A House with Two Rooms - The Advocates for Human Rights

Advocates recommends the following:
• The Government of Liberia should accord to women in civil matters a legal capacity identical
to that of men as well as the same opportunities to exercise that capacity. In particular,
the government should give women equal rights to enter into contracts and to administer
property and should treat them equally in all stages of procedure in courts and tribunals.
• The Government of Liberia should implement a national policy that all contracts and all
other private instruments of any kind with a purported legal effect of restricting the legal
capacity of women shall be deemed null and void.
• The Government of Liberia
should accord to men and
women the same rights
relating to the movement of
persons and the freedom to
choose their residence and
domicile.
• The Government of Liberia
should take steps to increase
women’s access to free legal
aid throughout Liberia. 401
Women’s Human Rights: Economic Empowerment
In order to fully participate in Liberian society, women must have equal opportunities in the area of
work, professional advancement, and economic opportunities. 403 The Advocates recommends the
following:
• The Government of Liberia should promote equality of access to employment;
• The Government of Liberia should recognize and enforce the right to equal remuneration for
jobs of equal value for women and men;
• The Government of Liberia should ensure transparency in recruitment, promotion, and
dismissal of women;
• The Government of Liberia should combat and punish sexual harassment in the workplace;
• The Government of Liberia should guarantee women the freedom to choose their occupation
and protect them from exploitation by their employers;
• The Government of Liberia should create conditions to promote and support the occupations
and economic activities of women, in particular, within the informal sector;
• The Government of Liberia should recognize and enforce the right of salaried women to the
same allowances and entitlements for their spouses and children as those granted to salaried
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Chapter Fourteen
Potential Implementation Strategy:
Training Paralegals to Raise Awareness
A Rwandan association, Haguruka, has organized training
sessions for hundreds of paralegals who can educate and
guide women on their rights with respect to property and
other issues. 402 The Government of Liberia may wish to
consider facilitating similar resources to educate women
and men on the rights of women and the recourses available
where such rights have been violated.