causes of
human rights abuses in Africa.
The organisation in
its annual review of human rights in the region on Tuesday said rights
defenders in Africa were persecuted and harassed for standing up and speaking
out against governments.
According to the
report, there are major developments from the past year, which include the
deposition of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, Zimbabwean Government’s
response to mass protests, and increasing attacks on civilians in Mozambique
and Mali.
“In 2019, we saw
incredible people power in mass protests which swept across Sub-Saharan Africa.
From Sudan to Zimbabwe, and Democratic Republic of Congo to Guinea, people
braved brutal crackdowns to stand up for their rights,” said Deprose Muchena,
Amnesty International’s East and Southern Africa Director.
“In some cases,
these protests led to major changes, following the toppling of Sudan’s
long-time leader, Omar al-Bashir, the new authorities promised human rights
friendly reforms and following protest a raft package of human rights reforms
was introduced by the Ethiopian Government.
“Sadly, other
changes needed are being blocked by repressive governments, who continue to
carry out violations with impunity.
“In Sudan’s Darfur
region, government forces continued to commit possible war crimes and other
serious human rights violations including unlawful killings, sexual violence,
systematic looting and forced displacement.
“In DRC, dozens of
local and foreign armed groups together with the country’s security forces
continued to carry out human rights abuses resulting in more than 2000 civilian
deaths and at least one million were forcibly displaced in the course of 2019.
“In Somalia,
civilians continued to live with attacks from the armed group Al-Shabaab, while
government and allied international forces failed to take sufficient
precautions to spare civilians from their attacks targeted at Al-Shabaab.
“Armed groups
carried out attacks directed against civilians in Cameroon, Central African
Republic and Burkina Faso, while governments failed to protect civilians,” he
added.
The organisation
said access to healthcare remains a major concern for people across the region,
with underfunded health budgets leading to shortages of beds and drugs in
hospitals.
It said,
“Governments from Angola to Zimbabwe, Burundi to Cameroon have failed to
respect the right to health, and conflicts have exacerbated the situation.
“With the COVID-19
pandemic looming, there is no time to waste in addressing the inequalities and
human rights violations which make healthcare inaccessible for so many.”
The organisation
also condemned the persecution and harassment of human rights defenders for
standing up and speaking out against governments.
It said Burundi,
Malawi, Mozambique, Eswatini, Zambia and Equatorial Guinea all saw surging
crackdowns on activism in 2019.
“In 17 countries
across sub-Saharan Africa, journalists were arbitrarily arrested and detained
in 2019. In Nigeria for example, 19 cases of assault, arbitrary arrest, and detention
of journalists were recorded, with many facing trumped up charges.
“In Burundi,
authorities continued to crack down on the work of human rights defenders and
civil society organisations including by subjecting them to prosecution and
lengthy prison terms.
“Human rights
violations forced hundreds of thousands of people in the region to flee their
homes in search of protection. There were about 600,000 internally displaced
people in CAR; more than 222,000 people in Chad, and over half a million in
Burkina Faso,” the report added.
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