732- During these sessions, 80 paralegals398 were equipped with criminal law and legal aid
information to assist persons in detention. A Methodology Guide for Intervention in Legal and
Judicial Aid was drafted by these private actors to serve as a didactic material for these
paralegals and for the public. In 2016, over 2000 copies were distributed by the CSO
“Nouveau Droits de l’Homme” (NDH).
3: The Creation of adequate Educative and other Appropriate
Structures while paying Special Attention to Women and Raising
Awareness among all Strata of Society on the Rights of Women.
733- Activities to raise awareness on Human Rights in general include sensitisation about
women’s rights. Radio broadcasts aired sometimes in local languages and magazines were
also dedicated to the promotion of women’s rights. This is the case with the magazine
“Femmes et familles” [Women and Families] published by MINPROFF as well as weekly
slots broadcast on air over public and private media. Moreover, television programmes were
also aired during the commemoration of days dedicated to women.
4: The Training of Bodies Charged with Applying the Law at all
Levels for Proper Interpretation and Effective Application of Equal Rights
between Men and Women.
734- Capacity building for legal stakeholders is one of the levers by which Government
mainstreams equal rights in the management of legal proceedings. For effective mastery of
principle of equal rights between men and women, training sessions are regularly organised
for legal stakeholders.
735- In 2012, 3 capacity building seminars were organised for judicial staff on the
implementation of CEDAW399 by Government with the support of its partners for the benefit
of 85 Magistrates, 10 Notaries Public and 6 Bailiffs working in the Courts of Appeal of the
Centre, Littoral and Far North Regions. The main goal was to raise awareness stakeholders on
the implementation of CEDAW in the courts as one of the indicators of “equal access to
justice for all” while waiting for the harmonisation of national laws with international human
rights legal instruments ratified by Cameroon.
736- Other capacity building seminars for Magistrates and Lawyers on the implementation of
CEDAW and the Protocol to the ACHPR on the Rights of Women in Africa were organised
by the WCIC Association in November 2017 and May 2018 in Yaounde and Douala
respectively.
5: A Balanced Representation of Women in Judicial Institutions and
those in Charge of Applying the Law.
737- Government expressed the will to get women involved in the judicial system through a
non-discriminatory recruitment and integration process based on the principle of equal
chances. This was made a reality through the constant increase in the number of women
among the staff of different corps of the judicial institutions: Magistrates, Court registrars,
Lawyers, Notaries, Bailiffs, and Penitentiary Administration Personnel.
398
The first workshop was held in Yaounde from 5 to 6 February 2016 in the presence of over 40 participants
and the second took place on the 29 and 30 January 2016 in Bafoussam. The goal of these workshops was to
train and equip participants on legal aid. Several messages on the machinery of legal procedures were
broadcasted. For example, the following themes can be cited, “The legal system and access to justice for
vulnerable groups: the outlines of a fundamental determinant of the Rule of Law and democracy in Cameroon”;
“The legal system and court fees under criminal law in Cameroon”; “ Criminal justice in Cameroon and forms
of redress available”.
399
From 1 to 3 August 2012 in Douala, 29 to 31 August to Maroua and 26 to 28 September 2012 in Yaounde.
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