COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONCLUDES EIGHTEENTH SESSION, 19 JANUARY - 6 FEBRUARY
Press Release
WOM/1027
COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONCLUDES EIGHTEENTH SESSION, 19 JANUARY - 6 FEBRUARY
19980209 Adopts Recommendations for Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Mexico, ZimbabweThe Committee monitoring the implementation of the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women concluded its three-week session Friday, 6 February, by adopting its report containing a series of recommendations for Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Mexico and Zimbabwe.
The 23-member expert Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women arrived at those recommendations following its examination of the reports of the eight States parties on measures they have taken to give effect to the Convention, the most comprehensive, legally binding treaty on women's human rights.
By article 18 of the Convention, States parties are required to submit an initial report within one year of accession to the Convention and periodic reports at least every four years. The reports are to give account of the legislative, judicial, administrative and other measures adopted by the States.
Addressing the Committee at its final meeting, the Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, Angela King, said she was struck by the entrenched discrimination of patriarchal practices which continued to impede the implementation of the provisions of the Convention. Also striking was the complexity of problems facing women in countries in transition, including the risk of various forms of violence, trafficking, prostitution, and exploitation of reproductive rights. She reiterated the full support of the Division for the Advancement of Women, and reaffirmed her own personal commitment to the Committee's work.
Also at the final meeting, the Committee adopted the provisional agenda of its next session, scheduled to be held from 22 June to 10 July. It decided to take up at that session the reports of Jordan, Slovakia, Greece, Nigeria, Panama, United Republic of Tanzania, New Zealand, and the Republic of Korea.
The reports of Peru, Belarus and Spain would be considered in the absence of those of the other countries.
By another decision, the Committee agreed to discuss at its next session a working paper on draft general recommendations on article 12, concerning the protection and promotion of women's health, which had been prepared by working group II. At its previous session last year, the Committee had decided to select and review specific articles of the Convention and consider other issues as part of a long-term programme.
The report of working group I, which dealt with ways and means of improving the Committee's work, was adopted at the recently concluded session. Its recommendations included strengthening the cooperation and coordination between the Committee and related United Nations bodies, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); the Special Rapporteurs of the Commission on Human Rights on violence against women; on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography; and on the elimination of all forms of religious intolerance.
Following endorsement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, the Committee decided to ask the Division, in consultation with the Office of the High Commissioner, to study the means of achieving a proposal that it should meet occasionally in Geneva in order to enhance relationships with other human rights mechanisms. The Division was requested to brief the Committee at its nineteenth session.
Members also invited the High Commissioner to consider including a comprehensive public information programme in her initiatives on women's human rights, particularly in those countries which had problems in fully implementing the Convention. A training programme for gender sensitization, including for police, teachers, the judiciary, and health professionals, should also be considered.
In closing remarks, the Committee Chairperson, Salma Khan, expert from Bangladesh, said that Mrs. Robinson's address to the Committee had brought it to the centre stage of human rights. The High Commissioner had affirmed her commitment to take up the struggle against widespread gender discrimination as a matter of priority.
Apart from the High Commissioner, the Committee, which began its session on 19 January, was also addressed by other senior officials.
The Director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), Noeleen Heyzer, agreed to deepen its partnership with the Committee. The Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Nafis Sadik, said that society's will and not the creation of laws curtailed practices such as rape, female genital mutilation and discrimination against
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pregnant women in the workplace. Addressing the Committee for the first time, the Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance, Abdelfattah Amor, cautioned the experts about States parties' reliance on religion as an alibi for preserving intolerable situations that limited women's humanity and relegated them to subordinate positions.
A summary of the Committee's comments and recommendations in response to the initial reports of Azerbaijan, Croatia, Czech Republic and Zimbabwe; the combined second and third periodic reports of Bulgaria and Indonesia; the combined second, third and fourth periodic reports of the Dominican Republic; and the combined third and fourth periodic reports of Mexico follows.
Committee Comments and Recommendations
On the initial periodic report of Azerbaijan, the Committee recognized the severe economic, social and political challenges the country was facing as a result of its post-war conditions and recognized their effect on compliance with the Convention. The Committee was concerned by the fact that there was no definition of discrimination either in the Constitution or in the laws. There was also insufficient governmental commitment to eliminating deeply rooted patriarchal attitudes and to avoiding the danger of the insurgence of fundamentalist tendencies.
The Committee was worried about the high level of maternal, as well as infant, mortality and the fact that there was insufficient recourse to international emergency aid in that field. Also, insufficient efforts had been introduced to combat violence against women. On the issue of health, the Committee was alarmed by the widespread use of abortion as a basic means of family planning, and it expressed concern about the general health situation of women, particularly with the spread of tuberculosis and other contagious diseases. Health protection and education available for women living in rural areas and for refugee women were also inadequate.
Other areas of concern included the following: the discrepancies between de jure and de facto equality, especially in the field of employment and education; the lack of measures taken to integrate women into employment and to assist displaced and refugee women; the situation of women victims of prostitution and trafficking; and the growing percentage of unemployment among women which had not been addressed by the Government.
Expressing its appreciation to the Government of Azerbaijan for ratifying the Convention without reservations, the Committee recommended that its provisions be reflected in legislation, particularly that concerning health, education and labour.
The Committee recommended that the Government identify the role of the national machinery for the advancement of women and provide the necessary
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human and budgetary resources. It called for the elaboration of adequate family-planning programmes to avoid the use of abortion as a means of birth control and diminish the risks of maternal mortality due to unsafe abortions, and of a national plan of action to implement the Beijing Platform for Action adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women. The Committee further recommended that migrant women be provided with adequate information to protect them from traffickers and others who seek to exploit women for the purpose of prostitution.
The Committee was very concerned of the view in the initial report of Croatia that women bore full responsibility for their low level of participation in public life, and particularly concerned about the emphasis on women's roles as mothers and caregivers in Croatian legislation. It was disturbed by the Government's view that there was no need to specify gender inequality every time the issue of equality was raised. The Committee believed that it might contribute to concealment of de facto inequality. It expressed concern about the adequacy of measures encouraging women to come forward with domestic violence complaints.
It was also concerned, among others, by the close relationship between the Government and the Church-related non-governmental organizations, which, it felt, could compromise the demarcation between the secular State and the Church; that services pertaining to women's reproductive health were the first to be cut in times of financial restraint; and by information that some hospitals refused to provide abortions on the basis of conscientious objection of doctors.
Commending the fact that the Convention had been incorporated into the national laws of Croatia, the Committee recommended that the Government undertake specific affirmative actions targeted to numerical goals and quotas in areas such as political and decision-making positions of public life where women's de facto equality was not improving at the desired pace.
The Committee urged the Croatian Government to give further consideration to the following, among others: measures to eliminate stereotypes that restricted women's role to that of mothers and caregivers; the appointment of an ombudsperson to deal specifically with women's rights; and the possibility of instituting a system of restraining orders to protect women subjected to domestic violence.
The Croatian Government was also urged to take further measures to promote recognition of the variety of roles that women played in society. To that end, it was crucial to educate the Croatian public on the importance of an equitable distribution between women and men of family roles and "caring responsibilities". It strongly recommended that the Government take steps to secure women's enjoyment of their reproductive rights by, among other measures, guaranteeing them access to abortion services in public hospitals.
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In addition, the Government should fully examine the implications for women of funding cuts for contraceptives.
In its consideration of the initial report of the Czech Republic, the Committee noted that, despite numerous equality provisions in the Constitution, Czech law did not provide a clear definition of discrimination or address de facto inequalities between men and women. There was also inadequate and declining representation of women in decision-making positions and a decline in the number of women's non-governmental organizations. The Committee was particularly concerned with the absence of special legislation on violence against women and was alarmed by the Government's perception that there was no need for such legislation.
The Czech Republic was not taking adequate measures to promote a positive all-round image of women or to encourage family responsibility, and the Committee noted with concern that prostitution and trafficking in women were approached exclusively in the context of combating organized crime. Other concerns were: the de facto promotion of stereotypical roles in some schools; the existing gender gap in wages between women and men; the high rate of induced abortions; the inadequate responses to questions regarding the participation of women in public and political life; and discrimination against women within marriage and family.
To address those concerns, the Committee recommended that the Government help establish national machinery to implement, coordinate and monitor compliance with the Convention. Also, numerical goals and targets should be implemented to boost women's participation in leadership positions. The Czech Government should enact specific laws to prevent violence against women, and measures should be taken to prevent prostitution and trafficking of women. The Government was also encouraged to educate health professionals and the public on the use and misuse of contraceptives and to launch efforts to promote a positive image of women.
The Committee complimented the Government of the Czech Republic for exhibiting clear commitment to the promotion of human rights. It also noted the high standards of health coverage in that country.
Responding to the initial periodic report of Zimbabwe, the Committee noted with great concern that, although the national laws guaranteed the equal status of women, some of the customary laws made discrimination against women possible. Prevailing traditional attitudes towards women helped create and sustain negative images of women in society and led to such discriminatory practices as lobola, polygamy, and female genital mutilation especially among rural women.
Principal areas of concern by the Committee were that much of the violence against women, particularly domestic violence, was not recognized
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by law, and the Government provided insufficient support to help victims. Although ministries and national machinery for protecting women's rights existed, they had no real power or responsibility to initiate policy. The country also lacked a central coordinating body for its gender programmes and it had a low level of women's participation in decision-making positions. Other concerns included: the criminalization of prostitutes while their clients went unpunished; the prevailing negative attitudes and practices concerning rural women; and the lack of support system to enable pregnant teenagers to continue their schooling.
Expressing its appreciation for the Government's strong commitment to advancing the status of women, the Committee urged the Government to take a more proactive role to abolish discriminatory customs and practices. Zimbabwe should review the functions of the National Machinery for the Advancement of Women to provide it with the authority and financial resources to initiate and implement programmes to eliminate discrimination against women. As a necessary temporary measure, affirmative action should be used to promote the status of women in all spheres of society. The Committee also recommended that the Government codify family and customary laws, incorporating only the positive traditional customs and practices.
On the second and third reports of Bulgaria, the Committee was concerned that there were no special laws aimed at bringing about women's de facto, as well as de jure, equality, and that the Government had not demonstrated a commitment to introduce special temporary measures. Also, the reports did not reflect any government strategy regarding a national machinery to address women's issues and to implement the Convention. Much more progress was possible regarding the participation of women in Government, especially in view of the large number of highly educated women in Bulgaria.
The Committee was particularly alarmed by the overwhelming number of people living below the poverty line in Bulgaria, which was approximately 80 per cent. That was a concern because women were most likely to be adversely affected by poverty. One of the Committee's dominant concerns was the problem of violence against women, both in the public and private spheres. Among other concerns were: the trafficking of women and prostitution; the level of unemployment of Bulgarian women; the low rate of Roma children participating in school; the extremely high rate of abortion among women and especially young women; and the inadequate information provided on the situation of rural women.
The Committee recommended that the Government give priority to the establishment of a strong and effective national machinery for advancing the position of women especially during the time of transition. Legislative measures should be taken to protect women from all forms of violence and to prevent the trafficking of women. In that regard, the Government should provide yearly information on the number of people who have been arrested for trafficking and the number of women trafficked in and out of the country. The Committee also
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urged the Government to encourage consultation between Bulgarian women's organizations and European women's organizations.
The Committee commended Bulgaria for withdrawing its reservations to article 29 of the Convention, regarding disputes between parties, and noted the changes implemented that had brought about respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
In its consideration of the second and third periodic reports of Indonesia, the Committee considered it especially commendable that Indonesia, one of the largest Muslim countries in the world, had not entered the reservations to articles that many other Muslim countries had. However, it was disappointing that change had not taken place as fast as it should have and that many of the problems identified in the initial report remained unresolved. The Committee was very concerned at the existence of discrimination in laws that required a woman to obtain her husband's consent in order to obtain a passport, to undergo sterilization procedures, or to obtain an abortion. Laws also existed that allow polygamy and underage marriages. Other laws restricted women's access to loans and credit, women's ability to own and inherit land, and their entitlement to social, health and other benefits in the labour sector.
Another area of concern was the extent to which Muslim women were able to choose to have civil law applied to their affairs rather than Islamic law. Also, while eradication of discrimination at the de jure level existed in a number of areas, the Committee questioned how equal the situation of women was in practice and how many women benefited from the application of civil law. Existing cultural and social norms that confined women to stereotypical roles in society were of great concern to the Committee, and it was unclear what steps the Government was proposing to modify such attitudes.
Other concerns of the Committee included: the low rate of participation in education and high illiteracy levels among women; the lower-paid and lower- skilled work women were relegated to; the lack of information on violence against women; the reports of death and abuse of Indonesian migrant women abroad; and the limited information provided on the problem of HIV/AIDS.
The Committee asked Indonesia in its next report to provide further information on: child-care services and support for women; measures to address the problem of prostitution; labour policy guidelines; and the economic crisis and its effect on women. Particular care must be taken to ensure that the current economic crisis did not have a particularly detrimental impact on Indonesian women. The Committee urged the Government to collect data on the extent of violence against women, as well as sources of such violence. Indonesia should address the contradiction between its stated commitments to principles contained in the Convention and the actual situation facing women. The Committee also urged that immediate steps be taken to eradicate the practice of polygamy and to change other discriminatory laws.
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In its consideration of the second, third and fourth periodic reports of the Dominican Republic, the Committee noted the adoption of several new laws and legal revisions to bring domestic situations into greater conformity with the Convention, including revisions to the agrarian reform, education and electoral laws. It was concerned that discriminatory provisions continued to exist, including provisions in the Civil Code, the nationality law, and marriage and family laws. Discriminatory provisions regarding unmarried women, as well as single mothers, persisted in social security provisions and in land inheritance rights. The Committee expressed deep concern about the economic consequences of women's poverty. As a result of this, women's migration to urban areas and to foreign countries made them susceptible to sexual exploitation, including trafficking and sex tourism. Also, despite the high number of women-headed households, no affirmative measures had been taken to support women's efforts to break the cycle of poverty.
The Committee was also concerned about the rigid social codes adhered to in the country and the persistence of machismo, which was reflected in areas such as women's low participation in public life, in the portrayal of women's role in the family, and in the segregated labour market. Other areas of concern were: the insufficient cooperation and networking established between the Dirección General de Promoción de la Mujer and women in positions of power; the situation of women workers who suffered considerable discrimination in income and benefits; and the high rate of maternal mortality which was caused by toxaemia, haemorrhages during childbirth and clandestine abortions.
The Committee encouraged the Government to include in its next report detailed information on the practical implementation of the Convention and to provide the Dirección General with the necessary authority and with adequate human and financial resources to implement special programmes for women. The Dominican Republic should also make women a priority in its poverty eradication strategy, with particular emphasis placed on the mainstreaming of a gender perspective in all poverty eradication efforts. The Committee also strongly urged the Government to pursue bilateral agreements and to cooperate in multilateral efforts to reduce and eradicate traffic in women and to protect migrant women from exploitation.
In examining Mexico's consolidated third and fourth periodic reports, the Committee stressed the importance of the establishment of the National Programme for Women: Alliance for Equality (PRONAM), a national mechanism to promote women's equality. The Committee was concerned, however, about the discrimination faced by indigenous women and rural women in the areas of health, education and employment. The Government should also take necessary measures to prevent violence against indigenous women and children in the state of Chiapas.
According to information the Committee received, Mexican labour legislation, especially regarding reproductive rights, had been violated. In
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certain areas, the principle of equal salary for equal work were not applied, and pregnant women or women of child-bearing age had been prevented from being hired. Also, in spite of legislation prohibiting violence against women, instances of violence, especially domestic violence, continued to be a serious problem.
Other areas of concern included: the high and unsatisfied demand for contraceptive methods; possible instances of illicit traffic in women; the effects of decentralization of education on gender equality; the shortage of health-care services; the stereotyped roles of women perpetuated in the family; the high rate of teenage pregnancy and the lack of a procedure that enabled women to obtain legal abortions; and the absence of information on Mexican women who migrated abroad.
The Committee recommended that the Mexican Government continue efforts to reduce poverty among rural women and indigenous women, and promote education, employment and health programmes for their integration in the development process. The Government was asked to consider revising the legislation criminalizing abortion. Nation-wide legislation on violence against women should also be adopted that included domestic violence, and a long-term plan combating violence should be implemented. Also, strong action should be taken against employers who discriminated against women on grounds of pregnancy.
Women's Anti-Discrimination Convention
Adopted in 1979, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is the most comprehensive, legally binding treaty on women's human rights. Often referred to as an international bill of rights for women, the Convention sets up an agenda for national action to end discrimination. The first 16 articles of the Convention call on States parties to take appropriate measures to ensure women's civil, political, economic and cultural rights and their legal equality.
By the terms of the Convention, States parties are called on to take measures such as: guaranteeing basic human rights and fundamental freedoms of women; ensuring the suppression of the traffic in, and the exploitation of the prostitution, of women; eliminating discrimination against women in political and public life; ensuring equal rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality; and eliminating discrimination in the fields of education, employment, health and other areas of economic and social life. Other articles address issues such as problems faced by rural women, equality before the law and elimination of discrimination against women within marriage and the family. The rights of women to take part in the political and public life of their countries and to perform all functions at all levels of government are also guaranteed by the Convention.
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Article 1 of the Convention defines discrimination against women as follows: "any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field".
States Parties
The following 161 States have either ratified or acceded to the Convention, which entered into force on 3 September 1981: 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, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, 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, Myanmar, 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, Slovakia, 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
The 23-expert members of the Committee, serving in their personal capacity, are as follows: Charlotte Abaka, of Ghana; Ayse Feride Acar, of Turkey; Emma 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 Estrada Castillo, of Ecuador; Yolanda Ferrer Gomez, of Cuba; Aida Gonzalez, of Mexico; Sunaryati Hartono, of
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Indonesia; Salma Khan, of Bangladesh; Yung-Chung kim, of the Republic of Korea; Ahoua Ouedraogo, of Burkina Faso; Anne Lise Ryel, of Norway; Ginko Sato, of Japan; Hanna Beate Schopp-Schilling, of Germany; Carmel Shalev, of Israel; Lin Shangzhen, of China; Kongit Sinegiorgis, of Ethiopia; and Mervat Tallawy, Egypt.
Officers of Committee
The Chairperson of the Committee is Ms. Khan, of Bangladesh. The Vice- Chairpersons are: Ms. Abaka, of Ghana; Ms. Bustelo Garcia del Real, of Spain; and Ms. Estrada, of Ecuador. Ms. de Dios, of the Philippines, is the Committee's Rapporteur. They were elected in January 1997 for a two-year term.
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