[Pdf-women] FW: [IDA_CRPD_Forum] updates on Women Enabled International's engagement with the CEDAW Committee and its impact

[Simione Bula]

From: IDA_CRPD_Forum at yahoogroups.com<mailto:IDA_CRPD_Forum at yahoogroups.com> [mailto:IDA_CRPD_Forum at yahoogroups.com]
Sent: Thursday, 3 August 2017 5:27 AM
To: IDA_CRPD_Forum at yahoogroups.com<mailto:IDA_CRPD_Forum at yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [IDA_CRPD_Forum] updates on Women Enabled International's engagement with the CEDAW Committee and its impact

Dear Colleagues,

Women Enabled International engages with various U.N. treaty bodies and mechanisms and we share here some of the recent engagement with the CEDAW Committee and its impact on the rights of women and girls with disabilities.  If you have any questions, please contact me.

CEDAW Recognizes Rights of Women and Girls with Disabilities at 67th Session

At the conclusion of the CEDAW Committee’s 67th session, Women Enabled international (WEI) is pleased to inform you about advancements the Committee has made in recognizing the rights of women and girls with disabilities.

CEDAW Calls on Nigeria to End Discrimination against Women with Disabilities
During its 67th session, the CEDAW Committee reviewed and issued concluding observations concerning Nigeria’s women’s rights record<http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CEDAW%2fC%2fNGA%2fCO%2f7-8&Lang=en.>. These conclu ding observations contain several references to women and girls with disabilities. For instance, the CEDAW Committee called on Nigeria to adopt the national Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill and the Disability Rights Bill and amend them as needed to ensure they conform with CEDAW. The Committee also noted that women and girls with disabilities face economic and physical barriers to accessing needed social services, including health care, and called on Nigeria to ensure through existing and new innovative programs their access to health care and combat all forms of discrimination against them.
·      These concluding observations reflect recommendations made in a shadow letter<http://womenenabled.org/cedaw.html#cedaw-july2017> to the CEDAW Committee from WEI, Advocacy for Women with Disability Initiative, Legal De fence and Assistance Project, and Inclusive Friends Association, all of which work to promote the rights of women and girls with disabilities in Nigeria or worldwide.

CEDAW Includes Women with Disabilities in new General Recommendation on GBV
During its 67th session, the CEDAW Committee discussed and adopted an updated general recommendation on gender-based violence, General Recommendation No . 35<http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CEDAW/Shared%20Documents/1_Global/CEDAW_C_GC_35_8267_E.pdf.>, which supplements its General Recommendation No. 19 on this topic. The updated general recommendation contains several references to women and girls with disabilities and the particular issues they face in the context of gender-based violence. For instance, the CEDAW Committee classified medical procedures performed on women with disabilities without informed consent as a form of gender-based violence and called on states to repeal any legislation that allows, tolerates, or condones this violence. The Committee further called on states to repeal any laws that deter women from reporting gender-based violence, including “guardianship laws that deprive women of legal capacity or restrict the ability of women with disabilities to testify in court.” The Committee also recommended that states implement accessible protection mechanisms to prevent further or potential violence, including by removing communication barriers for victims with disabi lities, and called on states to develop and disseminate accessible information, including to those with disabilities, about legal and social resources available to victims.
·      These recommendations reflect comments submitted by WEI and endorsed by 10 other women’s rights organizations in September 2016, available here<../../../Applications/Microsoft%20Office%202011/Microsoft%20Word.app/Contents/html#WEICEDAWGR19http://womenenabled.org/publications.html>.

WEI commends the CEDAW Committee for these important advancements and looks forward to work ing with the Committee in the future to ensure the rights of women and girls with disabilities worldwide.

With warm wishes, Stephanie

Stephanie Ortoleva, Esq.
Founding President & Legal Director, Women Enabled International<http://www.womenenabled.org/>
+1.202.359.3045
StephanieOrtoleva at gmail.com<mailto:StephanieOrtoleva at gmail.com> & President at WomenEnabled.org<mailto:President at WomenEnabled.org>
www.WomenEnabled.org<http://www.womenenabled.org/>



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Posted by: "Stephanie Ortoleva " <stephanieortoleva at gmail.com<mailto:stephanieortoleva at gmail.com>>
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