IPNEWS-Monrovia: On Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at a gathering at the opening of the International SHEROES Forum at the Monrovia City Hall President George Weah conferred upon himself the enviable appellation of “Liberia’s Feminist-In-Chief,” thus turning another historical page in his presidential manifesto.

By the declaration, the President reaffirmed unwavering commitment to the pursuit of the feministic ideals that guarantee the rights and wellbeing of women.

The President’s decision was informed by the broad understanding of who a feminist is:  “someone who organizes activities on behalf of women’s rights and interests, with the objective of achieving political, economic and social equality of sexes, including seeking to establish educational and professional opportunities for women that are equal to those for men.”

On the basis of that definition, President Weah then said, “I wish to declare myself as Liberia’s Feminist-in-Chief, and hereby pledge to the women of Liberia that I will do all that I can, during my tenure as president of this country, to fight for gender equality and empowerment.”

President Weah also used the red-lettered women forum, the first to be held in Liberia, to catalogue efforts he personally initiated in the interest of Liberian women, giving them platform for participation in national leadership.

He referenced the selection of Madam Jewel Howard Taylor as his running mate on the ticket of the CDC, the appointment of several women to positions in government and many other actions to accentuate his advocacy for the advancement of women’s cause.

 “When I was elected standard-bearer of the Coalition for Democratic Change, the opportunity presented itself for me to demonstrate my commitment to the cause of advancement of women’s participation in leadership, and to practice what I preached. I therefore selected a female as my running-mate,” President Weah recalled.

The Liberian leader also recollected how he raised the bar for his party women to 50% even when the National Elections Commission (NEC) required each party to put up a minimum of 30% of women for parliamentary elections.

He declared: “Since my incumbency, I have appointed a woman to be the first female deputy Chief of staff of Armed Forces of Liberia, and there is a female who serves as Deputy Inspector General of the National Police. Similarly, I have appointed many women to ministerial positions and to boards of State-owned Enterprises and intend to appoint many more.”

He classified those actions as manifestations of his desire and advocacy for gender equality and of increasing women’s participation in governance in the country.

In spite of these efforts aimed at giving women desirable platform in national leadership, the President acknowledged that women still face a range of issues in Liberia that hold them back in society and make social equality a significant challenge.

“Of particular concern to me is sexual violence. During the Liberian civil conflict, there were widespread reports of sexual violence towards women. Today, more than 15 years after the war, Liberia continues to grapple with high incidence of rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence against and girls,” the President indicated in 2018.

The International SHEROES Forum was held in Liberia through the hospitality of the government, with Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor playing a leading role in the organization. Dignitaries from Liberia and other parts of the African Continent graced 2018 event which was held under the theme “ADVANCING WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION IN LEADERSHIP”.

Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia (AFELL) Takes Issues with Pres. Weah

Fast forward to 2023 with about seven months to the presidential and legislative elections, President George Weah has been heavily criticized by the Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia (AFELL) for vetoing a progressive amendment to the new election law.

AFELL president Atty. Philomena Williams

The amendments in question sought to make 30% of gender representation mandatory.  It would have empowered the National Elections Commission (NEC) to fine or delist any political parties that failed to adhere to the gender quotas.

Gender quotas are a type of “temporary special measure” to accelerate women’s substantive equality with men, and achieve the necessary structural, and socio-cultural changes to redress the historical marginalization of women from political life.

According to AFELL president Atty. Philomena Williams, the President’s reason for vetoing the bill is disappointing.

Williams noted the action does not represent the President’s self-proclaimed ‘feminist-in-chief’ nomenclature and past statements that he is committed to improving the rights of Liberian women.

“We strongly believe that if President Weah had signed the 30% affirmative action for women representation, it clearly would not have delayed the election process as stated in his veto statement. The veto of the 30% women representation law does not reflect the terminology of Feminist in Chief,” Williams said at the General Assembly of the Liberia National Bar Association (LNBA).

“We are set back and want you to rationalize the gigantic inequality gap of women in politics and leadership in Liberia and the need for complementary laws that mirror and are in consonance with the constitution,” she added.

Some veteran members of AFELL at the Temple of Justice recently. The female lawyers are taking President Weah to task for vetoing the 30% Gender Representation Bill

While vetoing the amendment and several others made to the NEW Election Law, President Weah said that the amendments were in conflict with already existing constitutional provisions, and other laws, saying he prefers the law staying the way it is.

The President’s action dashed the hopes of many women rights advocates, including AFELL, who had for years lobbied for the quota.

“The country is just seven months away from the 2023 general and presidential elections. As such, certain changes in the elections law at a time so close would tend to send mixed signals to the electorates and present the potential to cause delays in elections processes,” Pres. Weah averred.

The President’s veto of the bill, which comes more than five months after the bill’s passage by the Legislature, can be overridden by members of the Legislature, depending on how many lawmakers maintained their previous support for the bill.

But this would not be the case, as the 54th Legislature is on break and it remains unclear whether, upon their return, they would attempt to override the veto.

Meanwhile, the AFELL president has reminded President Weah that similar law was passed in Sierra Leone, which is also going to elections this year.

Gender quotas are widely seen as a way to fast track equal representation in politics and have been a key mechanism for promoting democratization in the world since the 1990s. One hundred and thirty seven (137) countries have adopted constitutional, electoral, or political party quotas to address gender gaps in national decision-making.

Of these, 76 have adopted legislated electoral quotas at the national or sub-national level of the 54 countries in Africa, 46 have adopted some form of legislated quotas and 37 of these have adopted quotas in either the single/lower house and/or the upper house of the national parliament. Constitutional and legislated quotas are more effective at increasing women’s representation than voluntary party quotas because all parties are required to comply.

Political pundits told IPNEWS that President George Weah did not mean what he said in 2018 when he declared himself Liberia’s ‘Feminist-in-Chief’ judging from the lots of women issues that the CDC-led government have not paid keen attention to address. Bookmakers are watching from afar as the political activities unfold ahead of the Presidential and Legislative elections slated for October 2023.