Ratification of CEDAW Would Give UN Experts Control Over U.S. Domestic Policies
HUMAN RIGHTS, LAW & JUSTICE, SOCIETY & CULTURE
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
In its latest reporting period, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (the “Committee”) made it abundantly clear that it expects national governments to conform their laws to the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) as interpreted by the Committee. As the Obama Administration and the United States Senate consider whether to ratify CEDAW and other international human rights treaties, they would be prudent to consider the Committee’s aggressive efforts to ensure the supremacy of the provisions of CEDAW over U.S. laws and domestic policy.Earlier this week the Committee opened its 44th session , which ends on August 7th. During the session, the Committee will review the required reports filed by a select group of nations that have ratified CEDAW. The reports must detail the progress that the countries have made in implementing the provisions of CEDAW. The Committee will also review the responses submitted by the reporting countries to questions posed by the Committee about perceived shortcomings in the full implementation of CEDAW.
Japan, Spain and Denmark are among the twelve countries being reviewed during the current session of the Committee. Prior to the session, in response to the reports submitted by these countries, the Committee expressed concern and sought further explanation over several aspects of the implementation of CEDAW by these States, including:
- The extent to which the provisions of CEDAW have been invoked in legal cases that have come before the national court system;
- The level of gender balance achieved among elected officials in the State in question;
- Ways in which women’s rights issues have been incorporated into school curricula;
- The availability of equal employment opportunities for women;
- The promotion of “comprehensive” sex education plans;
- The availability of contraceptive methods for girls and women, including abortion;
- Efforts taken to combat gender-related stereotypes;
- The availability of State-supported child care programs; and
- The extent to which NGOs and women’s rights organizations were consulted in the preparation of the State reports.
If the United States Senate ratifies CEDAW, the Committee would engage in the same periodic review of U.S. domestic policies and expect total conformity with the provisions of CEDAW. The Committee, which is based in Geneva and relies on staff from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights , is comprised of 23 experts on women’s rights from countries around the world, including Bangladesh, Cuba, Egypt, Afghanistan and China. At regular intervals, the United States would be required to report on its women’s rights policies and to respond to the Committee’s criticisms. International NGOs and women’s rights organizations assist the Committee in reviewing country reports and crafting the Committee’s criticisms or objections. In essence, because U.S. policies on women’s rights would be required to conform to CEDAW, the treaty’s provisions would supersede all conflicting local, state, and national laws enacted by duly elected representatives. At that point, the opinions of 23 international “experts” and their Geneva-based staff would dictate U.S. domestic policy in this important area. As a result, U.S. citizens would no longer have the ability to hold their elected officials accountable for policy decisions in the area of women’s rights.
Jim Kelly is the President of Solidarity Center for Law and Justice, P.C., a public interest civil and human rights law firm based in Atlanta, Georgia. The opinions expressed herein are his own.
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