In this letter, the Equal Rights Trust (ERT) calls on members of the National Assembly of Mali to ensure that the draft Persons and Family Code is not regressively amended in response to concerns about the extension of equal rights for women.

ERT says that ‘there is much to be welcomed in the Code’ and expresses its concern that progressive articles will be amended or removed in response to hostile pressure in recent months over the enactment of the Code. However, ERT also identifies three articles in the Code which undermine the principles of equal participation and non-discrimination, and calls for these provisions to be amended before the Code is adopted to avoid putting Mali in breach of international obligations