The Convention’s Optional Protocol
Often, human rights treaties are followed by “Optional Protocols” that may either provide for procedures with regard to the treaty or address a substantive area related to the treaty. Optional Protocols to human rights treaties are treaties in their own right, and are open to signature, accession or ratification by countries who are party to the main treaty.
The Optional Protocol (OP) to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women includes:
- The Communications Procedure: It gives individuals and groups of women the right to complain to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women about violations of the Convention. This procedure is known as the communications procedure. United Nations communications procedures provide the right to petition or the right to complain about violations of rights. Under all procedures, the complaint must be in writing.
- The Inquiry Procedure: It enables the Committee to conduct inquiries into grave or systematic abuses of women’'s human rights in countries that become States parties to the Optional Protocol. Known as an inquiry procedure, this capacity is found in Article 8 of the Optional Protocol.
The year 2009 is the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention’s Optional Protocol by the General Assembly. Gender equality advocates around the world have been actively working to encourage their governments to ratify the Optional Protocol. As of September 2009, there are 98 States parties to the OP.
As of September 2009, the Committee had adopted eleven decisions on complaints, and conducted one inquiry into the femicides in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
See also:
- Full text of the CEDAW Optional Protocol (A/RES/54/4, Annex)
- States parties to the CEDAW OP
- CEDAW decisions on complaints and inquiries
- Optional Protocol rules of procedure
- Optional Protocol model complaint form
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