2007 marked the 21st anniversary of the entry into force of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and the establishment of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. It was a moment both for celebration and for reflection on the achievements and the limitations of the charter and its implementation. The purpose of this book, which accompanies a special issue of the award-winning electronic newsletter Pambazuka News, is not only to mark the 20th anniversary, but also to popularise understanding of the work of the commission. The essays in this book review the achievements of the commission since its establishment, with contributions from Hakima Abbas, Korir Sing'Oei Abraham, Roselynn Musa , Mireille Affa'a Mindzie, Otto Saki, as well as interviews with Commissioner Bahame Tom Mukirya Nyanduga, Special Rapporteur on Refugees and Displaced Persons in Africa, and Commissioner Faith Pansy Tlakula, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression in Africa. The articles appear in English in the first part of the book with French translations in the second.

This is the French translation of Breathing Life into the African Union Protocol on Women's Rights in Africa.

The papers in this book are the product of a conference jointly convened in Addis Ababa in September 2005 by the African Union Women, Gender and Development Directorate and Solidarity for African Women's Rights (SOAWR), a coalition of more than 20 gender, human rights and development NGOs in Africa, including the African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies, FEMNET, Association des Juristes Maliennes, Equality Now, Fahamu, Fundacao para o desenvolvimento da Comunidade (an organisation founded by Graca Machel in Mozambique), Oxfam GB and Women in Law and Development in Africa.