First female chief justice for Mauritius a victory for feminists, but there’s still ‘unfinished business’

Mauritanian President Prithviraj Roopun has been counseled for appointing Rehana Bibi Mungly-Gulbul Chief Justice. (Getty Photos)

• First feminine Chief Justice for Mauritius a constructive for gender.
• Feminists say extra must be finished to enhance 20% feminine illustration in political areas.
• Current features in gender stability threatened by Covid-19 pandemic.

Gender activists have counseled Mauritanian President Prithviraj Roopun for appointing Rehana Bibi Chief Justice, a primary for a girl to carry that place on the island.

She turns into the second lady this yr to go an African nation’s justice system. In Could, President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed Choose Martha Koome as Kenya’s first feminine chief justice and head of the judiciary.

Cape City-based feminist and media scholar, Dr Delta Ndou stated whereas on the prime there’s notable illustration of girls, there’s nonetheless a protracted method to go.

“It’s only the start when you actually examine statistics, there’s solely 20% feminine illustration on the political sphere,” she stated.

In accordance with UN Ladies, extra work must be finished to realize gender equality though Mauritius has finished effectively in defending girls’s rights.

READ | Mauritius president resigns amid monetary misconduct claims

“In Mauritius, 83.3% of authorized frameworks that promote, implement and monitor gender equality, with a deal with violence in opposition to girls are in place,” reads the UN Ladies’s profile of Mauritius.

Mauritius is the fourth finest nation by way of gender equality in Sub Saharan Africa behind South Africa, Rwanda and Namibia based on figures from the African Improvement Financial institution (AFDB).

In its 53 years of independence, Mauritius has had two feminine presidents, one performing and one elected. Dr Bibi Ameenah Firdaus Gurib-Fakim, 62, was elected sixth president of the island and served between 2015-2018. Earlier than her, former journalist Agnès Monique Ohsan Bellepeau, 79, had two stints as performing president.

The island has additionally had the pleasure of a feminine vp, Bellepeau. They’ve additionally had a feminine speaker of parliament, Santi Bai “Maya” Hanoomanjee, 69. From 2015-18 it was an all-women forged on the prime.

Dr Anjalee Dabee, a gender professional with the UN Improvement Programme, calls the journey to girls’s equality in Mauritius “unfinished enterprise” with “new gaps showing because of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic”.