Press Release: MFWA Holds Forum On ECOWAS Court In Abuja

The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) in partnership with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament will on July 30, 2012... ...assemble key human rights stakeholders in Abuja, Nigeria for a one-day forum to discuss ways of strengthening the Community Court of Justice (ECCJ) to enforce its decisions. The court, since its creation, has passed 95 verdicts comprising 46 cases of full-fledged judgments and 49 interim judgments, with 39 cases pending before it. However, most of these judgments have not been implemented by member states. The one-day stakeholders� forum with funding support from IBIS-Ghana will bring together civil society experts, human rights lawyers and activists from West Africa and beyond. There will also be a high level participation of the ECOWAS Commission and the Community Court of Justice. The forum will seek to explore ways by which CSOs can contribute to regional efforts at ensuring the promotion of justice and human rights in the region. At the end of the forum, a resolution will be adopted and presented to the ECOWAS Commission to support its work on human rights promotion and protection in West Africa. The MFWA has been engaging the Community Court through its network of lawyers for the Defence of Media and Journalists in the region. The MFWA has successfully litigated two cases at the Community Court of Justice against the Gambian government. Issued by the MFWA, Accra on July 27, 2009. The MFWA is a regional independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Accra. It was founded in 1997 to defend and promote the rights and freedom of the media and all forms of expression.