COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONCLUDES SEVENTEENTH SESSION AT HEADQUARTERS, 7-25 JULY

28 July 1997

Press Release
WOM/999

COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONCLUDES SEVENTEENTH SESSION AT HEADQUARTERS, 7-25 JULY

19970728 Adopts Recommendations on Reports of Namibia, Luxembourg, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Italy, Israel, Australia, Argentina, Bangladesh

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women concluded its seventeenth session Friday afternoon, 25 July, by adopting concluding comments and recommendations on reports presented by States parties to the Convention. It also adopted its report on the session as well as the report of its working group II and acted on the recommendations of its working group I, charged with examining working methods of the Committee.

Acting on the report of its working group I, the 23-member Committee, which is the monitoring body for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, decided to schedule its eighteenth session to begin on 19 January 1998 with the pre-session beginning on 12 January.

Addressing the concluding meeting of the Committee, Assistant Secretary- General and Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women Angela King said the session had seen a revolution in the Committee's approach to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and their contribution to its work. The Committee's openness to such organizations and to civil society in general had introduced a commendably transparent approach which was likely to heighten knowledge of the Convention and strengthen its implementation in States parties around the globe.

The Committee also adopted the provisional agenda for its eighteenth session as well as the report of its Chairperson on activities between the sixteenth and seventeenth sessions. Most of those activities had related to the Chairperson's participation in seminars organized by NGOs on the Convention. In addition, she attended the forty-first session of the Commission on the Status of Women, during which the open-ended working group on the draft optional protocol to the Convention held a parallel meeting.

During the Committee's three-week session, which began on 7 July, it heard and commented upon the country reports from Namibia, Luxembourg, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Italy, Israel, Australia, Argentina and Bangladesh.

Statement by Special Adviser on Gender Issues

ANGELA E. V. KING, Assistant Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, Division for the Advancement of Women, Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, said the issue of mainstreaming gender into the policies and programmes of the United Nations had been one of the main agenda items of the 1997 substantive session of the Economic and Social Council, held in Geneva this month, which she had attended. The item's discussion was fruitful, with Member States formulating strong agreed conclusions which would guide the United Nations in that important area. Moreover, the Council conclusions had specifically singled out the work of the Committee when it stated its practice 'in cooperating and collaborating with other treaty-monitoring bodies, should serve as a good example of the mainstreaming of a gender perspective throughout the United Nations system'.

She noted that the Committee's "historic" seventeenth session had allowed for considerable progress in the reduction of the backlog of reports of States parties awaiting review. She congratulated Committee members on their hard work, and also commended them on the considerable progress made on the Committee's working methods. She noted that the method of formulating concluding comments had been streamlined to allow for a more concentrated approach and timely dispatch of documentation to Conference Services. In addition, she said the Committee had adopted a new method of elaboration of general recommendations and set out a programme for their adoption.

She said the session had also seen a revolution in the Committee's approach to NGOs and in their contributions to its work. The Committee's openness to them and civil society had introduced a commendably transparent approach which was likely to heighten knowledge of the Convention and strengthen its implementation in States parties around the globe. The input of NGOs should allow the Committee to formulate a practical and concrete recommendation on article 12 of the Convention, relating to women's right to health, she added.

She assured Committee members of her commitment and those of her colleagues in the Division for the Advancement of Women to support their work. While in Geneva, she had discussed with the Officer-in-Charge and staff of the Centre for Human rights, the joint work-plan of the Division and the Centre. Also, the Division had in place a system for keeping the Committee Chairperson regularly apprised of new developments and matters of interest to the Committee. Similarly, Committee members would also be informed of relevant developments. As the Committee had been informed earlier, the Division's

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website on the Convention was also linked to the website of the Centre for Human Rights to assist users in accessing information on the human rights treaty regime as a whole. That was an integral part of the Division's overall collaboration with the Centre.

She said the Secretary-General had high hopes for the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. With the appointment of President Mary Robinson of Ireland, who would take up her duties as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on 12 September, together with the inputs of the Committee membership worldwide, the Secretary- General felt that women's human rights and the mainstreaming of a gender perspective in human rights, would be greatly enhanced, she concluded.

Committee Action on Working Group I Report

Acting on the recommendations of its working group I, the Committee made a provisional decision that it would consider reports of 10 States parties at its eighteenth session. The provisional list of country reports to be considered includes: initial reports of Azerbaijan, Belize, Croatia, Zaire and Zimbabwe; the second periodic reports of Bulgaria, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Indonesia; and the third periodic report of Mexico.

Further, it decided to hear nine reports of States parties at its nineteenth session. The provisional list of reports includes: the initial report of the Czech Republic; the second periodic reports of Germany, Panama and the United Republic of Tanzania; the third periodic reports of China, Belarus, Kenya and the United Kingdom; and the fourth periodic report of Peru.

In addition, it was decided that the Committee would consider the reports of seven States parties at its twentieth session. The provisional list includes: the second periodic reports of Greece, Nigeria and Thailand; and the third periodic reports of Austria, Egypt, Finland and Spain.

The Committee also decided that the Secretariat should advise States parties whose reports were overdue on receiving assistance from the United Nations system in preparing their reports. Further, the Committee decided that States parties which were presenting their reports at the January session should submit any additional information, including any additional reports, prior to 15 September. In the case of the July session, the Committee decided that additional information should be submitted by 30 March.

Further, the Committee decided that the maximum number of reports to be considered by it at each session would normally be eight but that a list of 10 countries would be proposed. In addition, it was decided that the standard format of concluding comments would be: introduction, positive factors; factors and difficulties; principal areas of concern; recommendations and suggestions.

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Committee Action on Working Group II Report

The Committee also acted on the recommendations of working group II, which advises it on the implementation of article 21 of the Convention. Article 21 requires that the Committee report annually to the General Assembly on its activities and make recommendations based on the reports of States parties.

During the current session, working group II discussed the Committee's method of preparation of general recommendations. It was decided that there should be a three-stage process of preparation for such recommendations. The first stage would be a general discussion on the subject of the proposed general recommendation by the Committee. Specialized agencies and NGOs would be encouraged to participate in the discussion and to prepare background papers.

At the second stage, the result of the general discussions would be compiled by a Committee member with the Secretariat's assistance in the form of an initial draft general recommendation. That draft would be discussed by working group II at the next session. Individuals and NGOs could be invited to participate in the discussion. The comments of the group would be incorporated in a revised draft which would be distributed to all experts before the next session. At the third stage, the revised draft would be submitted by the working group for consideration and adoption by the Committee as a whole.

Further, the Committee decided that its next general recommendation would relate to article 12 of the Convention pertaining to women and health. The Beijing Platform for Action and the report of the Cairo International Conference on Population and Development as well as other relevant documents should be used in the preparation of such a recommendation.

Also, the Committee decided that general recommendations on article 2 and 4 should be formulated independently. Under article 2, States parties agree to combat discrimination against women in various ways, including the adoption of laws prohibiting all such discrimination, and ensuring that public authorities and institutions refrain from any discriminatory act or practice. Article 4 states that temporary measures taken to accelerate women's equality, as well as maternity protection measures, shall not be considered discriminatory.

Further, the Committee decided that its contribution to the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights should include a written statement on reservations, particularly in the context of article 2. Silvia Cartwright, expert from New Zealand, was designated to submit a first

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draft of a statement relating to reservations for discussion at the Committee's eighteenth session, keeping in mind the observance of the fiftieth anniversary on 10 October 1998.

The Committee also decided that Ms. Cartwright be renominated as resource person to the open-ended working group on the elaboration of a draft optional protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, to be held in parallel with the forty-second and forty-third sessions of the Commission on the Status of Women in 1998 and 1999.

Committee Recommendations on Country Reports

The Committee recommendations on the States parties' reports were adopted as orally amended by the experts in a closed meeting.

Commenting on the initial report of Namibia, the Committee noted that Namibian women continued to face persistent discrimination arising out of some traditional and customary laws. A large proportion of Namibian women were not empowered economically and their poverty made it difficult for them to fulfil their aspirations as guaranteed by the Convention, the Committee also noted.

While welcoming Namibia's ratification of the Convention without reservations, the Committee noted with concern the persistent discrimination and the de facto reservations in the implementation of some of its provisions. It expressed concerns about the lack of time-frame and programmes to achieve affirmative action, as well as the prevalence of domestic violence and the persistence of stereotyped attitudes. Other concerns included insufficient health care for prostitutes, inadequacy of the law on rape and the high incidence of illegal abortions.

The Committee recommended that the Government of Namibia intensify educational and advocacy programmes to achieve de facto equality and to implement programmes that redefined the roles of women and men in the family. The Government was urged to take immediate action to combat domestic violence, including legal measures to amend the law on rape as well as introduce awareness-raising programmes. The Committee stressed the importance of women's economic empowerment to avoid their total dependence on men and their increased vulnerability to domestic violence.

Furthermore, the Government was urged to address the issue of polygamous marriages and to introduce an intensive programme to discourage it. While recognizing the need to sustain traditional courts, the Committee suggested that they should be made to comply with the Convention's principles. Political parties were to be asked to introduce affirmative action measures to encourage women's participation in elective office.

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In its comments on the initial and second periodic report of Luxembourg, the Committee welcomed the new governmental policy on cooperation with developing countries and the provision of funds for the advancement of women. It drew attention to the absence of a clear definition of the principle of equality between the sexes in Luxembourg's Constitution, and the persistence of gender disparities. The high level of violence against women, particularly domestic violence, was a worry as were restrictions of rights of divorced women to remarry. The Committee also expressed deep concern at the existing legislation on abortion, which penalized women, and noted the absence of mechanisms to prevent the practice, including free distribution of contraceptives.

The Committee was concerned that Luxembourg had not yet made use of Convention provisions to ensure equitable participation of women in the conduct of public affairs and, generally, in the economic, social and cultural life of the country. Additionally, it regretted that effective measures had still not been adopted to overcome attitudes based on traditional roles, which hindered equality between men and women.

In its recommendations, the Committee strongly urged the Government of Luxembourg to introduce steps to remove its reservations to articles 7 and 16 (g) of the Convention. [Article 7 covers the right of women to be elected and to hold public office on equal basis with men, while article 16 (g) provides for equal personal rights to husband and wife, including the right to choose a family name, a profession and an occupation.]

The Government was also urged to take initiatives to eliminate the gap between the treatment of women and men in the public and private sectors, and to adopt appropriate measures to combat sexual abuse and other forms of violence against women. Furthermore, it was also to remove laws that classified children as "legitimate/natural" or "illegitimate", a distinction that the Committee said was neither in the spirit of the present Convention nor of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Luxembourg was also a State party.

In its assessment of the initial, second and third periodic reports of Antigua and Barbuda, the Committee welcomed the introduction of important legislation, including the Equal Opportunity Act, the Divorce Act and the Sexual Offenses Act and looked forward to the results of another law on equal pay and domestic violence. Measures to address teenage pregnancy and focus on the situation of the girl child were applauded by the Committee.

A number of concerns expressed by the Committee covered the lack of measures to increase women's participation in political and public life; the low level of occupational achievement by educated women; continued illegality

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of abortion and the lack of family-planning education programmes; and the position of women in common-law relationships. The Committee noted the lack of special measures to help female drug addicts and those with HIV/AIDs.

In its recommendations, the Committee called for the upgrading of the Directorate of Women's Affairs and the integration of gender issues into the country's five-year development plan. The Government was urged to use the Convention's article 4 provisions to ensure equitable participation of women in public affairs. Noting the positive vehicle of culture to influence women's advancement, the Committee suggested the use of calypso music to promote respect for women. It recommended the introduction of programmes on appropriate sex education and family planning policies and encouragement of men to take account of their family responsibilities.

In its observations on the initial report of Armenia, the Committee commended the Government for ratifying the Convention without reservations so soon after its independence in 1991 and for reforming its laws to align them with the standards of international human rights instruments, including the Convention. Turning to factors and difficulties impeding the Convention's implementation in Armenia, the Committee noted women's marginalization resulting from the country's transition to market economy, as well as the economic toll of the 1988 earthquake and the armed conflict around Nagorny Karabakh.

It expressed grave concern about the absence of a specific national machinery for the advancement of women and the elimination of discrimination against them, and the Government's failure to acknowledge and address the issue of violence against women. The Committee urged the Government to establish that national machinery to integrate women's perspective and gender analysis into policy-making and development planning activities. Temporary affirmative action should be taken to create employment opportunities for women, including special credit and loan programmes for women entrepreneurs.

Furthermore, violence against women was to be given due attention, with the Government encouraging public discussion of its various forms, and initiating appropriate legislation and training of law enforcement officers, judges and health professionals. Victims of violence, particularly displaced and refugee women, were to be guaranteed the necessary psycho-social and health services.

In its concluding comments on the second and third periodic reports of Italy, the Committee welcomed the remarkable gains Italian women had made in the educational and occupational fields, but noted with deep concern their very limited presence in decision-making positions and in political participation. It was also concerned about the lack of programmes to sensitize the public and particularly the police, the judiciary and health professionals, to the conditions and needs of victims of domestic violence.

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Other areas of concern included the persistence of patriarchal norms and stereotypes in Italian society, particularly the relative lack of attention to the matter in governmental policies and by government officials.

The Italian Government was urged to continue current measures to empower women and mainstream gender issues. It was to encourage specific affirmative action goals and quotas to ensure women's de facto equality in political and decision-making positions. It was further urged to secure the enjoyment of women, in particular those in southern Italy, of their reproductive rights by, among other measures, guaranteeing them access to abortion services in public hospitals. The Government should ensure, the Committee said, that all women have an adequate income and that husbands and fathers provided financial support. It was also called upon to enforce the payment of alimony and financial support.

The Committee recommended that Italy, as a State member of the European Union, should take concrete initiatives to encourage acceptance of the Convention as a fundamental bill of rights for women.

On the initial and second periodic reports of Israel, the Committee observed that the persistence of conflict and violence between Jews and Palestinians hampered the implementation of the Convention and placed much power in the hands of the army, where women were denied the most senior leadership posts. Israel was commended for its advanced legislation on violence against women and equal employment opportunities.

Areas of concern identified by the Committee included the lack of an overall plan to fully implement the Convention and the Beijing Platform for Action; non-existence of a governmental machinery to promote and coordinate policies for women, and the continuing practice of polygamy, forced marriage and genital mutilation, as well as crimes of honour. The Committee expressed concern about the living conditions of non-Jewish women, noting that they had poor health and a lower level of education, participated less in government service and employment in general and occupied hardly any decision-making posts. The Committee urged special measures to eliminate all those problems.

It also recommended that the right to equality and the prohibition of discrimination should be reflected in a basic law and that Israel should complete the secularization of its legislation on marriage and family relations and withdraw its reservations to articles 7 (b) and 16 of the Convention. [Article 7 covers the right of women to be elected and to hold public office on equal basis with men, while article 16 spells out women's equal rights in matters relating to marriage and family relations.]

Reiterating its conviction that full development and the cause of peace required the maximum participation of women on equal terms with men in all fields, the Committee recommended the adoption of measures to ensure that all

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women, Jewish and Christian, Muslim and Druze alike, exercise their rights fully. The measures should also promote equality of opportunities in economic and social development, with particular attention being paid to women in rural areas.

The Government was also urged to expand its action to eliminate violence against women, especially violence within the family and in all communities. Resources allocated to the treatment of infertility should be used to study its causes and prevention, the Committee suggested. Contraceptives should be included among the medicines which the public-health services supplied free of charge, it added.

The Government of Australia was commended for its past initiatives and efforts to promote and protect the human rights of women nationally and internationally, as the Committee examined its third periodic report. Australia's leadership for the advancement of women at the Beijing Fourth World Conference on Women was singled out for praise. Its pioneering role in addressing violence against women and the measures and strategies it had put in place to prevent and eliminate it were welcomed. However, the Committee noted that Australia's report did not comply with its reporting guidelines and that the lengthy oral presentation by the Australian representative impeded dialogue.

The Committee also noted that the third report essentially reiterated information considered at the time of presentation of Australia's second periodic report in 1994, and that it could have combined it with the fourth, which was due in August 1996, to enable the Committee to explore more fully the developments which had taken place since 1995, when the third report was submitted.

It observed that Australia's continued reservations to the Convention's provisions on paid maternity leave and "combat-related" employment in the armed forces, constituted an obstacle to the full implementation of the treaty.

The Government's apparent shift in attention and commitment to the human rights of women and the achievement of gender equality caused concern. The Committee expressed alarm about policy changes that had apparently slowed down, or reversed Australia's progress in achieving gender equality, such as in housing and childcare programmes, and in employment assistance.

The Committee recommended that a comprehensive strategy to eliminate violence against women should be adopted following the planned national domestic violence summit this year. Ways should be found to involve women's groups in the development of strategies to reduce the portrayal of violence in

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the media, and in their participation in the development of self-regulatory codes of practice of the media. The Government should further assess its monitoring and enforcement responsibilities in that regard.

The Government was also encouraged to collect statistical data on the participation of indigenous women in the workforce, in decision-making, in politics and administration and in the judiciary. The Committee suggested the inclusion of representatives of the indigenous communities when Australia presented its next report.

On Argentina's second and third reports, the Committee viewed positively the constitutional recognition of the competence of the National Congress to adopt affirmative-action laws to guarantee equality of opportunity and treatment in all spheres and especially to promote access by women to elective and party offices. It also welcomed the increase in the number of women parliamentarians as a result of the effective application of the Quotas Act.

The Committee, however, expressed concern about the lack of data and analysis of the situation of women subjected to slavery and exploitation for prostitution. Other concerns included, the worsening living conditions of women in rural areas, the few managerial posts occupied by women in the private sector, the high unemployment rate of women and the absence of regulations to penalize sexual harassment in the private sector workplace.

The Committee called for an early reform of Argentina's Penal Code to bring it in line with the Convention's provisions, its general recommendations and the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women. The Government was told to reinforce programmes designed to eliminate stereotyping of the social roles of women and men and to increase awareness among the police, judges and health-care professionals concerning the gravity of all forms of violence against women. The Government was also to provide information on measures taken to avoid discrimination in access to employment and to apply the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions on equal remuneration and on family responsibilities.

Positive aspects of the combined third and fourth periodic reports of Bangladesh noted by the Committee included the existence of constitutional guarantees to equality between women and men, as well as laws ensuring the equality and protection of women. It noted the positive impact of the presence of 30 reserved seats for women in Parliament and welcomed the inclusion of women's concerns in all of the Government's development plans.

The Committee expressed serious concern over the alarming levels of violence against women and the Government's inability to enforce effectively existing laws and to provide relief and justice to victims. The Committee was concerned about the inadequacy of available primary health and reproductive

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health services and their inaccessibility to poor, rural and marginalized women.

Other issues decried by the Committee included the poor working conditions of women, particularly the non-implementation of minimum wage levels and the lack of social and health benefits. It also noted with concern the continued prevalence of stereotyped and patriarchal attitudes towards women.

The Committee urged the Government of Bangladesh to review its remaining reservations to articles 2 and 16 (1) (a) of the Convention to eventually withdraw them. [Under the articles, State parties are to, respectively, take measures to prohibit discriminatory practices against women, and to ensure that they have the same right to enter into marriage.]

The Government was also urged to strengthen its enforcement and monitoring of existing laws and policies on violence against women and to set up a separate prison facility and comprehensive programme of rehabilitation for women prisoners. Other recommendations included measures to hasten the implementation of education programmes to eliminate illiteracy, improvement by the Government of wage levels and terms and conditions of women workers in the export processing zones as well as the informal sector; and strengthening reproductive health services,

Other Matters

Also at the current session, the Committee heard reports from a number of specialized agencies on Convention-related activities. It received an update on the progress of the working group of the Commission on the Status of Women, which is developing a draft optional protocol to the Convention that would allow individuals and groups to petition the Committee directly.

Background on Committee, Convention

The Committee of experts, who serve in their personal capacity, monitors the implementation of the Convention, which was adopted by the General Assembly in 1979, opened for signature in March 1980, and entered into force in 1981. The Convention -- ratified by 160 countries as of July 1997 -- requires States parties to eliminate discrimination against women in the enjoyment of all civil, political, economic and cultural rights. In pursuing the Convention's goals, States parties are encouraged to introduce affirmative action measures designed to promote equality between men and women.

Often described as an international bill of rights for women, the Convention, in its 30 articles, defines discrimination against women and provides an agenda for national action to end such discrimination. With 160 signatories, the Convention is now among the international human rights

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treaties with the largest number of ratifications. However, it is also among the treaties with the highest number of reservations by States parties. States Parties

The following 160 States have either ratified or acceded to the Convention: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyz Republic, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania and Luxembourg. Also Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Thailand, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Committee Membership, Officers The 23-expert members of the Committee, serving in their personal capacity, are: Charlotte Abaka, of Ghana; Ayse Feride Acar, of Turkey; Emna Aouij, of Tunisia; Tendai Ruth Bare, of Zimbabwe; Desiree Patricia Bernard, of Guyana; Carlota Bustelo Garcia del Real, of Spain; Silvia Rose Cartwright, of New Zealand; Ivanka Corti, of Italy; Aurora Javate de Dios, of the Philippines; Miriam Yolanda Castillo, of Ecuador; Yolanda Ferrer Gomez, of Cuba; Aida Gonzalez, of Mexico; Sunaryati Hartono, of Indonesia; Salma Khan, of Bangladesh; Yung-Chung Kim, of Republic of Korea; Ahoua Ouedraogo, of Burkina Faso; Anne Lise Ryel, of Norway; Ginko Sato, of Japan; Hanna Beate Schopp-Shilling, of Germany; Carmel Shalev, of Israel; Lin Shangzhen, of China; Kongit Sinegiorgis, of Ethiopia; and Mervat Tallaway, of Egypt. The Chairperson of the Committee is Ms. Khan, of Bangladesh. Ms. Abaka, of Ghana; Ms. Bustelo del Real, of Spain; and Ms. Estrada Castillo, of Ecuador, are Vice-Chairpersons. Ms. Javate de Dios, of the Philippines, is the Rapporteur.

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