Panel of Seychellois experts on equality convenes for event discussing how to advance equality in Seychelles |15 February 2020

The panel of Seychellois experts on equality: (l to r) Hon. Chantal Ghislain, Emily Gonthier, Stefan Knights, Fabianna Bonne and Sharon Thelemaque (Photo credit: Steve Nibourette)

A panel of five experts on equality representing parliament, the judiciary, the Attorney General’s office and civil society have convened as part of an international conference to discuss how to advance equality for women and girls and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI+) people.

The panel took place as part of an international conference organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society, one of the four partners that comprise the Equality & Justice Alliance, a consortium of international NGOs that have been collaborating on a range of legislative reform initiatives with partners across the Commonwealth.

The panel was chaired by Michelle Delacoudraye-Harter, vice-chair of the Seychelles Human Rights Commission, and comprised five panellists.

The Hon. Chantal Ghislain, chair of the Women’s Parliamentary Group of Seychelles, described the difficulties women face in participating in politics in Seychelles, and noted that the exclusion of women from decision-making positions damages the law-making process.

Emily Gonthier, a judiciary researcher from the Office of the Chief Justice, cited archaic legal provisions in need of reform. These included a need to adopt gender neutral language that provides equal protection to all, and a need to reform Civil Code clauses that differentiate inheritance rights for children born in and out of wedlock.

Stefan Knights, legal draftsperson from the department of Legal Affairs, expressed the intention of the department of Legal Affairs to establish a Law Reform Commission that could spearhead a number of legal reform initiatives, including those that advance equality for all Seychellois citizens.

Sharon Thelemaque, chair of GEM Plus, said that there was a need to end the taboo of discussing sexual harassment and sexual violence against women in Seychelles, to ensure action is taken. She added that harmful stereotypes about women were restricting their opportunities to work in industries more traditionally associated with men.

Fabianna Bonne, executive director of LGBTISey, noted that while the decision by the Seychelles parliament to decriminalise private consensual acts between same-sex between adults was a positive one, there is much more work that needs to be done to ensure laws protect LGBTI people from discrimination.

Fabianna argued that there was a lack of awareness among the public of their legal rights and the impact outdated laws and policies have on LGBTI people, which requires urgent attention. Key priorities for LGBTISey include preventing the bullying of LGBTI people in schools, and ensuring that violence against LGBTI people is properly investigated by police and perpetrators brought to justice.

Speaking after the panel, Fabianna Bonne of LGBTISey said: “I welcome the confirmation from government representatives that there is a need to engage civil society when undertaking law reform initiatives to ensure they can shape the positive trajectory of legal reform. However, more needs to be done to ensure this consultation takes place from the beginning of the process, to ensure civil society experts can meaningfully shape the outcome.”

The Equality & Justice Alliance is pleased to help create spaces to facilitate connection and engagement between stakeholders and partners as in the case of the panel on advancing equality in Seychelles. The Commonwealth Equality & Justice Forum 2020 has brought together government and civil society from across the Caribbean, Africa, the Pacific and the UK to discuss how to achieve equality before the law for women and LGBTI+ people in the Commonwealth.

Contributed by Rory Evans, programme lead at Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS)