sexual health and human rights in the african region - The ICHRP

credit, inheritance and other social goods that have a bearing on socio-economic
wellbeing generally. This is because access to health services is one of several
determinants of health. It is well established that, over and above genetic
inheritance, other determinants of health include income, education, housing,
and socio-economic conditions generally. 179 The law can facilitate the promotion
of health by combating rather than giving validity to social, economic or cultural
factors that constitute barriers to health. Non-discrimination is one of the routes
through which law can promote health, including sexual health.
[3] In terms of the legal classification that is generally employed in human rights
treaties as well as in domestic law, sex discrimination can classified as direct or
indirect. Discrimination can be direct such as where a legislative provision, or
more frequently, a policy directive requires only women to obtain the consent of
their spouses as a precondition for treatment. 180 In the alternative, discrimination
can be more subtle, and consequently, indirect, such as where a legislative
provision or policy directive routinely requires all persons that are not adults to
obtain the consent of their parents as a condition for obtaining access to
contraceptive services. 181 Though outwardly neutral as between males and
females, such a measure disproportionately adversely impacts on adolescent
females. It is females who bear the risk of pregnancy and the burdens of bearing
and raising a child. It is also females rather than males that carry the major
burden of reproductive disease. Laws or policies that require everyone to pay for
health services rendered are another example. They constitute indirect
discrimination where women are the gender that is disproportionately underemployed
and under-remunerated and thus disproportionately poor or
disproportionately burdened with dependants. 182
[4] Equality and non-discrimination are principles as well as fundamental rights that
are contained in the United Nations human rights treaties that have been signed
ratified by the majority of African countries. The position on ratification by
African countries of major United Nations human rights instruments that have
non-discrimination clauses is as follows:
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination: It
has been ratified by all African countries except: Angola, Guinea-Bissau,
São Tomé and Príncipe; 183
• Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: It has been ratified by all
countries except Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, and São Tomé and Príncipe; 184
179 RJ Cook et al Reproductive Health and Human Rights: Integrating Medicine, Ethics, and Law (2003) at 18-19
180 Cook et al ibid at 197.
181 Ibid.
182 Ibid.
183 www2.ohchr.org/english
184 Ibid
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