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STATES
PARTIES TO WOMEN'S ANTI-DISCRIMINATION CONVENTION ELECT 12 EXPERTS
TO MONITORING COMMITTEE
Press Release
Meeting of States Parties
Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women
1st & 2nd Meetings (AM & PM)
29 August 2002
In two rounds
of voting today, the States parties to the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women elected 12 experts
to serve four-year terms on the Committee monitoring the implementation
of the Convention, beginning 1 January 2003.
Acting by secret
ballot, the meeting elected 9 new members and re-elected 3 current
members to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against
Women. The 23 expert members of the Committee are nominated by governments
but serve in their personal capacity.
During the first
round of voting this morning, the following persons were elected
as members: Cornelis Flinterman (Netherlands) 119 votes; Huguette
Bokpe Gnancadja (Benin) 110 votes; Meriem Belmihoub-Zerdani (Algeria)
106 votes; Akua Kuenyehia (Ghana) 104 votes; Krisztina Morvai (Hungary)
103 votes; Salma Khan (Bangladesh) 102 votes; Pramila Patten (Mauritius)
101 votes; Victoria Popescu Sandru (Romania) 101 votes; Dubravka
Simonovic (Croatia) 99 votes. Re-elected were: Fumiko Saiga (Japan)
125 votes, and Naela Mohamed Gabr (Egypt) 107 votes.
During a second
round of voting this afternoon, Rosario Manalo (Philippines) was
re-elected for a four-year term with 82 votes.
The 12 experts
whose term of office expires on 31 December 2002 are: Charlotte
Abaka (Ghana); Emna Aouij (Tunisia); Ivanka Corti (Italy); Feng
Cui (China); Naela Gabr (Egypt); Savitri Goonesekere (Sri Lanka);
Roslyn Hazelle (Saint Kitts and Nevis); Rosario Manalo (Philippines);
Mavivi Myakayaka-Manzini (South Africa); Frances Livingstone Raday
(Israel); Zelmira Regazzoli (Argentina) and Fumiko Saiga (Japan).
The 11 members
of the Committee who will continue to serve until their terms of
office expire on 31 December 2004 are: Ayse Feride Acar (Turkey);
Sjamsiah Achmad (Indonesia); Francoise Gaspard (France); Yolanda
Ferrer Gomez (Mexico); Aida Gonzalez Martinez (Mexico); Christine
Kapalata (United Republic of Tanzania); Fatima Kwaku (Nigeria);
Goran Melander (Sweden); Hanna Beate Schopp-Schilling (Germany);
Heisoo Shin (Republic of Korea); and Maria Regina Tavares da Silva.
The Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
which was opened for signature on 1 March 1980 entered into force
on 3 September 1981. The Convention is the most comprehensive treaty
on women's human rights, establishing legally binding obligations
to end discrimination.
Often described
as an international bill of rights for women, the Convention provides
for equality between women and men in the enjoyment of civil, political,
economic, social and cultural rights. The Committee is mandated
to consider reports from States parties and to make suggestions
and general recommendations based on those reports.
At the outset
of the meeting, States parties elected June Yvonne Clark (Barbados)
as Chairperson of the twelfth meeting. They also elected four Vice-Chairpersons:
Chungong Ayafor (Cameroon) for the Africa Region; Mukta D. Tomar
(India) for the Asian Region; Gilbert Laurin (Canada) for the Western
European and other States and Ivana Grollova (Czech Republic) for
the Eastern European States.
Following her
election as Chairperson, Ms. Clark said that it was symbolic that
the twelfth meeting of the States parties was taking place just
five days before the twenty-first anniversary of the Convention's
entry into force on 3 September 1981. The fact that there were 170
States parties to the Convention indicated Member States' commitment
to the Convention. And the fact that 22 candidates had been nominated
for 12 seats reflected the importance and esteem attached by States
parties to the Committee.
Addressing States
parties, Carolyn Hannan, Director of the Division for the Advancement
of Women, said the meeting was taking place immediately after the
exceptional session of the Committee, which had concluded on 23
August. During that session, which had been authorized by the General
Assembly to reduce the backlog of reports awaiting review, 11 States
parties had submitted reports to the Committee. As a result of the
Committee's work during the exceptional session, there was no longer
a backlog of reports for the Committee's consideration.
The Committee
had held five sessions since the eleventh meeting of States parties
in August 2000, she continued. It had considered the reports of
35 States parties to the Convention and had adopted a number of
decisions and suggestions. New rules of procedure relating to the
review of reports and the Committee's functions under the Optional
Protocol had been adopted. A Working Group on the Optional Protocol
had been established, and a draft model communications form for
those submitting petitions had been formulated. The Committee had
continued to improve its working methods, and new reporting guidelines
had been adopted. There were 254 reports currently outstanding.
States with more than one overdue report were encouraged to combine
reports and make use of the technical and advisory services available
through the Division for the Advancement of Women.
Summarizing
the status of the Convention, she said that with Bahrain's accession
to the Convention in June, there were now 170 States parties to
the Convention. Seventy-five had signed the Optional Protocol, most
recently, the Seychelles in July. Forty-three had ratified and acceded
to the Convention, most recently Georgia in August. Thirty-five
had accepted the amendment to article 20 related to the Committee's
meeting time, most recently Cyprus in July. Since Two thirds of
States parties were required to accept the amendment before it entered
into force, States parties were encouraged to submit their instruments
of acceptance with assistance from the Treaty Section of the United
Nations Office of Legal Affairs.
At the conclusion
of the voting, the Chairperson reminded States parties that following
the Committee's exceptional session, 254 reports were outstanding,
of which 45 were initial reports and 209 were periodic reports.
The session, authorized by the Assembly to reduce the backlog in
reports, had considered 11 reports. There was no longer a backlog
and States parties would no longer have to wait for their reports
to be considered. She appealed to States parties with overdue reports
to fulfil their obligations by submitting reports in accordance
with article 18 of the Convention. States parties that had never
submitted reports should do so. She also appealed to States that
had not yet ratified the Convention or its Optional Protocol to
do so at the earliest possible time.
The representative
of Suriname said the day had brought joy as well as disappointment.
She was shocked with the outcome of the elections. While she would
embrace the outcome and congratulate countries that had gained a
precious seat in the Committee, she was shocked that excellent candidates
that had executed their duties would no longer represent States
parties on the Committee. As a result of today's election, the Caribbean
region would no longer be represented. The international community
needed to rethink procedures in that regard. Of the Committee's
23 members, seven were from Africa, six were from Western Europe
and other States, five were from the Asian region, three were from
Eastern Europe and two were from Latin America.
The Chairperson
reminded States parties that the experts were elected in their personal
capacity and not as representatives of States. While the principle
of equitable distribution was desirable, elections were not predictable.
It was time to accept the results and to move on.
In other matters
today, the Committee also took note of a document entitled "Declarations,
reservations, objections and notifications of withdrawal of reservations
relating to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women" (document CEDAW/SP/2002/2).
[Further information
on the Convention and the work of the Committee is available on
the Web site of the Division for the Advancement of Women: www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw.]
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