Access to Justice Dynamics for Women and Girls with Disabilities: The Zimbabwean Context

Abstract

A democratic country has a mandate to guarantee access to justice for all its citizens without discrimination based on disabilities. Therefore, lack of access to justice by persons living with disabilities in Zimbabwe is controversial. The central argument of this article is that the violation of human rights of girls and women with disabilities in Zimbabwe requires urgent intervention from the international community as mandated by local and international conventions. Since Zimbabwe is a signatory to these conventions, it is obligated to enact laws that uphold these rights. The study opted for a mixed method as part of the research methodology. The findings revealed that there are significant barriers to access to justice that still need to be overcome. These hindrances include attitudinal hurdles that make accessing justice difficult for women and girls living with disabilities. The article further acknowledges that access to justice is a fundamental right for persons with disabilities.

Justice for rural women: An exploratory analysis of institutions and mechanisms to access justice in Chimborazo, Ecuador

“…Several studies have also examined the actions taken by African states to respond to the challenge of providing justice to women by enacting or amending laws and policies. However, as is commonly observed, rights-based strategies mean little or nothing for women who are hindered from accessing justice due to a myriad of factors, including illiteracy, poverty, discrimination, and marginalization [ [21] , [22] , [23] ].…”