SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN WARNS OF THREATS TO GAINS ON WOMEN’S HUMAN RIGHTS

SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN WARNS

OF THREATS TO GAINS ON WOMEN’S HUMAN RIGHTS

As Commission Continues Consideration of Women’s Human Rights,

Speakers Raise Issues on Human Trafficking, HIV/AIDS Infection, Domestic Violence

(Delayed in transmission.)

GENEVA, 5 April (UN Information Service) -- The Special Rapporteur on violence against women this morning addressed the Commission on Human Rights, warning against alarming trends toward political conservatism and backlash which threatened the gains made thus far in the global women’s human rights agenda.

Yakin Erturk, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, said she had emphasized the universality of violence against women, the multiplicity of its forms and the intersectionality of diverse kinds of discrimination against women rooted in other systems of subordination and inequality in her report to the Commission.  Thus, while recognizing positive developments, it must also be noted that great divisions among humankind were increasingly articulated along cultural lines and that the management of conflict based on cultural and religious specificities often resulted in the justification of violence against women both within and between conflicting groups. 

On the subject of official visits undertaken in 2004, Ms. Erturk said she had been to both El Salvador and Guatemala in February.  While both countries had the necessary legal framework in international human rights law, the challenges faced were grave as violence against women and girls continued to be widespread inside and outside the home. The official response to brutal murders of women had illustrated that violence against women was not seen as a serious crime.  Moreover, women in both countries shared problems related to the armed conflicts and, more recently, related to the violence and exploitation linked with domestic and transnational criminal networks. 

El Salvador, speaking as a concerned country, affirmed that the protection of women was a priority at both the national and international levels and that efforts had been made to implement important projects for the modernization of organizations entrusted with oversight of violence against women.

Guatemala, also speaking as a concerned country, highlighted the priority accorded to combating the causes and consequences of violence against women.  Among ongoing efforts, a new unit had been established within the national civil police to investigate crimes against women.

Switzerland, Canada, Cuba, Ireland (on behalf of the European Union) and Pakistan participated in the inter-active dialogue that followed the Special Rapporteur’s presentation.

As the Commission continued with its general debate on the integration of women’s human rights and the gender perspective, it heard from national delegations who emphasized the need to ensure effective implementation – into national legislation and practice – of international agreements, the rising threat of trafficking in women and children and the interconnectedness of HIV/AIDS infection and the vulnerability of women due to traditional cultural and sexual roles.

Participating in the general debate were Representatives of the Dominican Republic, New Zealand (on behalf of Canada and Australia), Ireland (on behalf of the European Union), Lithuania (on behalf of the Baltic and Nordic States), Sri Lanka, Republic of Korea, South Africa, Cuba, China, India, Paraguay, Pakistan, Bahrain, Croatia, United States, Sudan, Indonesia, Nigeria, Bhutan and Chile.

Speaking in exercise of the right of reply were the Representatives of Japan, the United States and the Republic of Korea.

The Commission will resume its consideration of the integration of the human rights of women and the gender perspective at 3 p.m. this afternoon.

Documents on Women’s Human Rights

Under this agenda item the Commission has before it the report (E/CN.4/2004/66 and Add.1) of Yakin Erturk, Special Rapporteur on violence against Women, its Causes and Consequences, which concludes that violence against women is a continuum of acts that violate women’s basic human rights, resulting in devastating consequences for women who experience it, traumatic impact on those who witness it, de-legitimization of States that fail to prevent it and the impoverishment of entire societies that tolerate it.  Over the past decade, the problem has gained recognition as a human rights violation that can be eliminated through political will and legal and civil action.  On the other hand, increased trends towards militarization, armed conflict and global terrorism have naturally focused on violence in emergency situations, while the proximity of people of different cultures has drawn attention to the “other”:  both often result in a normalization of violence against women and have caused a depoliticization of public discourse on violence against women in certain areas.

The report cites among the critical issues requiring further attention promoting a constructive dialogue among civilizations and diffusing the adverse impact of religious extremism on women’s human rights; the impact of transnationalism on women in terms of types of violence encountered, the multiplicity of normative systems at work and the multiplicity of State and non-State actors involved; strengthening the capacity of States to comply effectively with their obligations under international law; the intersection of violence against women and the HIV/AIDS pandemic; and “gender budgeting as a mechanism for monitoring State compliance with international law to eliminate violence against women”.

The Addendum contains summaries of general individual allegations, as well as urgent appeals transmitted to Governments, and their replies.  Such communications were carried out with Angola, Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Uruguay.

There is also a report of the Secretary-General on the joint work plan of the Division for the Advancement of Women and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (E/CN.4/2004/65-E/CN.6/2004/7), which contains an assessment of the implementation of the current work plan and sets forth the joint work plan for 2004, including aspects for support for human rights bodies; support for intergovernmental bodies and special procedures; technical cooperation, advisory services and meetings; awareness raising and outreach; and inter-agency coordination.

Violence against Women

YAKIN ERTURK, Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, stressed that her report emphasized the universality of violence against women, the multiplicity of its forms and the intersectionality of diverse kinds of discrimination against women rooted in other systems of subordination and inequality.  She had also expanded upon the concept of violence again women to capture that wide spectrum of acts manifested “from the domicile to the transnational arena”.  New issues and concerns were continually emerging and transnational actors, including intergovernmental organizations, corporations and other business enterprises, among others, were implicated in the need for further standard setting and implementation.

Official missions had been undertaken to El Salvador and Guatemala in February 2004, she said, while noting that the final mission reports would be presented during the Commission’s 2005 session.  While both countries had the necessary legal framework in international human rights law, the challenges were grave as violence against women and girls continued to be widespread inside and outside of the home.  The official response to the brutal murders of women who had been kidnapped and later found dead with signs of rape and torture illustrated that violence against women – whether domestic violence, rape or sexual harassment -– was not seen as a serious crime.  Women in both countries also shared problems related to the long years of armed conflict and to more recent problems of violence and exploitation linked to domestic and transnational criminal networks.  Most crimes remained uninvestigated, resulting in impunity, reinforcing patterns of gender discrimination and constituting a source of perpetual terror in the everyday lives of women.  However, among positive developments, legal reforms had been undertaken in El Salvador, while Guatemala and the United Nations had recently agreed to establish a Commission for the Investigation of Illegal Groups and Clandestine Security Organizations.

While violence against women persisted in all countries, the international women’s movement and human rights advocates worldwide had made the issue a priority on the international agenda, the Special Rapporteur noted.  The Declaration by women Ministers of Foreign Affairs and other dignitaries made at the beginning of the Commission’s present session, and the high-level segment’s focus on violence against women, were encouraging.  However, concern must also be expressed over alarming trends toward political conservatism and backlash, which threatened the gains made thus far in the global women’s human rights agenda.  Noting that great divisions among humankind were increasingly being articulated along cultural lines, she warned that the management of conflict based on cultural and religious specificities often resulted in the justification of violence against women both within and between conflicting groups. 

Stressing that HIV/AIDS had emerged as the single most devastating epidemic experienced in modern history, she noted that its interconnection with and impact on women’s human rights had become a major area of concern as women and girls were particularly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, owing not only to their biological conditions, but also to economic and social inequalities and culturally accepted gender roles that placed them in subordinate positions vis-à-vis men regarding decisions on sexual relations.  The development of guidelines for the practical implementation of international law on the human rights of women, and enhancing understanding and developing strategies to respond to violence against women at the transnational, national, community and individual levels and security were among the priorities she envisaged addressing.

MARIO ERNESTO CASTRO GRANDE (El Salvador), speaking as a concerned country, said the visit of the Special Rapporteur showed the commitment of El Salvador to the special mechanisms of the Commission.  The protection of women was a priority for the Government of El Salvador, both at the national and international levels.  The report of the Special Rapporteur, which contained her preliminary conclusions and recommendations, was appreciated, but El Salvador regretted that conclusions were mixed with general observations about countries, without specificity.  It was hoped that the final report would make a clear demarcation, including the specific realities of El Salvador.  There was also concern for the Special Rapporteur’s affirmation that the Government was not complying with its international obligations to investigate, prosecute and punish acts of violence against women, since this was incorrect. 

The Government of El Salvador had passed laws on this subject.  In 2003, decrees had been adopted to increase the penalties for offences against sexual liberty and regarding sexual exploitation, in particular trafficking of women and children.  El Salvador had been making efforts to implement important projects for the modernization of organizations entrusted with the oversight of violence against women; had created a hotline for the victims of violence; and had set up an institute against violence with a wide-based nature and mandate, including oversight.  The trend of brutal killings in the region was not a systematic trend in El Salvador, or a wide-scale one.  This violence was being committed mainly by gangs.  The Government was greatly concerned about these acts and was working to combat them.  El Salvador appreciated that the Special Rapporteur had noted that much had been done to combat domestic violence, and it was recognized that much remained to be done.  It was to be hoped that the final recommendations of the Special Rapporteur would help in this respect. 

LARS PIRA PEREZ (Guatemala), speaking as a concerned country, said that combating the causes and consequences of violence against women was a priority for his Government.  Although the final report of the Special Rapporteur on her visit to Guatemala would only be submitted next year, the preliminary note had broadly explained the issues of importance for the Government.  It was hoped that the problems described could be corrected, but above all, the aim was to eliminate the sources of the problems faced by women.  There had been progress in that regard since the signing of the peace agreement in Guatemala, however, obstacles still remained to be overcome.  The priority was to identify reasons why women were targeted.  Among the Government’s ongoing efforts, a new unit had been established within the national civil police to investigate crimes against women.  Guatemala also recognized the need for regional and international cooperation to combat issues of violence against women.  Both the preliminary conclusions and the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur were being given serious attention.

Interactive Dialogue

JEAN-DANIEL VIGNY (Switzerland) said that he supported the work of the Special Rapporteur, and Switzerland's policy on this issue was clear: it was against any form of violence against women.  The Special Rapporteur should continue to develop the concept of violence against women.

ADRIAN NORFOLK (Canada) said as all were aware, violence against women was as multi-faceted as it was pervasive, and it needed to be attacked from many levels.  This had been highlighted in previous reports.  The impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls was a grave concern, and the commitment of the Special Rapporteur was welcomed.  How would research be undertaken to broaden understanding and how would a thematic approach help this?

MARIA DEL CARMEN HERRERA CASEIRO (Cuba) said in the conclusion of the report, the Special Rapporteur referred to and raised the need for global governance, indicating that the United Nations should carry out a constructive role to deal with the deficiencies of this.  Did the Special Rapporteur have a specific idea as to what actions should be undertaken by the United Nations in this optic, bearing in mind that there were some organizations that lay outside the scope of the United Nations which dealt with this issue.

MARY WHELAN (Ireland) said the emphasis placed on the cooperation between actors both between and within as well as outside of the United Nations was welcomed.  How would the Special Rapporteur describe the cooperation between the special mechanisms and other branches of treaty bodies; what mandates did she see as most closely linked to her own, and how did she plan to coordinate with them.

TEHMINA JANJUA (Pakistan) said the ideas in the report were very interesting and created a thematic perspective on the mandate, which was strongly supported.  The assessment that violence against women was a continuum of violence, and impoverished whole societies that tolerated it, was a message that needed to be taken seriously.  The future work of the Special Rapporteur would take a thematic analysis of the full range of women’s access to justice, and a question was asked as to how she intended to elaborate this.  Violence against women under occupation required further elaboration.

YAKIN ERTURK, Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, said in reaction to the comments that she appreciated the concerns expressed by El Salvador and Guatemala in relation to her report after her mission to both countries.   She looked forward to contributing to their efforts in fighting violence against women.  With regard to the question by Switzerland, she said that she was developing an index to show the efforts of States, and the index would indicate the level of compliance by each State.  She would consolidate her expertise to develop the index that would be vital in measuring States' efforts in implementing the provisions of the Convention on women, for example.  The collaboration between treaty bodies and Special Rapporteurs was also essential to advance the cause of women.

Statements on Women’s Human Rights

YSSET ROMAN MALDONADO (Dominican Republic) said the integration of women’s rights and the gender perspective continued to be a priority in the Dominican Republic.  Work plans and institutions had been set up, and at the same time, policies had been strengthened for women and their families.  However, certain problems affecting the rights of women continued to prevail, for example in the increase of intra-familial violence and the trafficking of Dominican women.  Ministers had made it clear that this first problem of intra-familial violence was one that corroded families, and the principal victims of this violence were women.  Statistical projections showed that if the escalation continued, there would be a 21 per cent increase compared to last year, and thus specific actions had been taken to promote policies that reduced this violence. 

The Government was using training, the media and a documentation centre in the fight against this scourge in order to create greater awareness of the problem.  Legal and psychological clinics had been set up to give treatment to the victims of this violence, and a pilot project had been set up for women and their surviving children.  Policies had been set up from a multi-sexual viewpoint, and the implementation of organized social action based on consensus was one of the main goals.  Efforts had also been made to limit smuggling of women.  However, the decisive support of the international community was required to combat these scourges.

TIM CAUGHLEY (New Zealand), speaking also on behalf of Australia and Canada, noted that it had been more than 20 years since the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women had entered into force and nearly ten years since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.  Underscoring the need for universal adherence to and implementation of those documents, he also noted that at a time when the international community should be moving forward with programmes to fulfil its commitments, some States had begun to question the common standards to which all had agreed.  Furthermore, while the adoption by the General Assembly’s Third Committee of resolutions on domestic violence against women and the preparation of an in-depth study on violence against women were welcomed, its inability to reach agreement on the omnibus resolution had been disappointing.

Increasing rates of trafficking and alarming increases in HIV/AIDS infection in women and children, fuelled by gender inequalities, stigmatization, violence and discriminatory attitudes, as well as the widespread use of sexual violence as a weapon of intimidation and war, amply demonstrated the continued relevance of international commitments to eliminate violence against women and the urgent need for concerted international action, he added.  However, there had been some progress including, among others, the appointment of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and the agreement of a set of conclusions on the role of men and boys in promoting gender equality.  While the greatest achievements of the past decade in the struggle against violence had been awareness raising and standard setting, those of the second decade must focus on implementation of effective programmes and strategies to ensure that the prohibition against violence became a tangible reality.

MARY WHELAN (Ireland), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said that to ensure the full and equal enjoyment of human rights by women, it was essential that women and girls participated fully and equally in all activities in society and in all decisions affecting them.  Action to promote gender equality required a consistent and systematic approach, which presupposed the recognition of the differences between men and women and the willingness to establish a balanced distribution of responsibilities and obligations between women and men.  Many countries had put in place the necessary policy framework to promote the rights of women and to ensure that those rights were not only recognized but were respected in practice.  But one had also to acknowledge that in far too many cases, application was sketchy, and women were not able to enjoy full and equal human rights.  States should incorporate provisions concerning non-discrimination of women into their national legislations and provide effective mechanisms to ensure the implementation of those standards. While the European Union acknowledged that there had been progress in many areas, many States continued to deny women the full and equal exercise and enjoyment of the rights to which all persons were entitled.

The provisions of the International Bill of Human Rights applied in full to women.  That was the fundamental principle underpinning the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which focused on the measures needed to make that principle a reality.  The Union welcomed the resolve of the international community, confirmed at the highest level in the UN millennium Declaration, to strengthen efforts to implement that instrument.  The optional protocol to the Convention was a further important step in that direction, because it provided a more effective monitoring mechanism of States' implementation of their commitments.  The Union urged all States to sign, ratify and implement fully the Convention and its optional protocol.  Nevertheless, the Union continued to be concerned at the very significant number and content of reservations, some of them regarding fundamental provisions of the Convention. 

Harmful traditional or customary practices, including female genital mutilation and crimes committed in the name of honour, were forms of violence that prevented the full enjoyment of human rights.  Social, cultural or religious factors could never be invoked as a justification for such violence.  Domestic violence, which encompassed marital rape as well as other forms of physical, psychological and sexual violence, was one of the most common, least visible forms of violence against women and girls.  States had an obligation to eradicate all forms of violence against women and the girl child in the family and to ensure the effective protection of women and girls.

ALGIMANTAS RIMKUNAS (Lithuania), speaking on behalf of the Baltic and Nordic States, said that trafficking in women and children was a major human rights concern and that combating that phenomenon must figure high on the international agenda.  No country or region was immune to the problem and failure of States to investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators prevented the victims of such trafficking from enjoying the human rights to which they were entitled.  The absence of equal rights, gender-based discrimination and the denial of economic opportunities to women were factors that could lead to women’s increased vulnerability to trafficking, which constituted the denial of the rights to liberty, freedom of movement and freedom from violence, torture and cruel and degrading treatment.  Human trafficking had reached such unprecedented levels that it should truly be called a new form of slavery.

Well-coordinated national, regional and global action was imperative to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings, he continued.  The global ratification and implementation of the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocol on trafficking would constitute a significant achievement.  Regionally, a new European Convention aimed to establish a comprehensive legal framework for protecting victims’ human rights and providing assistance to victims and witness protection.  Moreover, a common understanding of the scope and nature of the problem had led to common efforts by Baltic Governments, law enforcement personnel, educational institutions and non-governmental organizations.  Among other initiatives, the Task Force on Organized Crime in the Baltic Sea Region and its operative committee constituted a core group for gathering, analysing and exchanging relevant data.  There had also been efforts to increase public awareness about trafficking in its various forms, including holding seminars and meetings in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to provide information on recognizing victims and traffickers and to make available resources for assistance.

MANORI MALLIKARATCHY (Sri Lanka) said that among the most striking social, political and economic phenomena of the past century had been the emergence and integration of the discourse on women's rights at all levels.  Women comprised more than half the world's population.  Women represented 70 per cent of the world's poor, and two thirds of them had not been taught to read and write.  Efforts to bring a gender perspective into the human rights debate as well as to address the most urgent issues facing women around the world were not only relevant to the Commission but also for global economic and social progress.  The Government of Sri Lanka recognized the importance of gender perspective and the major role that women could play in peace building and post-conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction.  At the second round of peace talks held between the Government and the LTTE in Oslo, a sub-committee was established to ensure the effective inclusion of gender issues in the peace process and its first meeting was held in March 2003.  The priority issue identified by the sub-committee included the gender perspective on resettlement, personal security and safety, infrastructure and service, livelihood and employment, political representation, decision-making and reconciliation.  As a result of two decades of armed conflict, surveys had shown the noticeable increase in women-headed households, which had been identified as an area requiring special attention.

During the past two decades, mainly as a result of economic liberalization, the influence of Sri Lankan women in social and economic spheres had grown significantly.  Approximately half of the labour force in professional, semi-professional and middle-income level employment was composed of women.  They also dominated the migrant labour force, and employment in the free trade zone and the tea plantation sector, which accounted for Sri Lanka's foreign exchange earnings.

HYUCK CHOI (Republic of Korea) said the human rights of women and girls were an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of universal human rights.  In this regard, the promotion and protection of the full enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by women was rightly a key concern of the Commission, and efforts to advance human rights as a universal goal should integrate the human rights of women and the gender perspective.  Furthermore, equality between men and women, boys and girls was fundamental to a society where democracy and human rights were upheld for all.  Domestically, the current focus was on fighting the sex trade and trafficking in persons, the predominant victims of which were women and girls.  The issue of violence against women should be high on the global human rights agenda.  As poverty and HIV/AIDS became increasingly feminised, their interplay with gender-based violence had plunged the most vulnerable of women and girls around the world into a state of marginal existence where their very survival and dignity as human beings were effectively denied.  Under these circumstances, there was a pressing need to revisit and reframe the goal of ending violence against women, making it not just a goal in itself but also a vital part of strategies in fighting poverty and HIV/AIDS.

J. NDLOVU (South Africa) said President Mbeki had reiterated the importance of promoting human rights in general and in particular the rights of women, children and the disabled, if it were truly desired to sustain democratic values worldwide.  This would also add impetus to ongoing efforts to enhance the integration of gender equality and women’s rights into the United Nations system.  In the first decade of its democracy, South Africa had created an enabling legislative framework and awareness programmes to ensure transformation, and this was done due to acute awareness of how race, class and gender conspired to locate women, especially rural African women, at the very bottom of the rights hierarchy.  Mindful of the important role that peace and security played in the promotion and protection of human rights, South Africa was involved in several initiatives aimed at a peaceful continent and a peaceful world, and in this context its engagement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and other places was in line with the values espoused in the Millennium Declaration.  South Africa looked forward to a fruitful sharing of ideas in order to find sustainable solutions to problems impeding successful promotion and implementation of gender equality and women’s rights. 

MARIA DEL CARMEN HERRERA (Cuba) said that poverty had many faces and most of them were female.  Women accounted for 70 per cent of the nearly two billion poor worldwide; two-thirds of the world’s illiterate were women; and more than half of the 40 million HIV/AIDS patients worldwide were women, 95 per cent of whom lived in the Third World.  Poor countries could not be blamed for this tragedy – they were not the ones who had conquered and plundered entire continents for centuries, neither had they established colonialism, slavery or imperialism.  The national efforts of Third World States must be supplemented with a new climate of international cooperation to overcome the underdevelopment imposed upon them.  Cuba proffered the example of a country where, within a framework of justice and the fight for equality, the situation of women could be radically transformed and their rights fully realized.  In Cuba, women accounted for 44.9 per cent of labour in the state-run civilian sector.  They represented 66.4 per cent of all mid- and high-level technicians and professionals, 72 per cent of the educational sector, 67 per cent of the health sector and 44.6 per cent of the scientific sector.  Cuba today figured among the top ten countries worldwide with regard to the representation of women in Parliament, with 35.4 per cent.  Such results were the outcome of the Cuban people’s firmness and the Government’s political will to carry out its social projects for the benefit of the whole population.

LIU ZHONGXIN (China) said women were movers of history, creators of wealth and participators in progress.  However, their equal rights with men remained to be guaranteed.  First, this was due to the out-dated gender stereotypes that should be discarded, as they prevented women from being aware of their own rights, and with them it was impossible to reshape their lives.  These stereotypes were frequently sources of violence and sexual aggression against women, and all Governments should take steps to gradually overcome them.  Second, women’s participation at the national level in policy formulation would improve the situation, forming proof of better democracy and the protection of women’s rights.  Training should be provided so as to help women acquire the skills and confidence vital for their full participation in political life. 

The Government of China continued to formulate and implement policies that enhanced the situation of women at many levels, systematically promoting their rights.  The year 2005 marked the tenth anniversary of the Beijing Conference, and this would be celebrated by reports on the implementation of its Plan of Action and other events.  China was concerned about the situation of human rights of women in the United States, where they did not enjoy equal rights either in political life, income or daily life.  Domestic violence and sexual harassment were serious problems and rampant in that country.  China called upon the Government of the United States to take a hard look at the situation of women in the country, and called on the Special Rapporteur to visit that country. 

MUKTA TOMAR (India) said the progress of any society was dependent on its ability to protect and promote the rights of its women.  The guaranteeing of equal rights and privileges for women by the Constitution had marked the first step towards the transformation of the status of women in India.  As a result of concerted efforts and a comprehensive policy framework over the last five decades, there had been significant advances in the socio-economic indicators for women.  Empowerment for women was critical for the socio-economic progress of any country.  The Government of India was convinced that education was the key for the advancement of women.  The spread of liberal education and values had unleashed forces for social reform and created awareness about the need for increased participation of women in the educational, social, economic and political life of India.  In addition to the role of the State and the Constitutional provisions that existed, the judiciary had also played a key role in the advancement of gender justice in India.  The Supreme Court of India had delivered landmark pronouncements on matters such as the need for equal property rights for women, and grass roots groups organizing women had become agents of social change, enabling access to financial and material resources.

LORENA PATINO (Paraguay) said that her country had ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and would this year be submitting its fifth periodic report to the related Committee.  It was also a State party to Inter-American Conventions guaranteeing women’s rights.  Among national efforts to integrate the issue of women’s human rights, a national secretariat had been established to oversee the implementation of women’s rights and the legal progress made in the international field had been accompanied by developments in national legislation.  Among other assurances, the equality of women in all fields had been guaranteed in the Constitution.  Moreover, legal instruments and actions undertaken by both governmental and non-governmental organizations had placed the serious problem of domestic violence front stage and there were efforts to make people increasingly aware that violations of women’s rights were violations of human rights.  Among the successes witnessed in this field, it could be seen that women were gradually acceding to key positions of political power.  For example, among others, six women currently held Cabinet positions, a woman judge sat on the Supreme Court and the deputy Attorney General was a woman.  Finally, she stressed that integrating women’s human rights and preventing violence against women should be the focus of the entire international community.

TEHMINA JANJUA (Pakistan) said the United Nations system, since its inception, had been discussing the political and economic empowerment of women, and was still considering mainstreaming of women in its activities.  Pakistan had gone beyond the debate on these issues and had taken concerted and positive actions for the economic and political empowerment of women.  Pakistan was convinced that sustainable development was not possible without the full involvement of women in the nation-building process.  Over the last four years, deliberate efforts had been made to ensure that the rights of Pakistani women enshrined in the Constitution and the international human rights instruments to which Pakistan was party were upheld and promoted.  Economic empowerment of women was fundamental to their political empowerment, and initiatives had taken place in this respect.  Women’s issues were not only being discussed at the highest level, but were given priority attention.  There were issues that needed to be tackled on a priority level, and this included violence against women.  Honour killings had been condemned.  It was hoped that focused efforts at the political level, the economic empowerment of women, and the addressing of issues of violence against women would help in advancing the agenda on women’s rights.

FATIMA AL-DHAEN (Bahrain) said her country's Constitution guaranteed economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights to women. Bahrain had established mechanisms for the implementation of equal opportunities between women and men.  Further measures had also been taken to promote and protect the rights of women.  The reforms that had been undertaken in the country had emphasized the full enjoyment by women of their rights and their empowerment in the society.  Political participation was one of the rights that the Government was giving a priority. Women's participation in decision-making processes was also significant.  Women's representation in political activities had been raised from 10 to 50 per cent since the reform.  Women were now present in all governmental functions and activities.   The State of Bahrain had acceded to various international human rights conventions, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.  Under its international obligation, the Government had prepared its initial report on the situation of women in the country.

GORDAN MARKOTIC (Croatia) said there had been significant recent developments of institutional mechanisms for the improvement of women’s rights at the national level.  The Croatian Parliament had adopted two new laws: the Law on Gender Equality and the Law on Protection against Domestic Violence, the first of which provided for the inclusion of gender mainstreaming at the national level.  It was important to mainstream the gender perspective in the United Nations system.  The action to promote gender equality required a consistent and systematic approach which presupposed the recognition of differences between men and women and the willingness to establish a balanced distribution of responsibilities and obligations between women and men.  It was also essential to recognize the capacity and active role of men and boys in contributing to the promotion of gender equality and the full enjoyment of all human rights by women.  Impunity for gender-based violence needed to be addressed as a matter of priority and the perpetrators brought to justice, and this would require proactive policies and effective measures by all States, and enhanced cooperation among them.  Trafficking in women was a global problem, and it was consequently necessary to bear in mind several important elements, notably that all States should develop national mechanisms for combating this, and that the international organizations that played major roles in combating this phenomenon should assume the role of coordinators of international activities.

TAMALA L. LONGABERGER (United States) said that among the areas in which her country had sought to advance the status of women and girls were preventing trafficking in persons, addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis, and strengthening women's political and economic empowerment, particularly in post-conflict societies.  Women and men, girls and boys were deprived of their human rights and suffered unspeakable physical and emotional harm through the horrors of human trafficking.  Women of post-conflict societies were particularly vulnerable to that form of modern-day slavery.  Faced with a lack of opportunities at home, people were lured by false promises of well-paying jobs abroad.  Many were then coerced into lives of prostitution, domestic servitude, or other types of forced labour.  The President of the United States had committed an additional $50 million to accelerate efforts worldwide to rescue and rehabilitate trafficked women and children.  The world was coming together to fight human trafficking.  Not only was it an assault on human rights, it was a growing public health risk and fuelled the growing of organized crime. 

Women now accounted for more than half of new HIV/AIDS infections, which meant higher rates of mother-to-child transmission and more children who would find themselves motherless.  Through a five-year, $15 billion comprehensive programme -- the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief -- the United States was committed to a multifaceted approach to combating the disease; continuing bilateral programmes; and supporting multilateral approaches like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.  The Plan included an additional $1 billion to the Global Fund, bringing the total US pledged to nearly $2 billion from the inception of the Fund through 2008.  The United States was committed to enabling women throughout the world to fully enjoy their human rights and fundamental freedoms.

ILHAM SHANTER (Sudan) said Sudanese women had, in recent decades, made remarkable progress in their capacities and had improved to a noticeable degree their position in society.  Sudanese women, qualitatively and quantitatively, were willing, and, to a degree, able to contribute.  They were more aware of their rights, especially in enlightened female circles.  Women’s political gains had accelerated, and had made other gains through their contributions in formulating political decisions, women’s organizations and associations, political parties and the legislative bodies.  Society’s future was linked with the scope of women’s participation in the public domain, and the extent of society’s acceptance of that participation.  Sudanese society, with its social legacy and religious culture, may need a long time to be fully persuaded of the necessity of increasing women’s participation in politics, however, the State could accelerate this process.  Greater gains for women were being pursued in order to prove to Sudanese society that women were just as qualified as men.  All forms of violence against women constituted a flagrant violation of their dignity and their human rights.  The efforts undertaken to combat these phenomena in all their forms should address the root cause of violence.  There was a need to look for more efficient means and tools to combat the violence against women, including local and international legislation.

DIANA EMILLA SARI SUTIKNO (Indonesia) said there was full agreement with the universally accepted principle that the promotion and protection of the rights of women and gender equality were among the most fundamental tenets of the various international instruments on human rights.  The Government of Indonesia was convinced that human rights standards were compatible with all cultures, especially in the realms of the promotion and protection of women’s rights.  The principles of non-discrimination, equality and justice were fundamental pillars of this promotion and protection, and the Government was firmly of the view that discrimination and violence against women should be eradicated, as they could not be justified under any pretext.  Violence against women could happen in both the domestic and public spheres: hence Governments should formulate laws which prohibited and criminalized any practice leading to violence and discrimination against women.  It was a collective responsibility to make the world a safer and kinder place for all, including women, and much remained to be done in this area.  There was a need for concerted and collective international efforts to promote the rights of women, including by combating violence and discrimination, both in the home and in all walks of life.  It was high time that the concept of human rights was understood and interpreted as inclusive of women’s rights.

BIODUN OWOSENI (Nigeria) said that the promotion and protection of women's rights was at the top of the human rights policies of his Government.  That stemmed from a deep-rooted belief that there could be no meaningful progress in achieving sustainable development without the emancipation and empowerment of Nigerian women.  Some of the most important human rights developments in the country in recent years had been registered in the field of women's rights.  A number of laws had been put in place with the aim of improving the status of women.  The human rights of all Nigerian women were promoted and protected in a number of Federal, State and local governments' programmes and policies.  That was why more women had been appointed to senior positions through affirmative action under the present administration than under any Government in the history of Nigeria.  There was no discrimination whatsoever in enabling women to take part in political, social or economic activities of their choice.  The Government had thus been actively implementing the Beijing Programme of Action.

Trafficking in women and girls for the purpose of commercial and sexual exploitation was one of the most extensive forms of violence worldwide.  The Government of Nigeria was deeply concerned about the practice and was resolutely committed to its eradication through various educational and awareness-increasing programmes that had been put in place in the country.  Trafficking, exploitation and sale of human persons, including women and girls, were a callous negation of the human dignity, and the Commission should be steadfast in the war to eradicate this scourge.  Harmful traditional or customary practices, including female genital mutilation, constituted serious violations of the human rights of women.  Nigeria had taken far-reaching steps in the promotion and protection of women's rights by abrogating harmful traditional practices.  It had outlawed the practice of female genital mutilation throughout the country.

PEMA CHODEN (Bhutan) said that her country had taken consistent steps to comply with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, including undertaking the 2001 Gender Baseline Pilot study and holding consultations and workshops with stakeholders from civil society and the media as part of the preparations for its sixth periodic report to the related Committee, and disseminating the Convention and the report in local languages.  Three studies had also been completed with regard to health, education and water and sanitation, under the auspices of the national committee to monitor the Convention’s implementation. 

Among the legal provisions for gender equality, the General Law of 1957 guaranteed women equality before the law and the Inheritance Act of 1980 guaranteed equal rights in inheritance of land and property.  The 1980 Marriage Act guaranteed equality in marriage and family life, and its 1996 amendment raised the legal marriage age from 16 to 18 for both sexes.  The 1996 Rape Act sought to protect women against sexual abuse and assault by imposing severe financial penalties and prison sentences on offenders.  The laws and development policies of Bhutan had always sought to ensure equal rights, as well as the security and well-being of women in society.  Women enjoyed freedom and equality in most spheres of life and overt discrimination against women did not exist.  The challenge now was to eradicate the more subtle and indirect forms of gender bias within society.  The country had committed resources and redirected plans and programmes to mainstream gender needs and interests, and remained aware of the need for continued social, economic and legal remedial measures.

AMIRA ESQUIVEL (Chile) said that violence against women constituted a serious violation of human rights.  The international community’s increased awareness of this fact constituted one of the most significant advances of recent decades, and recent positive developments in regard of women’s human rights including, among others, the codification of a series of sexual and gender crimes within the Rome Statute, were welcomed.  For their part, the democratic Governments of Chile since 1990 had recognized that violence against women and interfamilial violence affected society as a whole, as well as the individual victims.  There was a worrisome tendency for girls and boys to replicate such action in response to new problems.  Among the other negative effects of such violence, women’s productivity at work was lowered and increased rates of absenteeism were seen.  Nationally, Chile’s courts received an average of 75,000 complaints of domestic violence annually, however, the national domestic violence act had endowed judicial mechanisms with a mandate to intervene and to provide protection, resulting in a decline in reports of violence of approximately 25 per cent.  Additionally, the country was studying amendments that could be made to the act.  There had also been measures to make compatible paid work and child care, and women as heads of household had been recognized as subjects of public policy.  Still much remained to be done in regard of setting up the gender approach in public policy, in which regard international cooperation was needed.  Finally, she wished to note the draft text on the integration of women’s human rights throughout the United Nations and warned that progress must continue.  However, progress thus far had been asymmetrical, because not all bodies included gender issues and rights of women to equal extents.

CHRISTA NICKELS (Germany) said indifference to violations of women’s human rights should be overcome throughout the world.  No exceptions to women’s rights could be permitted on cultural grounds.  It remained a matter of urgency that the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women should be implemented in all States without restriction.  Happily, only a few States had not yet ratified it, however, many States had entered reservations during the ratification process, more than to any other international convention.  That showed how difficult it was to deal with issues of this kind.  The global fight against female genital mutilation, honour killings, forced marriages and other forms of gender-specific persecution was therefore still far from being won.  A particularly ugly area of violations of women’s human rights was human trafficking, which was a modern form of slavery: the victims were predominantly women.  It was important to emphasize, however, that women were not only victims, but also actors, shapers, and decision-makers.  The international community should therefore bear in mind that policy-making for women and involving women was a question of justice, and thus a part of securing the future for both men and women, and of course, for the children.

Right of Reply

SHIGERU ENDO (Japan), speaking in a right of reply, said that with regard to the issue known as “wartime comfort women” during the Second World War, as mentioned by the delegate of the Republic of Korea, regarding the issues of property and claims arising out of the Second World War, including those related to wartime comfort women, the Government of Japan had fulfilled its obligations in accordance with the relevant international agreement, and the issues had been legally settled between Japan and the Republic of Korea completely and finally.  Fulfilment of the legal responsibility, however, did not exonerate Japan from its moral responsibility for the damage caused to the honour and dignity of those who suffered as wartime comfort women.  The Japanese Government’s position on this remained unchanged and would continue to be so.

LUIS ZUNIGA (United States) speaking in a right of reply, said time and time again, irrespective of the item under consideration, the delegation of Cuba spoke of the economic sanctions of the United States on the totalitarian Castro regime.  The trade embargo was a political issue which was not appropriate to debate.  However, it was important to emphasize the following facts: the United States was today the major supplier of agricultural products to Cuba; in 2001 the United States approved donations to Cuba to the figure of millions of dollars, and had done so also in 2002.  Cuba should not blame the United States for the economic disasters of the Cuban regime, since these were typical of all totalitarian political models, and the Cuban delegation should not distract attention and should instead find solutions to the problems in that country.

HYUCK CHOI (Republic of Korea), speaking in a right of reply, said that with regard to the use of sexual slavery by the Japanese military during the Second World War, the present and previous Special Rapporteurs on violence against women had emphasized the need for compensation for the victims.  Japan should implement the recommendations of the Special Rapporteurs and comply with relevant treaties on the issue.

Corrigendum

In press release HR/CN/04/34 of 2 April, 2004, the second right of reply by Turkey on page 13 should read as follows:

MUSTAFA LAKADAMYALI (Turkey), in a second right of reply, said that Turkey was not surprised by the statement of the Greek Cypriot Representative which was a repetition of a scenario of accusations witnessed in previous years.   It was an attempt to portray the difficulties in Cyprus as a problem of invasion and occupation.  These statements were disappointing and discouraging, since they reflected a frame of mind which was far from the realities and thus not conducive to a solution of the problems on the island.

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