On Monday 27 January, the European Parliament’s Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) debated the work of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
Forty-five years after the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, CEDAW President Ana Peláez has warned of the “rise of authoritarian political movements” threatening to reverse the progress made to date.
According to Mrs Peláez, the gains made in terms of women’s rights could be jeopardised by a multi-faceted crisis that goes beyond economic borders. Climate change, armed conflict and the rise of authoritarian political movements are jeopardising gender equality.
These dynamics, she stressed, are not limited to a denial of women’s fundamental rights, but also attack their health, their bodily autonomy and their sexual and reproductive rights.
Even within the European Union, cases of systemic violence continue to undermine the objectives of the Convention.
For example, the practice of forced sterilisation is still tolerated in 14 Member States, mainly affecting disabled women and ethnic minorities.
Italian MEP Carolina Morace (The Left) described this situation as the acceptance of an “invisible crime”, calling for concrete measures to eradicate what she described as a “violation of human rights”.
In addition, the CEDAW Committee recently published an investigative report on restrictions on legal abortion in Poland, recommending urgent reform to guarantee women’s autonomy in decisions concerning their bodies.
There have been a number of setbacks around the world, with countries abandoning previously progressive legislation, including the suspension of laws penalising female genital mutilation in Gambia and the abolition of the concept of femicide in Argentina.
Ana Peláez also pointed out that women’s rights are under serious threat in Afghanistan, making the Committee’s intervention complex but essential.
Faced with these multiple problems, the President of CEDAW stressed the decisive role of parliaments, in particular the European Parliament, in guaranteeing respect for women’s rights.
She insisted on the implementation of the CEDAW recommendations, the ratification of its optional protocol and the adoption of solid legal frameworks. The Committee’s new general recommendation 40 was also mentioned as a roadmap towards inclusive parity in decision-making systems, particularly in the digital and innovative sectors.
Mrs Peláez also called for greater support for the most vulnerable women - homeless, disabled, indigenous or victims of gender-based violence - and urged the European institutions not to give in to backtracking. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)