Regional level The African Union Among other regional instruments and protocols, Zimbabwe is a signatory to the African Union (AU) Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, adopted in 2003, which recognises the crucial role of women in the preservation of African values based on the principles of equality, peace, freedom, dignity, justice, solidarity and democracy. Southern African Development Community Protocol on Gender and Development Zimbabwe has signed and ratified the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development. This SADC protocol provides that, by 2015, the SADC countries must have reviewed, amended or repealed all discriminatory laws and, specifically, must have abolished the minority status of women. Articles 32 to 36, covering ‘final provisions’, include: • Remedies granted to citizens should they believe that their rights have been violated on the basis of gender; • Ensuring gender mainstreaming in financial allocations and in the implementation of the Protocol; and • Actions to be taken at the national level, including national action plans with measurable timeframes, the gathering of data against which progress will be monitored, and reports submitted to the SADC executive secretary every two years. Zimbabwe’s constitutional provisions Zimbabwe’s Constitution has strong gender equality and women’s rights provisions. In Chapter 2, section 17 of the national objectives, the constitution obliges the State to attain gender balance as follows: (1) The State must promote full gender balance in Zimbabwean society, and in particular — (a) The State must promote the full participation of women in all spheres of Zimbabwean society on the basis of equality with men; (b) The State must take all measures, including legislative measures, needed to ensure that – i. both genders are equally represented in all institutions and agencies of government at every level; and ii. women constitute at least half the membership of all Commissions and other elective and appointed governmental bodies established by or under this Constitution or any Act of Parliament; and iii. … (2) The State must take positive measures to rectify gender discrimination and imbalances resulting from past practices and policies. Section 34 obligates the state to ensure that all International conventions, treaties and agreements to which Zimbabwe is a party are incorporated into domestic law. The Constitution also contains a comprehensive non-discrimination clause (section 56 on equality and non-discrimination) that prohibits unfair discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, disability, opinion, custom and whether a person was born in or out of wedlock, among others. ‘Discriminatory treatment’ is defined as ‘any direct or indirect discrimination that results in a privilege or disadvantage, including any condition, restriction or disability to which others are not subjected. All forms of discrimination that 76 Community Healing: A training manual for Zimbabwe