COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST

WOMEN

Abstract:

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women oversees implementation of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) through its
consideration of State reports, individual complaints, inter-State complaints, and inquiry requests, and its
preparation of general recommendations, statements, and general discussions. As of October 2021, 189
States are party to the CEDAW.
 HISTORY

• Filipino women leaders played a pivotal role in the historical development and implementation of the CEDAW:
• (1) Helena Z. Benitez, who was then the chairperson of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (UN-CSW), pushed for the adoption of
the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, the CEDAW predecessor document, by the General Assembly in 1967;
• (2) Leticia-Ramos Shahani holds the distinction of being a member of the working group of the UN-CSW that drafted the document;
• (3) Justice Irene Cortes served as the first Filipino member of UN CEDAW Committee (1982-1986), followed by Teresita Quintos-Deles
(1991-1994), Aurora Javate-de Dios (1995-1998) and Ambassador Rosario G. Manalo (1999-2005). From 2005-2006, Ambassador Manalo
chaired the UN CEDAW Committee.
• In many aspects, the Philippines has been a trailblazer in advancing women's rights and is perceived to be one of the countries in the Asian
region where women relatively enjoy more rights and freedoms. The creation of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women
(NCRFW). the national machinery on women, predated the CEDAW. Established through Presidential Decree (PD) 633 in 1975, the mandate
of the NCRFW (renamed in 2009 as the Philippine Commission on Women or PCW) eventually included the monitoring of the CEDAW's
implementation. In the years following the Philippine government's ratification of the CEDAW, the NCRFW together with women's civil
society groups successfully lobbied for the passage of women-friendly laws. This strengthened the national legal framework that applied the
international human rights standards set by the CEDAW.Despite many gains, there are still many challenges that confront the attainment of
gender equality in the Philippines. The commitment of the Philippine government to mainstream gender as well as the PCW's enduring
partnership with women's organizations and NGOS hold great promise for realizing the objectives of the 2d Philippine Human Rights Plan
(PHRP II).
 • CEDAW- PHRP II Human Rights Priority Agenda

• The part of the PHRP II corresponding to the implementation of CEDAW, shall address the implementation gaps in the
enforcement of women-friendly laws, support the development of legal instruments and mechanisms where there are none
or when more are needed, and promote gender equality and non-discrimination by broadening the public'sawareness on the
CEDAW. These areas correspond to the priority rights identified for the PHRP II, which are the following:
• (1) To protect women against violence
• Close the implementation gaps. Despite the good laws addressing the prevention and criminalization of violence against
women (VAW), criticisms persist on the lack of coordination among concerned agencies; inadequate capacity and/or the
lack of willingness of many frontline service agencies/ workers to assist VAW complainants; poor quality of facilities;
absence of functional monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and processes to measure progress or the lack of it; gender
insensitivity of duty bearers; lack of political will among leaders addressing VAW; inadequate resources; legal loopholes;
low level of conviction in trafficking cases; and an overall low level of satisfaction over how the courts dispense justice on
VAW cases.Some of these issues are mentioned in the 2006 CEDAW Committee Concluding Comments, as well as the
Concluding Comments from the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in 2008 that pertained to the implementation of the
CEDAW.
• (2)To promote women's rights to equal treatment and non-discrimination
• Prepare the mechanisms for the implementation of the Magna Carta of Women (MCW). The MCW is a comprehensive
women's rights law that defines and seeks to end discrimination against women. Its recent approval on August 14, 2009
came after seven (7) years of lobbying by women's groups and the PCW before three Congresses, where they faced
opposition from conservative religious lobbyists that objected to its provisions on reproductive health. The legislative
advocacy on the MCW in the last three years was guided by a CEDAW framework, after the CEDAW Committee expressed
disappointment over the delay of its passage, and when the Human Rights Council's (HRC) echoed a similar concern,
Finally, with the signing into law of the MCW, the NCRFW was renamed as PCW and was designated as the overall
monitoring and oversight body that shall ensure the implementation of the MCW.
• Raise public awareness of women's rights. Traditional practices and beliefs on gender roles persist. These
tend to undermine the attainment of gender equality and non- discrimination, and maintain patriarchal
attitudes and gender stereotypes. Correspondingly, the level of awareness about CEDAW and national laws
that promote the rights of women is low. Thus, knowledge and appreciation of CEDAW must be increased to
lay the foundation for building a culture of human rights.
Below is a list of basic and marginalized sectors specified in RA 8425 and RA 9710 who most need to be capacitated to claim
their rights.

RA 8425 (NAPC Basic Sectors) RA 9710 (Magna Carta of

WomenMarginalized Sectors)
• Farmers and landless rural workers • Small
• Artisan fisher folk • Farmers and Rural Workers
• Urban poor • Fisherfolk
• Indigenous people and Workers in formal • Urban Poor
labor and • Indigenous Peoples
• Moro Workers in the Formal
 BASIS AND PROCESS

Each of the thematic objectives in CEDAW Chapter of the PHRP II responds to specific items raised by the CEDAW Committee
in its Concluding Comments on the Philippine government's compliance to the treaty in 2006. Even before the PHRP II, most of
the concerns in the CEDAW Concluding Comments have, or were already being acted upon by the Philippine government, with
varying levels of success. The CEDAW-PHRP II highlights the need to address a number of women's issues that are perceived to
be crucial in building and sustaining an environment that respects, protects and fulfills women's rights as human rights. In the
midst of many women's rights concerns and given its own limitations, the PHRP II preparation started in August 2008 with
consultation-meetings with stakeholders to help identify priorities. Nine consultations were held for this purpose- -four with
concerned national agencies and women's organizations, and five with GOS, NGOS and LGUs in regional consultations. The
2006 CEDAW Committee Concluding Comments is the main legal and policy basis in the formulation of the priority rights
agenda and the succeeding thematic objectives of the PHRP II. Further, the PHRP II also addresses the following:
(1) CEDAW and its General Recommendations;
(2)National laws that uphold women's rights;Philippine Plan for Gender Responsive Development (PPGD) 1995-2025, and;
(3) Report on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) by the UN Human Rights Council.
Description of Thematic Objectives

• The thematic objectives of the CEDAW chapter of the PHRP II are drawn from the human rights agenda or issues presented
earlier. At the same time, the CEDAW-PHRP II draws from the core elements of the CEDAW: (a) gender equality; (b) non-
discrimination; and (c) state obligations. It is also built on the principles of the indivisibility and interdependence of human
rights. There are (3) thematic objectives that correspond to the priority human rights agenda that were identified earlier.
They are the following:
• Thematic Objective1: To enhance the capacity of the justice system to effectively and efficiently implement existing laws
which respect, protect, and fulfill the rights of women against gender-based violence.The scope of Thematic Objective 1
will be limited to the implementation gaps of thefollowing laws on gender-based violence or VAW:
• (1) Anti-Violence against Women and their Children Act of 2004(RA 9262);
• (2) Anti-Sexual Harassment Law of 1995 (RA 7877):
• (3)Anti-Rape Law of 1997 (RA 8353);
• (4) Rape Victim Assistance and Protection Act of 1998 (RA 8505), and;(5) Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 (RA
9208).
Strategic Treaty Indicators

• Thematic Objective 1: To enhance the capacity of the justice system to effectively and efficiently implement existing laws
which respect, protect and fulfill the rights of women against gender-based violence
• The following strategic treaty indicators are identified:
1.Legislative, administrative and judicial measures for improving thecapacity of the justice system, and;
2.National and local performance accountability mechanisms in the justice system.
• The accountable agencies under this thematic objective are the frontline institutions that are mandated by the VAW laws to
provide direct services to victim- survivors of VAW. These are the Supreme Court and the Inter-agency Council on Violence
Against Women and Their Children (IACVAWC) and the Inter-agency Council against Trafficking (IACAT) member
agencies which include among others the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Justice
(DOJ), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Philippine National Police (PNP), National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI), as well as the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and Bureau of Corrections (BuCorr).
They also include the 10 priority provinces and their cities/municipalities. These agencies correspond to the five pillars of
justice, namely, the: (a) community; (b) police; (c) prosecution; (d) courts/judiciary; and (e) penology.
Thematic Baseline and Situationer

• The Philippine government's efforts to infuse CEDAW into governance has been substantial, and reinforced by the adoption
of gender mainstreaming as the strategy for achieving women's empowerment and gender equality. In 2006, the UN
CEDAW Committee welcomed the PPGD 1995-2025, the blueprint for action which translated the CEDAW and the Beijing
Platform for Action (BPFA) into policies, strategies, programs, and projects. Despite the availability of enabling laws,
policies and a programmatic response to mainstream gender perspectives in the bureaucracy through the Framework Plan
for Women (FPW) a combination of implementation gaps, customary laws and traditions, as well as evolving socio-cultural,
economic and political realities, pose numerous challenges to the task of protecting and fulfilling the rights of women in the
Philippines.The CEDAW Chapter of the PHRP II seeks to address specific gender issues within the next four years. Focus is
given to priority issues identified during the PHRP II consultation process, as well as those brought forth in the CEDAW
Review in 2006 and the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The nature and contexts of the issues that the CEDAW Chapter
of the PHRP II will attempt to address are thematically categorized as follows:
Thematic Objective 1

• In 2006, the CEDAW Committee noted with appreciation the adoption of laws, which contribute to the enhanced
implementation of CEDAW. In the same report, however, the CEDAW Committee expressed concern over the very slow
implementation of laws and the lack of progress in tracking national commitments and implementation of framework plans.
Among the identified obstacles that are perceived to deter women's realization of their right to be free from VAW include:
(a) a poor understanding of their own rights; (b) gender-insensitive handling of VAW cases by frontline social service
providers and law enforcers; (c) lack of opportunity, time and resources to access redress mechanisms, from the time of
reporting until the resolution of cases filed in court; and (d) lengthy court proceedings, and the social stigma attached to
victims of VAW who report their cases. In other situations, there is also a lack of faith in the justice system, which deters
reporting. Moreover, there are traditions or cultural beliefs that tend to allow rather than discourage gender inequalities that
lead to VAW. These issues point to the need to transform institutions and attitudes to convert de jure rights into de facto
reality so that women may fully realize their right to be protected from gender- based violence.The United Nations
Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms ofDiscrimination Against Women (1993) defines violence against women
(VAW) as:
• The prevalence of VAW is difficult to establish due to the lack of a unified reporting mechanism that results in either double
reporting or underreporting. But frontline service workers share the observation that the incidence of violence, especially
those perpetrated by husbands or live-in partners, is still on the rise.In 2010, the number of VAW cases reported to the
police rose by 59.2 percent from the 2009 report. VAW or gender-based violence can happen even in the domestic sphere.
Across a seven-year period from its implementation in 2004 to 2010, average violations of Anti-Violence Against Women
and Their Children Act of 2004(RA 9262) ranked first at 44 percent among the different VAW categories. Although
occurrence of VAW is not confined to any social or economic class, its links to poverty and high unemployment rates have
been well-established in several studies. Thus, women in marginalized sectors of society are most vulnerable to
VAW.Results from the 2008 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) reveal that one in five Filipino women aged
15-49 have experienced physical violence since age 15. Women who are living in poverty are most vulnerable to violence
(29%). Those with no education (26%) or have reached only primary education (27%) are almost twice as likely as women
who have college or higher education (14%) to have experienced physical violence. The same survey showed that the
likelihood of women experiencing sexual violence likewise increased with lack of income and less education. Nine (9)
percent of women have experienced sexual violence. Women who are employed, those who are divorced, separated, or
widowed, and those living in rural areas are more likely to have experienced sexual violence.Institutional mechanisms in
response to VAW have improved in the years that followed the passage of laws on violence against women and children
(RAS 9262, 9208, 8505,8353, and 7877), and with the establishment of Women and Children's Protection Desks (WCPD)
in police stations and barangay offices. The presence of NGOs that assist women in crisis also helped address the needs of
VAW victim-survivors. While victims' access to legal remedies, and social and health assistance have been enhanced, there
still remain a number of obstacles that deter victim-survivors from coming out to report gender-based violence.
Thematic Performance Targets

• Thematic Objective 1: To enhance the capacity of the justice system to effectively and efficiently implement existing laws
which respect, protect and fulfill the rights of women against gender-based violenceIn the medium term, priority legislative,
administrative and judicial measures and mechanisms should have been instituted towards improving the administration
ofjustice that promote and protect the rights of women.Strategic indicator 1: Legislative, administrative and judicial
measures for improving the capacity of the justice system in handling gender issues and concerns.Strategic indicator 2:
Gender-responsive national and local performance accountability mechanisms in the justice system.The annual
targets:2012-Baseline studies on gender-based policies, decisions, practices, systems, and procedures; setting up of gender-
responsive performance accountability mechanisms at the national and local levels for monitoring of the implementation of
the MCW results matrix;2013-2014-Legislative, administrative and judicial measures involving the implementation of the 5
priority laws;Accountability mechanisms, gender-sensitive decisions increased.2015-2016
Program of Action

• Programs, plans, and activities (PAPS) to implement the PHRP II are outlined in this section per thematic objective, and by
strategic treaty indicators. Implementing the CEDAW Chapter of the PHRP II lies mainly on the identified agencies of the
executive branch of the government. Although it is important to note that the legislative and judiciary are indispensable
partners to its success. The PHRP II will monitor the performance of the SC-Committee for Gender Responsiveness in the
Judiciary (SC- CGRJ) and shall make representations to the committees and members of Congress and the Senate by
supporting advocates who will lobby for the passage of bills that uphold women's rights. Implementation of the PAPs
envisioned in this plan may be grouped and summarized as follows:
a) Capacity building

• Skills training. The PHRP II will design and execute training programs to enhance skills of government workers or "first
responders" that are in the frontline of VAW-related services. Rights-based and gender-sensitive approaches will be infused
into technical know-how to ensure duty bearers' competency as well as empathy to VAW victims whose rights need to be
respected and protected;
• Public forums and other mass communications strategies to broaden duty bearers and claim holders' knowledge and
perspectives on women's human rights will be organized. Customary laws and practices being the most ubiquitous and
enduring vessels of patriarchal traditions, the PHRP II shall open spaces for productive discussions that challenge
oppressive and discriminatory attitudes towards women. Debates on highly controversial topics such as divorce,
decriminalization of abortion, and the practice of child marriage, arranged marriage, and polygamy under the CMPL are
among the topics that will be subject of these public forums. Simultaneously, public events may also be used to feature the
gains and promises of gender equality and women empowerment. By highlighting positive changes, commemorative events
on women's empowerment become an ideal venue for human rights education. Print, broadcast, television and various
forms of media are suitable complements for this purpose and will be tapped extensively.
Research and documentation

• Research studies will be undertaken for policy formulation and legal review. It will help identify policy gaps in laws that
need to be remedied, deepen gender analysis on human rights issues, and draw up evidence for legislative advocacy. The
baseline data gathered from studies that are implemented under the plan will be useful in monitoring and evaluating its
progress of work;
• Setting up of an electronic database for tracking and monitoring VAW complaints will generate useful data for planning
appropriate interventions that aim to improve the responsiveness of VAW programs
c) Service delivery

• The PHRP II sets up the hardware and software to improve anti-VAW services such as building infrastructure (family
courts, women's clinics, committees on decorum and investigation), provide the goods through welfare programs for
extremely marginalized women, and institute changes through policies (transforming court processes, introducing
affirmative action measures to achieve gender equity in entry, promotions and safety of women.)
CONCLUSION

• The Concluding Observations include several recommendations to States to enhance implementation and protection of the
rights of women and girls with disabilities including living independently and being included in the community, access to
inclusive education, health care, employment, social protection, housing.