World Bulletin
Support for Women’s Treaty Should Include the US By Denise De Marco March 17 -- The Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, a landmark international treaty protecting the rights of women, has been ratified by 186 of the UN’s 192 members. The US remains the only industrialized democracy in the world that has not ratified it, leaving the US in the company of such nations as Iran, Somalia and Sudan, where violations of women’srights are rampant. 
June Zeitlin, left, and Ann Warner at the UNA-Council of Organizations event. Denise De Marco/UNA-USA. |
To mark the occasion of the 54th Commission on the Status of Women at the UN, UNA-USA’s Council of Organizations held a parallel event in New York on March 11 , discussing the status of the US ratification of the treaty, known as CEDAW, and what its approval would mean for women in the US. The event also addressed how the treaty has been carried out in select countries and the impact it has had on women’s rights. The speakers were June Zeitlin, director of the CEDAW Education Project at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and Ann Warner, special assistant to the president at the InternationalCenter for Research on Women. The US played an integral role in drafting the treaty, and President Jimmy Carter was quick to sign it 30 years ago. But since then, the Senate has taken little action other than to twice send the treaty out of the Foreign Relations Committee to the Senate floor for debate and a vote. In neither instance, the last instance in 2002, did the Senate vote on it. Ratification requires a two-thirds Senate majority, or 67 votes. If the treaty were carried out in the US, it would create increased if not equal civil liberties for women in a variety of areas. As Zeitlin said, “Domestic violence is still very, very present here in the US; in fact, it is one of the highest reasons for murder, and sexual violence among girls and boys of young ages.” 
June Zeitlin of the CEDAW Education Project at the Council of Organizations event. Denise De Marco/UNA-USA.
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Women now comprise more than half of the workforce in the US, but the average pay they earn is 77 cents on the dollar that men earn. In addition, women are still underrepresented in many booming industries such as science, engineering and technology. Zeitlin said that by not ratifying the treaty, the US does not offer legitimacy to its interaction with other countries on such human rights issues. The Obama administration is a strong supporter of the treaty and has issued statements as such. Around the world, the treaty has been used to ensure primary education for girls, improve health care services, save lives during pregnancy and childbirth, end sex slavery, pass laws against domestic violence and female genital mutilation and allow women to own and inherit property. Warner said: “Violence is the most egregious form of discrimination against women and girls. Countries have been very successful in making the argument about applying CEDAW and using the comments of the CEDAW Committee to support their efforts.” CEDAW has been successful in India in fighting sexual violence and discrimination against women. One landmark case, in 2005, concerned a woman social worker who was gang-raped on the job. “A committee of women’s organizations went before the Supreme Court to show that India had failed to protect women in the workplace against violence and discrimination,” said Warner. As a result, the Supreme Court created guidelines and a system of accountability for violations. “It is time for us to join with the other nations around the world to advance women’s rights,” Zeitlin said. You can download an audio recording of the COO event here. Denise De Marco is the development manager at UNA-USA. Keywords: CEDAW, ratification, CSW, COO, women’s rights
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