THE CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN (CEDAW)
36TH SESSION, AUGUST 7-25 2006

LINKING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CEDAW TO RESOLUTION 1325 IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO:
A Peacewomen Project Review

Introduction
Over the last decade the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have lived through a period of intense and devastating armed conflict. It is estimated that around 4 million men, women and children have been killed since 1998 in the conflict and related causes. In seeking to broker peace in the country, the United Nations, in 1999, established a UN Peacekeeping Operation in Congo (MONUC), and has since supported steps taken to negotiate an end to the civil conflict and rebuild the country’s institutional and social infrastructure. In recent months, the DRC has held a constitutional referendum and General Elections aimed at establishing its first democratically elected government since 1960. While the outcome of the elections has yet to be fully determined, there is much hope amongst the Congolese people and international observes that these steps will start the transition to sustainable peace and stability.

On 8th August 2006, the DRC government presented a periodic report reviewing the implementation of its commitments under the Convention for the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The Report, prepared with the support of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), was presented to the CEDAW Committee of Experts for consideration at the committee’s thirty sixth session, held between 7th and 25th August 2006 at UN headquarters in New York.

Progress and challenges
The government, in its Report to the CEDAW committee, highlighted various steps that have been taken to integrate the provisions of CEDAW into the country’s laws, policies and structures. It was noted that the Convention and its principles had been endorsed by the Inter-Congolese Dialogue, the negotiations which laid the foundation for the country’s post-conflict transition. As such, CEDAW had become part of the policy framework for the establishment of the country’s transitional government. The country's newly promulgated Constitution required the State to take measures to ensure the full participation of women in all areas, to combat violence against them, and to ensure the right of women to be significantly represented in institutions at all levels.

However, the government acknowledged major hurdles in the achievement of these goals. The process of legislative reform to eliminate gender discriminatory laws is lagging and is not recognized as a priority by the government. There is a major challenge in changing attitudes and stereotypes among leaders and within society regarding to the right and capacity of women to participate equally in political and economic activities. Further, the government noted, the achievement of women’s rights was hampered by the social and economic conditions brought by two decades of conflict. The war has exacerbated women’s traditionally low status in society, and the high rates of violence against women and impunity for such violence have contributed to their low involvement in public and political life.

Implementing CEDAW and Security Council Resolution 1325 in the DRC
In reviewing the state’s report, the CEDAW experts noted that as a country emerging from crisis, the DRC has encountered many difficulties, and the government should be commended for efforts taken to implement its obligations under CEDAW. However the committee raised a number of key concerns.

The committee noted that the promotion of women’s human rights and gender equality did not appear to be a priority for the government in the post-war transition period, in particular in efforts to address the consequences of the armed conflict and in the peacebuilding and reconstruction processes. This appeared to be reflected in the small number of women in leadership positions in the transition process and the unwillingness among political leader to adopt or implement laws promoting gender equality with regards to issues such as the Family, Labour and Criminal Codes and gender parity within political parties. The newly elected legislative Assembly for example, is characterized by weak representation of women, their number amounting to less than 10% of the body.

In the DRC, as in many other countries emerging from conflict and faced with pressing reconstruction needs, the imperative to address the political, economic and social status of women is often treated as a lesser priority - one that can be addressed further down the road when the country has recovered. However, the policies and strategies put in place during this critical transitional period often determine the ability of a nation to recover from conflict, or to plunge back into violence. Since the adoption of SCR 1325 in 2000 it is increasingly recognized that the achievement of sustainable peace is heavily dependent on the full participation of women in decision making in all aspects of peace processes - from peace agreements, through peace support operations and planning for refugees, returnees and internally displaced persons, to post-conflict reconstruction processes, transitional justice and reconciliation within a broken society.

Highlighting the relevance of the provisions of Security Council resolution 1325 to these processes, the CEDAW experts urged the State to conform to the obligations of the resolution in giving serious attention to the specific needs of women in the post-conflict period and ensure women’s equal participation in peacebuilding efforts. In particular the Committee expressed deep concern over the continuing occurrence of rape and other forms of sexual violence against women and the engrained culture of impunity for such crimes.

These concerns were echoed in an NGO shadow report presented to the CEDAW session by the African Association for the Defence of Human Rights (ASADHO) and World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), which highlighted the grave violations of women’s human rights in the country today. The report documents rampant violence against women within the family, community, and within the context of the armed conflict that is still ongoing in the East of the country. The NGOs make note of a number of recent state initiatives developed to fight gender-based violenc, including a draft law on sexual violence. This law, which is awaiting presidential signature, amends deficiencies in the Penal Code by defining and increasing penalties for rape and other sexual crimes and providing legal and psycho-medical assistance to victims of such crimes, among other things. However serious concerns remain regarding the government’s insufficient efforts to conduct thorough investigations, the absence of protection measures for witnesses, victims and victims’ families, the lack of information and data regarding cases and the lack of appropriate medical care, including rehabilitation measures, for victims.

In its concluding comments to the government, the CEDAW committee noted that the promotion of women’s human rights and gender equality should be a central goal of the transition process. Clearly this can only be achieved if steps are taken to promote awareness within the legislature, the judiciary and other parts of government, of the importance of women’s equal participation in decision-making. It is especially critical for those newly elected representatives to local and national administration and Parliament, to fully understand what steps must be taken to implement the obligations of CEDAW and SCR 1325. Congolese women must be assured that there is a commitment, in their country’s post-conflict transition, to respond to their specific needs and interests and to ensure their participation as equal partners in the reconstruction of their country.

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USEFUL RESOURCES

CEDAW State Party eport of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Concluding comments of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on the DRC

NGO shadow report by the African Association for the Defence of Human Rights and the World Organization against Torture

UN press release on the CEDAW committee's review of the DRC report