Influencing legislative change for sexual violence survivors in Ghana

As a human rights lawyer, I was commissioned by a research organisation, the INDEPTH Network, to work with a team to assess the laws and policies governing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) in Ghana.

SRH rights and policy were not very visible in policy and received little attention or prioritisation by politicians or government officials. Our assessment showed that sexual abuse and domestic violence survivors could not afford the fee they were required to pay for medical reports and examinations. This meant that:

• A large proportion of cases could not be completed and prosecuted. 
• Some health facilities refused to treat survivors who had not been referred to them by the police. 
• Survivors were unable to access the few post-traumatic stress services available at the police Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit.

Furthermore, post- exposure prophylaxis was not offered to those survivors who did present themselves at health care facilities, thereby exposing them to the risk of HIV infection.

We shared our findings widely with parliamentarians, regional directors of health, social services, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice and traditional, religious and women leaders, in the capital Accra and in two regions. We also worked with the media using statistics and compelling human stories to generate wider interest.

Policy change does not always lead to practical change

At the same time as our dissemination activities, a Bill on Domestic Violence was being considered in Parliament. This provided an excellent opportunity to influence parliamentarians. As parliamentarians are busy people, we researched their interests and chose short focused presentations from credible and well-known researchers and legal advocates, and ensured we were available for follow-up. The choice of message bearer was critical. We made clear recommendations that could easily be followed by the Parliamentarians.

Parliamentarians acted on the research findings and amended the Domestic Violence Bill to include a provision that mandates health care providers to provide free medical treatment to sexual abuse and domestic violence survivors, pending a complaint to the police and the issuance of a report. Sexual violence survivors can receive free medical treatment whether or not they have reported a sexual violence case to the police.

Policy change does not always lead to practical change: participants in regional workshops stated that fees are still demanded by health providers who are not aware of law changes. There is a need to work with the Ghana Health Service to ensure the law on free medical treatment is enforced.

Nana Oye Lithur
Human rights lawyer, Ghana
nanaoyel@yahoo.co.uk
www.indepth-network.org

The INDEPTH Network is a partner in the Realising Rights RPC