Four elections were subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court, and by-elections were held. Women occasionally reach high public office. The 12-member Cabinet has 1 female member, and women hold 3 of the 49 seats in Parliament. The first female judge was named in 1994, and the first female Attorney General was appointed in 1997. Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights A number of human rights groups operated without government restriction.
Government officials are usually cooperative.
The Constitution prohibits discrimination based on race, sex, religion, disability, language, or social status. This is a homogeneous society with no significant ethnic minorities. Politics and culture are the product of a heritage of chiefly privilege and power, and members of certain families have some advantages. While the law prohibits abuse of women, social custom tolerates their physical abuse within the home. While police receive some complaints from abused women, domestic violence offenders are typically punished by village councils, but only if the abuse is considered extreme.