United Nations
The EU/International Gender and Diversity Team
supports the UK in delivering its commitments on gender equality at
the UN. The UK has signed up to a number of international UN
Conventions including the Convention on the Elimination of all
forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and its Optional
Protocol. The EU/International Team take the lead on
coordinating the production of the Periodic Report to the CEDAW and
supports the UK in its advancement and implementation of
the international Beijing Declaration and Platform
of Action for Women and the development of forward looking
strategies which include commitments to promote the
advancement and empowerment of women, to address women and poverty,
and to combat violence against women.
CEDAW
The UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of
Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is a legally binding
international Treaty that is often described as an international
bill of rights for women. States that have signed up to CEDAW agree
to take all appropriate measures to ensure that women enjoy all
their human rights and fundamental freedoms. The UK became a
signatory to CEDAW in 1981 and ratified the Convention in April
1986.
In line with the obligations of the Convention the UK undertakes
to submit periodic reports to the CEDAW Committee - the expert body
that monitors States parties' compliance with the Convention -
every four years on measures it has taken to comply with its Treaty
obligations. On 1st May 2007 the UK submitted its 6th Periodic
Report to the CEDAW Committee. The Report sets out progress that
the UK has made on significant legislative, judicial and
administrative measures adopted to give effect to the Convention
since the submission of its last report to the Committee.
The EU/International Team played a key role in coordinating the
production of the UK’s 6th Periodic Report, in close partnership
with other Government departments and the Devolved Administrations
of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It also consulted with
women’s organisations through the Women’s National Commission, as
well as the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Equality Commission
in Northern Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Human Rights
Commission.
In July 2008, the UK was examined by the CEDAW Committee on its
5th and 6th periodic reports to CEDAW. Following the examination,
the Committee produced a set of Concluding Observations including a
number of follow-up recommendations. The EU/International Team
plays a lead role in disseminating information about the periodic
report within the UK and works together with other Government
departments and stakeholders to follow up on the CEDAW Committee’s
recommendations and oversee the promotion and implementation of the
Convention.
Please
click here for a copy of the UK’s 6th Periodic Report and the
Concluding Observations of the 2008 examination
The Concluding Observations of the 2008 examination included a
request that the UK submit, within one year of the examination,
written information on steps undertaken to implement a small select
number of recommendations contained in the Concluding Observations.
The EU/International Team recently submitted this information to
the UN.
Please click
here for a copy of the report.
Optional Protocol to CEDAW
In 1999, the United Nations General
Assembly adopted an Optional Protocol to CEDAW. The Optional
Protocol strengthens the enforcement mechanism of CEDAW by
establishing a communications procedure,
which allows individuals or groups whose rights under CEDAW have
been violated - and who have been denied access to justice at the
national level - to have their claims reviewed by the CEDAW
Committee. The Optional Protocol also establishes an
inquiry procedure which enables the
Committee to initiate inquiries into situations of grave or
systematic violations of women’s rights.
The UK ratified the Optional Protocol to
CEDAW in 2005, and in so doing recognised the competence of the
CEDAW Committee to receive and consider complaints from individuals
or groups. The EU/International Team works to disseminate
information about the Optional Protocol to stakeholders and
cooperates with relevant Government Ministries to support its
implementation.
Please click
here to find out more about Optional Protocol to CEDAW.
UN Commission on the Status of Women
(CSW)
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW),
established through theUnited Nations Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC), is on of the main international policy-making
bodies dedicated exclusively to gender equality and the advancement
of women. The EU/International Team actively engages with the CSW,
including through participating in annual CSW meetings as part of
the EU delegation. At these meetings Member States evaluate
progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global
standards and formulate policies to promote the advancement of
women worldwide. The EU/International Team works to ensure the UK’s
priorities are reflected in the position of the EU delegation and
that it makes a strategic contribution to the discussions.
The 53rd session of CSW will take
place in March 2009 where the priority theme will be The equal
sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including care
giving in the context of HIV/AIDS. Previous CSW themes have
included Financing for gender equality and the empowerment of
women and Gender perspectives on climate change.
Please click here for
further information on CSW.
The Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action
The Beijing
Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA) is an international
declaration of women’s rights set up at the UN’s landmark Fourth
World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995. The BPfA covers
12 key critical areas of concern/areas for action including women
and poverty, violence against women and access to power and
decision-making, and was supported by 189 countries - including the
UK, at the 1995 World Conference.
In June 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted a
political declaration reaffirming Member States’ commitment to the
objectives set forth in the BPfA and a Special Session was held by
the General Assembly in 2005 to review Member States’ progress in
implementing the BPfA (Beijing+10). The UK
took an active role in the process and its report is available on
the Beijing +10 website.
2010 sees the 15th anniversary of
the BPfA (Beijing +15). The UN Economic Commission for Europe
(UNECE) recently circulated a questionnaire to assess progress on
Beijing +15 to all UNECE members and the UK has responded with a
full report.
The UNECE will be hosting a Regional Review
Meeting on progress on Beijing +15 in Geneva in November 2009. This
will is in turn inform the Global Review of progress on Beijing +15
which will take place at the 54th session of the UN
Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), to be held in March 2010.
The UK will be taking an active role in both meetings.
Please click here for
the UK’s response to the UNECE Beijing +15 questionnaire and for
more information on the UNECE Regional Review meeting in
November.
In preparation for the CSW meeting, the
Government Equalities Office is again funding the Women’s National
Commission (WNC) to host a number of Stakeholder Consultation
Events in all four UK countries. The GEO will actively participate
in these meetings and the feedback received will feed into the
preparations for the CSW meeting. Details of these events will be
available on the WNC
website.