Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
31st Session
6-23 July 2004

| Official UN website on CEDAW 31st Session |

The thirty-first session of the Committee on the Elimination of the Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was concluded on Friday, July 23, 2004. For three weeks, CEDAW experts, acting in their individual capacities, and state delegations deliberated on reports submitted by Angola, Argentina, Bangladesh, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Latvia, Malta, and Spain. Angola, Latvia, and Malta presented reports for the first time. Equatorial Guinea, Bangladesh, the Dominican Republic, and Spain presented periodic reports, and Argentia presented a follow-up to the fifth periodic report

In her opening statement to the 31st session on CEDAW, Ms. Carolyn Hannan, Director of the Division for the Advancement of Women reported on events that have taken place since the 30th session in January 2004. The Commission on the Status of Women held its 48th session from March 1-12, focusing on women's participation in conflict resolution and peacebuilding and the roles of boys and men in achieving gender equality. In CSW's agreed conclusions, the Commission referred to the role of CEDAW in women's participation in peace and conflict resolution. Also since the 30th session, two more states have ratified CEDAW without reservations, Kiribati (March 17, 2004) and Swaziland (March 26, 2004), which increases the number of state ratifications to 177.

Additionally, Ms. Fatima Kwaku was appointed as the new Rapporteur for the Committee, replacing Ms. Christine Kapalata after her resignation. UN press release

Country Reports Under Consideration

Date	Country	Main Topics
July 7	Spain	Legislation on violence against women, parity in government, implementing CEDAW in autonomous regions, gathering data on gender and different racial and ethnic groups, protection for vulnerable groups
July 8	Equatorial Guinea	Common Law Marriage Code, addressing de facto discrimination and cultural traditions, equality in education and politics, prostitution and trafficking
July 9	Bangladesh	Reservations to Article 2, violence against women and acid attacks, election quotas, health, religious codes and civil law, personal status laws
July 12	Angola	Women's roles in peacebuilding, human rights violations, displaced persons, implementation of laws on gender equality
July 13	Malta	Women's roles in decision-making. CEDAW's application to domestic law, women and employment, violence against women
July 14	Latvia	Violence against women, trafficking in women, women's roles in decision-making
July 15	Dominican Republic	Violence against women, prostitution, cultural gender stereotypes
July 16	Argentina

The following section synthesizes the principle concerns raised by the CEDAW experts and the country delegations:

Spain

Spain presented its 5th periodic report to the Committee.

According to both Committee experts and the Spanish delegation, Spain has taken great strides to achieve gender equality, as evidenced in its report. However, there are still improvements to be made and through the experts' questioning some of the limitations in the implementation of CEDAW became visible. One of the central topics during the day-long deliberations was parity in governmental positions. The delegation emphasized that the participation of female members in the legislative judicial branches is strong, but the experts pointed out that there are other areas where the equal presence of women is lacking. Women still need to achieve parity in the upper levels of the judiciary, in the international and diplomatic sectors, in politcal parties, and in local government.

Second, the Committee experts applauded Spain's effort to address domestic violence through this year's passage of the Integral Law on Violence Against Women. However, both Committee experts and civil society representatives were concerned about the way that this law redefined violence against women. This law in addressing the issue of domestic violence defines violence against women as a phenomenon that occurs only in the home or the private sphere. This definition of violence diverts from that of CEDAW, and provides little protection for victims of other types of gendered violence occurring in both the public and private spheres.

A third significant topic was the condition of and protections for vulnerable groups of women, in particular racial and ethnic minorities and immigrants. According to the Spanish delegation there were few statistics on gender discrimination broken-down by racial and ethnic categories because they believe that this categorization is discriminatory. In her concluding remarks, Chairperson Ms. Feride Acar suggested that for future reports Spain should begin to gather data on different ethnic groups regarding gender equality. If the data are unavailable the condition of women who experience interlocking oppressions will remain invisible.

Finally, the Committee experts raised concerns on the possibility of the full implementation of CEDAW in domestic law, especially in autonomous communities that are not fully subject to national laws.

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea presented its combined 2nd and 3rd periodic reports to the Committee.

Jesusa Obono Engono, Minister of Promotion of Women, while introducing her country's report, emphasized that women in Equatorial Guinea experience no formal discrimination under the law in areas such as education, employment, and politics. The delegation insisted that persisting inequalities were due to either cultural traditions or attitudes, or women's individual choice to not take on higher positions in employment or the government. However, the Committee experts concluded that women continue to experience de facto discrimination due to cultural attitudes about women, and that the government of Equatorial Guinea must address these cultural limitations. Challenging traditions that perpetuate discrimination against women is the responsbility of the state.

In order to address the inequalities that women experience through the institution of marriage, such as child marriage, poloygyny, divorce and obligatory dowry repayment and inheritance, the government of Equatorial Guinea has been trying to pass the Common Law Marriage Bill for the past three years. This law aims to protect women within common law marriage, however the attitudes of male political leaders are preventing the passage of the bill. However, according to the delegation a concrete measure of progress is the presidential decree which has banned the imprisonment of women who are unable to repay their dowry following a divorce.

Another big issue during the day-long deliberations was the recent increase in prostitution, especially in urban areas. This increase is correlated with the rise of the oil industry in Equatorial Guinea, and the influx of single, foreign men with the cash flow to buy sex. Ms. Morvai, expert from Hungary recommended that to alleviate the problem male customers need to be prosecuted and punished.

In her concluding statement, Chairperson Ayse Feride Acar suggested that the government of Equatorial Guinea needs to start implementing the equality that women are granted under the law through multiple campaigns to challenge cultural traditions and attitudes that perpetuate gender discrimination. Temporary special measures need to be taken in order to encourage women to enter politics or demand equality in other arenas.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh presented its 5th periodic report to the Committee. According to the CEDAW experts the government of Bangladesh has taken positive steps toward achieving gender equality, evidenced through the increasing participation of women in the upper levels of government, including the position of prime minister. However, the experts emphasized that this achievement needs to be used as a positive example to show how improvements can be made in other areas.

The committee members suggested that Bangladesh needs to make improvements in laws punishing violence against women as well as in its compliance with CEDAW's definition of gender discrimination.
The delegation of Bangladesh insisted that the government was proactive on violence against women, by instituting a death penalty punishment for acid attacks and rape. The delegation cited two laws passed in 2002, the Acid Crime Prevention Act and the Acid Control Act which restrict the import and sale of acid and apply the death penalty as punishment. The committee members indicated that this punishment was too strong in that it could lead to no punishment at all - either through the reluctance of women to press charges or an unwillingness on the part of the judiciary to enforce this punishment. In her concluding statement, Ms. Ayse Feride Acar, expert from Turkey, recommended that the government of Bangladesh institute a comprehensive law on violence against women.

The committee experts were also concerned that Bangladesh has still not withdrawn its remaining reservations on CEDAW, which are to article 2, the condemnation of discrimination against women in all its forms and the pursuit of a policy to eliminate discrimination, and article 16.1 (c) on the rights and responsibilities during marriage and at its dissolution. However, the delegation members claimed that the government of Bangladesh is taking steps to address these reservations. Regarding article 2, the government is investigating whether or not it contradicts religious personal laws.

In Bangladesh religious personal laws, rather than civil law, govern marriage, divorce, custody, alimony and property inheritance. The committee experts were concerned that women of different religions are granted different rights under the personal laws, and recommended that the government begin to institute a uniform civil code.

Angola

Angola presented its initial, 2nd, and 3rd periodic reports to the Committee.

The biggest areas of concern during today's meeting were the impact of the conflict in Angola on women, and the roles that women are taking on to rebuild the country. Women's equality in Angola needs extra attention, as they are the main victims of violent conflict and displacement.

According to Filomena Delgado, Vice-Minister for Family and Promotion of Women, in her introduction to the report, said that Angola’s Government has been taking positive steps toward the implementation of CEDAW. These measures include the creation of a State Secretariat in 1991 for the promotion and development of women, which was Upgraded to a ministry in 1997. The Ministry of Women is in charge of developing a policy that promotes gender equality, and other areas of the government have been involved with improving women's position by addressing poverty, health, education and employment.

According to the delegation this is an opportune moment to create measures for women's equality considering the adverse impact of the violent conflict on women, including sexual assault and displacement, but also for the potential for women to be leaders in peacebuilding. The CEDAW report states that 1.3 million people were displaced as a result of the war, and the majority of those displaced were women. Other effects of the war include widespread poverty, the destruction of livelihoods, illiteracy, violence, malnutrition and unemployment.

Experts asked how the Angolan government plans to address and reconcile the human rights violations that occured during the war, as well as how the international community has responded through aid, and whether or not part of that aid is committed to achieving gender equality.

Malta

Malta presented its initial, 2nd, and 3rd periodic reports to the Committee. The Committee experts addressed the delegation about the gap between Malta's adoption of CEDAW and its inapplicability to domestic law. CEDAW is not invoked in domestic court cases, but individuals can appeal to European human rights laws when making claims for gender equality.

Accordng to the experts, the implementation of gender equality remained weak in the areas of women's political participation and their positions in the workforce. The committee recommended that the government of Malta take temporary special measures to encourage women, and give them more opportunities to take on leadership positions.

According to Malta's report, the government is currently addressing the issue of violence against women, making legal and social resources available to domestic violence victims.

Latvia

Latvia presented its initial, 2nd, and 3rd periodic reports to the Committee.

According to Ina Druviete, Chair of the Human Rights and Public Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Latvia, in her introduction to the state's reports, women are increasingly taking on leadership positions at all levels of government.

The state's report documented an increase in trafficking in women, including underage girls both into and out of Latvia. Trafficking in persons is forbidden under domestic law, however, the economic situation in the country has limited the resources and services available to trafficked women. Latvia has taken special measures to address the issue of trafficking, including setting up special police units, international cooperation, collaboration with NGOs, and raising awareness among at-risk girls and women. Committee experts recommended the the government act quickly to take more concrete measures to punish the traffickers and to offer support services to the victims.
Additionally, measures have been taken to increase awareness and sensitivity about domestic violence among law enforcement officers. However, committee experts expressed concerned about the lack of data on the prevalence and severity of domestic violence and the availability of support services, and also about whether there are awareness campaigns aimed at the general public.

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic presented its 5th periodic report to the Committee. The central topics during the day's deliberations included cultural gender stereotypes, trafficking in women, and prostitution, followed by recommendations from CEDAW experts that the Dominican Republic government address these problems as a prerequisite for achieving gender equality.

According to Yadira Henriquez de Sánchez Baret, Minister of Women’s Affairs, the government has been working to challenge the gender stereotypes that are widespread in the Dominican Republic. Some examples of these efforts include addressing poverty, violence against women, women's political representation and inequality in the workforce.

Concerns were raised by committee experts, in particular from Ms. Morvai (Hungary), that in the state report prostitution was described as sex work and appeared to be normalized as an acceptable occupation. The report also cited a sex workers union, composed of women who were organizing and demanding for their rights as legitimate workers. Sonia Diaz, State Deputy Secretary of Labour, said that in the Dominican Republic sex workers were considered to be workers as any others. Chairperson Ayse Feride Acar recommended to the delegation that more action was needed to combat trafficking in women and to address the root causes of prostitution, such as poverty and exploitation.

During the deliberations there was also a debate over the state delegation's use of the term equity over equality in their report. The Dominican delegation had assured the Committee that the country’s constitution and laws operated with a concept of equality comparable to the Convention. The country’s use of the term “equity” was an initial step in bringing about full equality between women and men.

Argentina

Argentina presented a follow-up report to its 5th periodic report to the Committee.