Rights groups ask regional leaders to protect them

West African human rights defenders have appealed to the subregion's governments to recognise their roles and stop the persecution to which they are subjected, PANA reported. The call capped a seminar on 'The role of human rights defenders in the consolidation of democracy in Africa' that ended in Dakar on Friday. The seminar was organised by the Coalition of West African Human Rights Defenders, PANA reported. The group urged governments to make sure that civil servants do not hamper the work of human rights defenders. They deplored the continued persecution of rights activists, some of whom have been murdered, tortured, raped, arrested and detained, forced into exile or subjected to death threats and loss of employment. They urged West African states to offer asylum to persecuted human rights defenders and set aside a day to sensitise national and public opinion about the key role they play in democratic societies. They also called on civil society, the media, and UN and other international organisations to join hands in the protection of human rights defenders. The seminar was attended by rights advocates from Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo, PANA said.