Civil Society and the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights

3 Jul 2017

Many Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Zimbabwe today are involved in humanitarian and development work, democracy and governance issues, and the promotion and protection of human rights. The work of CSOs in involved in the promotion and protection of human rights is found in different thematic areas that include civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, the rights of people with disabilities, the media and environment. For instance the National Association of Non Governmental Organisation (NANGO) has ten thematic   areas that its member organisations are clustered in to effectively deal with the ills, peculiarities and challenges of human rights in these different thematic areas.

Civil society work in human rights involves, among other interventions and activities;

• Providing care and assistance to those in need, for instance in terms of access to shelter, food, safe drinking water;
• Capacity building for fellow CSOs and other stakeholders such as governments
• Advocating and lobbying for the ratification, domestication and implementation of relevant human rights treaties and as well as for other issues affecting the different civil society sectors
•  Litigation, including supporting vulnerable groups such as women, children and indigent people
• Human rights reporting, e.g. Shadow reporting;
• Focusing on the constitution to ensure that government delivers on the rights enshrined in the constitution. Some of the sectors are also participating in the government process to align the laws with the constitution and working on issues pertaining to the practical implementation of constitutional provisions; and
• Dissemination of human rights and related information and raising awareness on the human rights situation in relation to rights such as socio-economic rights.

Target groups for CSOs include among others women, children, the youth, the underprivileged, marginalised and vulnerable, victims of abuse such as sexual abuse and so forth. Some CSOs work with the government at central government level and also at local government level. Normally they work with line ministries, departments or agencies in their respective thematic areas and with local governments structures, including the local political and traditional leadership.

In Zimbabwe, while most organisations produce reports on their activities, usual on an annual basis, which usual is shared with other CSOs, funding partners and other stakeholders, very few organisations produce reports on the human rights situation in the country, be it reports on the overall human rights situation or on the specific thematic areas or issues. The exceptional few include Zimbawe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZHLR) NGO Forum and Childline.  Also, not many CSOs systematically monitor and document the implementation of human rights generally and human rights violations in particular (the like of Counselling Services Unity (CSU). Most of the organisations that monitor and document human rights either rely on tools developed by other stakeholders, such as the United Nations (UN).

     This article was inserted and flighted by the National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO)

     The National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO) is the official coordinating umbrella body of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) operating in Zimbabwe. Its aim is to strengthen, represent, and coordinate the work of NGOs in Zimbabwe by creating space dialogue and engagement to enable the fulfilment of members ‘visions and missions.  For comments and feedback please reach us through: director.nango@gmail.com.