Thoughts on the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

• Author: Christine Chinkin
• Profession: London School of Economics
• Pages: 5-7

5

Part I: Background

2 Thoughts on the UN Convention on the

Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination

against Women (CEDAW)

Christine Chinkin, London School of Economics

The story of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against

Women (CEDAW) comes out of many decades of women’s activism and organising

around issues such as the abolition of slavery, suffrage, trafficking, the peace movement

and, in many countries of the Commonwealth, nationalism and struggles for indepen-

dence. However, the move for the adoption of an international treaty dedicated to the

elimination of all forms of discrimination against women – to achieve formal (legal) and

de facto (real) substantive equality for women with men in all areas of life in recognition

of their human rights and fundamental freedoms – was to build upon and strengthen

the prohibition of discrimination (including on the basis of sex) contained in the

UN Charters – the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights1 and the 1966 Inter-

national Covenants.2

Why does CEDAW matter?

I think CEDAW is a revolutionary document for women for reasons both at the time of

drafting and in the way it has evolved.

At the time of its adoption, the Covenants did not define discrimination. CEDAW provides

a definition of discrimination,3 which closely follows that of the Race Convention.4 The

definition has been adopted by the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and is now widely accepted as the authoritative

international law definition. It covers direct and indirect discrimination (intent and effect),

equality of opportunity as well as formal equality, and disadvantageous discrimination

that nullifies or impairs enjoyment by women of their human rights.

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1. See United Nations Doc. A/RES/217 (III).

2. See International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, available at http://www2.ohchr.org/

english/law/ccpr.htm [last accessed 10 May 2010] and International Covenant on Eco-

nomic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/cescr.htm

[last accessed 10 May 2010].

3. See Article 1, United Nations Doc. A/RES/34/180.

4. See United Nations Doc. A/RES/2106 (XX).