Report - Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights

at <strong>the</strong> time. I challenged <strong>the</strong> extended family – which is a large land owning family in
<strong>the</strong> Cook Islands with several branches.
The land court only sits once or twice a year, which creates delays, making it difficult
to plan for development. Also <strong>the</strong> case kept having to be adjourned, which is why it took
four years. The first judge adjourned <strong>the</strong> case in order to get <strong>the</strong> consent <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> family
ei<strong>the</strong>r through signature or by attending court. In <strong>the</strong> interim, that judge died. The second
judge commented that my submissions were so thorough, I had made a clear case for
myself and two o<strong>the</strong>r families. However, <strong>the</strong> case was adjourned again to obtain <strong>the</strong>
family’s consensus. Then that judge also died. The problem with when a judge dies is
that you have to re-prepare all your submissions. Finally, I put toge<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> submissions
and sent <strong>the</strong>m to all <strong>the</strong> landowners. By mistake <strong>the</strong> submission contained two errors
in how I had allocated <strong>the</strong> shares, which would disadvantage three <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> main objecting
parties, so all <strong>the</strong> family members turned up in court. I was able to correct <strong>the</strong> mistakes
and obtain consensus, so it was passed. The judge (not a Cook Islander) 20 said that
my proposal was an equitable and fair distribution <strong>of</strong> land and I was making <strong>the</strong> job <strong>of</strong>
my traditional leaders easier.
After 15 years <strong>of</strong> family meetings and 4 years in court, I was successful in court in March
2004. My case set a precedent. As a result <strong>of</strong> my case all <strong>the</strong> land owners can see
now that it is possible to challenge <strong>the</strong> system. The outcome is now a precedent set
for all land owners in <strong>the</strong> Cook Islands.
But in <strong>the</strong> process I had experienced a lot <strong>of</strong> emotional trauma – I was ostracized from
<strong>the</strong> community, stigmatised. At social functions I was being ignored because I was a
trouble-maker – which can be very hard when living in a small community. I had to take
a year <strong>of</strong>f work because it was emotionally so difficult. It also cost me a lot <strong>of</strong> investment,
time, and money (including lost income). Getting a loan, while you have a case is difficult,
because <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> delays caused by <strong>the</strong> land court’s infrequent schedule.” (Lynssay Francis,
Cook Islands)
The above testimony shows <strong>the</strong> importance <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> justiciability <strong>of</strong> rights, but also shows <strong>the</strong> incredible
stress and strain placed on women in trying to claim <strong>the</strong>ir rights in a patriarchal context, where <strong>the</strong>
options are very limited.
Engaging <strong>the</strong> church
The Church has had a significant impact on <strong>the</strong> way people think in <strong>the</strong> Pacific. In <strong>the</strong> Fijian setting,
pastors and reverends play an important role in modelling <strong>the</strong> village. But <strong>the</strong> Church <strong>of</strong>ten promotes
views that discriminate against women. In <strong>the</strong> Solomon Islands <strong>the</strong>re have been instances where a
woman approaches <strong>the</strong> Church for counselling for domestic violence, and she is told that <strong>the</strong> Bible
says <strong>the</strong> wife must submit to her husband. It is <strong>the</strong>refore important that education on women’s human
rights is also provided to religious leaders <strong>of</strong> all denominations. Human rights education should
incorporate voices and messages in <strong>the</strong> Bible that speak <strong>of</strong> human rights. Such an approach generates
greater acceptance <strong>of</strong> human rights within <strong>the</strong> religious arena.
Gender discrimination in new land tenure systems
The introduction <strong>of</strong> new land lease systems <strong>of</strong>ten results in women losing <strong>the</strong>ir traditional rights to
land. For example, <strong>the</strong> World Bank is pushing for individual registration <strong>of</strong> land, which is going to
20
A Land Commission <strong>Report</strong> found that it may not be appropriate to have a local judge sit in on such cases
because where <strong>the</strong> community is relatively small a conflict <strong>of</strong> interests can arise.
44 WOMEN’S RIGHTS TO ADEQUATE HOUSEING AND LAND