CEDAW

CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL

FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN

• Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution
34/180 of 18 December 1979 entry into force 3 September 1981, in accordance with article 27(1)
• The main objective of CEDAW is eliminating all forms of discrimination against women, and
reproductive rights, As defined in article 1 of the Convention, discrimination means: “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.” (Article 1)

• The CEDAW convention is concern with the dimension of human reproductive and also the
impact of cultural factors on gender relations
 THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL AND THE
ENFORCEMENT MECHANISM OF WOMEN’S
RIGHTS UNDER CEDAW
• The Communication Of Complaint
• The communications procedure allows women within the jurisdiction of a State Party to bring a
claim to CEDAW against their government for an alleged violation of the Convention.’ Claims
can include allegations of violations by the State of any obligation under the Women’s
Convention
• It is the first international instrument that explicitly and implicitly includes all of the women’s
human rights and prohibits all forms of discrimination on the basis of gender. The rights of
CEDAW take into account the lived experiences and needs of women, unlike other instrument
• The Inquiry Procedure
• The purpose of the inquiry procedure is to provide CEDAW with the power to investigate a
situation in which it is clear that there are grave or systematic violations of the Convention within
a State Party
 LIMITATIONS

• Weak Enforcement Mechanisms

• State Parties that have ratified the Women’s Convention are bound by its terms. Prior to the
adoption of the Optional Protocol, the Convention provided two procedures by which to monitor
State Parties’ compliance with the terms of the Convention. These included the interstate
procedure and the reporting procedure, which together represented the only means of enforcing
the obligations of the Convention upon State Parties.
 LIMITATIONS

• Reservations
• Another hindrance to the Women’s Convention is the expansive number of
reservations that State Parties have made to their obligations. The Convention is
among the most reserved of U.N. human rights instruments. Reservations are allowed
by the Convention under Article 28, which permits ratification subject to reservations,
provided that they are not ‘incompatible with the object and purpose of the present
Convention. Yet the Convention provides no mechanism to determine whether a State
Party violates the Article compatibility requirement. Nor does CEDAW have the
authority to evaluate or limit reservations that violate the terms of Article 28
 LIMITATIONS OF CEDAW

• CEDAW does not automatically guarantee non-discrimination and equality to women at the
domestic level upon ratification.
• Regarding the Constitution or domestic legislations, the first concern of the Committee is whether
discrimination against women is clearly defined and prohibition is included in the legislation.
Oftentimes, non-existence of a clear definition of discrimination against women and prohibition
of it is a reflection of low level of understanding or commitment to the issue of gender equality
within the country, together with an increased probability for discriminatory law
 POSITIVES OF CEDAW

• CEDAW has gained much more visibility, respect and influence, especially over the recent years,
thanks to the efforts of earlier members of the Committee and of the women’s movement around
the world.
• CEDAW Convention has been cited to courts and by courts of different countries in an increasing
number of cases in recent years.
• CEDAW also covers both de jure equality, equality of opportunity, and de facto equality, i.e.
equality of result, which would cover both direct and indirect discrimination, covering all spheres
of life, whether public or private, discrimination by any actors, whether state, enterprises or
private individuals including intimate partners