#IWD2024: The law, our culture and our women

By Bertha Ama SPARKS

There is no gainsaying that, “Women’s rights are human rights” (Hillary Clinton, 1995) therefore, it is incomprehensible that the full realization of the rights of women is often met with adversities. Regrettably in Ghana, one of such adversities is culture.

Leslie White describes culture as a “behaviour peculiar to Homo sapiens, together with material objects used as an integral part of this behaviour. Thus, culture includes language, ideas, beliefs, customs, codes, institutions, tools, techniques, works of art, rituals, and ceremonies, among other elements.”  This proves culture plays a pivotal role in the lives of people.

Consequently, the 1992 constitution of Ghana recognizes the role of culture to people through Article 26(1) when it states, “Every person is entitled to enjoy, practise, profess, maintain and promote any culture, language, tradition or religion subject to the provisions of this Constitution.”  Nonetheless, “there are specific practices which negatively affect only women.

These practices are enforced and sustained by custom, even though most of the distasteful laws promoting gender inequality and the suppression of women have been changed.” (Dowuona-Hammond, Atuguba and Tuokuu, 2020). The Women’s Manifesto also reinstated that some individuals utilize culture as an excuse for prejudice against women and other social groups, and that, certain Ghanaian proverbs—which are misinterpreted as conventional wisdom—express gender biases and legitimize discrimination against women.

Additionally, the acknowledgement of Ghanaian customary law as part of the common laws in Article 11(2) of the constitution makes it challenging to fully address this problem because our customary laws discriminate against women.

In the Ga customary law for instance, when males inherit from their parents, they can pass the inheritance on to their progeny but females cannot as it was explained in the case of Odamtten and Others Vrs Wuta-Ofei.  Even in matrilineal systems such as in the Akan tribe, men transfer wealth to their sisters’ sons and not the sisters’ daughters despite the fact that Article 17(2) of the constitution positions that, “A person shall not be discriminated against on grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, creed or social or economic status.”

These confirm the constitution at one point supports customary law (which discriminates women) though there is a provision against the discrimination based on gender, and this creates a disconnection within the law. To some extent however, it can be concluded that Article 26(2) which states that, “All customary practices which dehumanise or are injurious to the physical and mental well-being of a person are prohibited” was framed as a middle ground between endorsing culture while eliminating toxic cultural practices which discriminates women.

“Classically, the ambition of legal regulation is to change behaviors” (Bilz and Nadler, 2014) and with the rights of women, laws have been enacted to that effect nonetheless, there are still challenges. For example, female genital mutilation (FGM) has been criminalized in Criminal Code (Amendment) Act 2007 yet it is prevalent in the Northern Regions of Ghana because, “pressure remains from local traditional and religious leaders to continue the practice.”

Evidently, the biggest challenge with eradicating culturally oppressive practices is cultural change. This is because, “such practices persist because they are not questioned and take on an aura of morality in the eyes of those practising them.” (Fact Sheet No.23, Harmful Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children)

Arguably, the best way to most effectively deal with these harmful cultural practices is through traditional rulers. It is the chieftaincy institution who have been mandated on matters concerning customary laws in the Chieftaincy Act, 2008 (Sections 49 to 55).  Moreover, in certain instances, it seems that people are more devoted to the traditional authorities than to the official political authorities.

Hence, the people are more likely to listen to chiefs and queen mothers thus, the traditional authourity should lead the charge to conscientize people that harmful cultural practices are too detrimental to be seen as a cultural element so they must be changed. Culture should never hinder women from fully enjoying their rights.

>>>the writer is a feminist. She can be reached via [email protected]

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