UN Human Rights Treaties

REPORT
OF THE COMMITTEE
ON THE
ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION
AGAINST WOMEN
(Sixth session)
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
UNITED NATIONS
New York, 1987
OFFICIAL RECORDS: FORTY-SECOND SESSION SUPPLEMENT No. 38 (A/42/38)

NOTE
Symbols of United Nations documents are imposed of capital letters combined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document

(Original: English)
[15 May 1987]
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
LETTER OP TRANSMITTAL v
1. INTRODUCTION 1-25 1
A. States parties to the Convention 1 1
B. Sessions of the Committee 2-10 1
C. Attendance 11 3
D. Solemn declaration 12 3
E. Election of officers 13 3
P. Agenda 14 3
G. Programme budget 15 - 24 3
H. Other matters 25 5
II. ORGANIZATION OF WORK 26-62 6
A. Working a groups 26 - 30 6
B. Recommendations of Working Group I 31-55 6
C. Recommendations of Working Group II 56-60 9
D. Future work of the Committee 61-62 12
III. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER ARTICLE 18 OP THE CONVENTION 63-572 13
A. Introduction 63 - 64 13
B. Consideration of reports 65 - 572 13
Greece 65 - 129 13
Republic of Korea 130 - 184 21
Sri Lanka 185 - 237 28
Spain 238 - 304 35
Poland 305 - 369 44
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CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
France 370 - 451 52
Colombia , 452 - 502 62
Bangladesh 503 - 572 69
IV. WAYS AND MEANS OF IMPLEMENTING ARTICLE 21 OP THE
CONVENTION 573 - 579 77
577 - 579 77
577 77
578 78
579 78
580 79
580 79
581 81
General recommendations based on article 21 of the
Convent ion
General recommendation No. 2 (sixth session/1987) ....
General recommendation No. 3 (sixth session/1987) ....
General recommendation No. 4 (sixth session/1987) ....
V. DECISIONS ADOPTED BY THE COMMITTEE AT ITS SIXTH SESSION ..
Decisions 1 to 4
VI. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT
Annexes
I. STATES PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN AS AT 30 MARCH 1987 82
II. SUBMISSION OF REPORTS BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 18 OF THE
CONVENTION AS AT 1 APRIL 1987 85
A. Initial reports 8b
B. Second periodic reports of States parties due in 1986 89
III. MEMBERSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION
AGAINST WOMEN AT ITS SIXTH SESSION 90
IV. GENERAL GUIDELINES REGARDING THE FORM AND CONTENT OF REPORTS
RECEIVED FROM STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 18 OF THE CONVENTION 91
V. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS RELEVANT TO DECISION 1 93
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LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
10 April 1987
I have the honour to refer to article 21, paragraph 1, of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, according to which the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, established pursuant to the Convention, "shall, through the Economic and Social Council, report annually to the General Assembly of the United Nations on its activities."
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women held its sixth session from 30 March to 10 April 1987. It adopted the report of that session at its 103rd meeting, held on 10 April 1987. The report is herewith submitted to you for transmission to the General Assembly at its forty-second session.
Accept, Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.
(Signed) Desiree BERNARD Chairperson of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
His Excellency Mr. Javier Perez de Cuellar Secretary-General of the United Nations New York
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I. INTRODUCTION
A. States parties to the Convention
1. On 30 Match 1987, the opening date of the sixth session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, there were 92 States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which was adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 34/180 of 18 December 1979 and opened for signature, ratification and accession in New York on 1 March 1980. In accordance with article 27, the Convention entered into force on 3 September 1981.
B. Sessions of the Committee
2. The Committe on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women held its sixth session from 30 March to 10 April 1987 at the United Nations Office at Vienna. The Committee held 20 (84th to 103rd) meetings.
3. The sixth session of the Committee was opened by the representative of the Secretary-General. In her welcome to the members of the Committee, she congratulated those who had been elected in 1986 and extended her gratitude to the outgoing members for their efforts on behalf of the Committee. She informed the Committee members of the tragic death in a car accident of the elected member from Indonesia, Ms. Ida Soekaman, and called for a minute of silence i her memory.
4. The representative of the Secretary-General emphasized the difficult task before the Committee of ensuring the application of the Convention in order to achieve progress towards the elimination of discrimination. She said that the Committee, in carrying out its monitoring functions, had endeavored to develop a dynamic dialogue with States parties. The seriousness and effectiveness with which the Committee had discharged its functions under the Convention had contributed to increased public interest both in the Convention and in the work of the Committee. The Committee's documents had been widely disseminated and appreciated. She reported that the Commission on the Status of Women, at its January 1987 session, had recommended annual sessions and identified priority themes from the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women 1/ to be examined in detail. The Commission had indicated that the comprehensive reports submitted by member States to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women were of direct relevance to the Commission's task of monitoring and appraising the implementation of the Strategies. She reported that the Commission had considered the identification by the Committee of progress made and problems encountered by States parties in implementing the Convention to be of help in assessing the activities of Governments with regard to new policy measures, and it had encouraged the Committee to intensify that process of identification.
5. The representative of the Secretary-General referred to the report of the
Secretary-General on the status of the Convention (A/41/608 and Add.l), which had
been submitted to the General Assembly in 1986, and to the views provided by
16 States parties on reservations. Those States parties had confirmed the basic right to reservations, but had indicated that those that were incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention should be discouraged. She reported that some States parties had objected to specific reservations, while others believed that
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some reservations were not necessary and had been made owing to misinterpretations of the Convention. The question of reservations would be discussed further by the States parties at their 4th meeting, to be held in March 1988.
6. The Economic and Social Council, in its resolution 1986/4 of 21 May 1986, and the General Assembly, in its resolution 41/108 of 4 December 1986, had urged all States to become parties to the Convention and to comply strictly with their obligations, particularly in regard to the submission of initial reports. She reported that to date the Secretariat had received 48 of the 85 initial reports that were due and 6 second periodic reports of the 30 that were due. it was suggested that the Committee should continue to discuss the organization of its work, including the reporting cycle and content of future periodic reports, in order to deal with the problem of reports awaiting consideration.
7. The representative of the Secretary-General also referred to the continuing financial crisis of the United Nations and its effects on programmes, documentation, conferences and meetings. By its decision 41/466, of
11 December 1986, the General Assembly agreed that the Committee would continue to be entitled to summary records but that they would be in English and French only. It was suggested that the example of the Human Rights Committee should be followed by having summary records on substantial matters only, that is, the consideration of periodic reports of States parties. The representative also stressed the importance of limiting the length of the report while maintaining the balance. She referred to the recent appointment of Ms. Margaret Anstee and conveyed best wishes for her future success as Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and Head of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs.
8. A member proposed that a representative of the united Nations Council for
Namibia should be allowed to make a statement on behalf of the oppressed women in
Namibia. The view was expressed that the Council should have made its request in
writing. After some discussion, the Committee decided that the representative of
that body could address the Committee. By doing so, the Committee did not intend
to create a precedent, but it felt that each case ought to be decided on its merits.
9. At the 87th meeting, on 31 March 1987, the representative of the United Nations Council for Namibia addressed the Committee. She stated that discrimination against women and infringements of human rights were demonstrated by the situation of women in Namibia. Lacking adequate, suitable land and employment opportunities, women, she stated, were unable to maintain their families and their dignity. She urged necessary action to improve adult literacy and employment opportunities, particularly at the national political level. She concluded that none of the recommendations made could be implemented until apartheid and racial discrimination had been fully eradicated.
10. Finally, she called upon the Committee to give every support to the struggle of the Namibian people for self-determination, freedom and national independence and to expedite the implementation of United Nations resolutions on Namibia, particularly Security Council resolutions 385 (1976) and 435 (1978).

C. Attendance
11. At the commencement of the session, 21 members of the Committee were present. Ms Guan Mingian arrived on 3 April 1987. Ms. Ida Soekaman tragically passed away before being able to serve on the Committee.
D. Solemn declaration
12. At the opening of the sixth session, before assuming their functions,
Ms. Akamatsu of Japan, Ms. Corti of Italy, Ma. Diallo Soumare of Mali, Ms. Escobar of Brazil, Ms. Forde of Barbados, Ms. Ilic of Yugoslavia, Ms. Novikova of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Ms. Pilstaxi de Arenas of Ecuador, Ms. Tallawy of Egypt and Ms. Ukeje of Nigeria, who were elected at the 3rd meeting of the States parties to the Convention, made the solemn declaration provided for under rule 10 of the rules of procedure of the Committee. Ms. Guan of China made the solemn declaration at the 90th meeting.
E. Election of Officers
13. At its 84th meeting, on 30 March 1987, the Committee elected the following
of icers by acclamation: Ms. Bernard (Guyana), Chairperson; Ms. Akamatsu (Japan), Ms. Diallo Soumare (Mali), Ms. Novikova (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), Vice-Chairpersons: and Ms. Wadstein (Sweden), Rapporteur.
F. Agenda
14. The Committee considered the provisional agenda (CEDAW/C/14 and Corr.l) at its
84th meeting. The agenda was discussed and adopted as follows:
1. Opening of the session.
2. Solemn declination by the new members of the Committee.
3. Election of the Chairperson and other officers of the Committee.
4. Adoption of the agenda and other organizational matters.
5. Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.
6. Ways and means of implementing article 21 of the Convention.
7. Consideration and adoption of the Committee's report on its sixth session.
G. Programme budget
15. One expert said that, because important decisions concerning the United
Nations, budget for 1988-1989 were to be taken by the Committee for Programme and
Co-ordination in May 1987 and by the Economic and Social Council in July and
because the Commission on the Status of Women had already accepted a draft

programme which referred to the work of the Committee, the Committee should be in a position to put forward views on its need for resources to those who were making the decisions. She therefore requested the Secretariat to provide information to members of the Committee during the current session on the part of the draft programme of work covering equality in the period 1988-1989. She asked the Secretariat to Identify the resources within that programme that were provisionally allocated to the Committee for the biennium 1988-1989, and to provide comparable figures for the biennium 1986-1987, as well as the cost of servicing sessions of the Committee in 19A8-1989 and the comparable costs in 1986-1987. With that information at its disposal, the Committee would be in a position to decide how to make its views known to the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination and the Economic and Social Council.
16. In replying to the question, the Director of the Branch for the Advancement of Women said that she did not think it would be possible to provide details during the present session. However, a statement on the financial implications would be prepared if the Committee wished to hold a three-week session in 1988 at United Nations Headquarters. As the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs was no longer part of the Department of International Economic and Social Affairs, at United Nations Headquarters in New York, it would involve additional costs for more staff to travel to New York. The draft programme budget for the biennium 1988-1989 had already been prepared and instructions had been given that the level should not exceed that of 1986-1987.
17. While considering the backlog of reports to be considered by the Committee, some experts expressed the opinion that any proposals should take into account the present financial situation of the United Nations. One expert underlined the fact that any measures to improve the effectiveness of the work of the Committee had to be within the ***** resources, without consequences for the budget of the United Nations.
10. At the 99th meeting, on 8 April 1987, a representative of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs replied to the question asked by an expert with regard to the financial resources of the Committee.
19. He informed the Committee of the financial implications of extending the sessions of the Committee to three weeks in response to the suggestion to hold extended sessions in the future (see annex V to the present report).
20. The expert who had raised the question, supported by the Chairperson, thanked the representative for the information provided but said that it was not the information requested. She reiterated that she had asked for the actual resources allocated to the Committee for the 1988-1989 biennium together with figures for the 1986-1987 biennium for comparison.
21. The Secretary of the Committee confirmed that costs also included the preparatory work for the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. The proposed amount for 1988-1989 was based on current mandates.
22. The Director of the Branch for the Advancement of Women said that the programme budget for the 1986-1987 biennium for section 6 2/ would be circulated. The programme budget for the biennium 1988-1989, which was still in draft form and was currently being considered, could not be distributed at that time, but she confirmed that the figures were the same as for 1986-1987.
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23. The expert welcomed the figures contained in the programme budget for the biennium 1986-1987, which had been circulated. She further expressed concern about resources that could be used to carry out research.
24. Another expert was of the opinion that the Committee should not discuss matters that were outside its competence.
H. other matters
2S. At the Committee's 102nd eting, on 10 April 1987, some experts suggested that a decision should be taken on the involvement of the United Nations system, in particular the specialized agencies of the United Nations and the Commission on the Status of Women, in promoting or undertaking studies on the status of women under Islamic laws and customs. The decision was adopted as amended (see Para. 580 below, decision 4).

II. ORGANISATION OF WORK
A. Working groups
26. At its 84th meeting, the Committee agreed to set up a working group to consider and suggest ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee (Working Group I), in view of the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and with the critical financial situation of the United Nations in mind.
27. Working Group I was composed oft
Ms. Mervat Tallawy (Egypt) - Chairperson of the group
Ms. Marie Caron (Canada)
Ms. Elizabeth Evatt (Australia)
Ms. Aida Gonzalez Martinez (Mexico)
Ms. Zagorka life (Yugoslavia)
Ms. Margareta Wadstein (Sweden)
28. At its 84th meeting, the Committee decided to set up a working group on ways
and means of implementing article 21 of the Convention (Working Group II).
29. Working Group II was composed of:
Ms. Kyoko Akamatsu (Japan)
Ms. Ruth Escobar (Brazil)
Ms. Elizabeth Evatt (Australia)
Ms. Edith Oeser (German Democratic Republic)
Ms. Margarida Salema (Portugal)
Ms. Kongit Sinegiorgis (Ethiopia)
Ms. Evatt agreed to act as co-ordinator.
30. Working Group II met on 31 March and 1 and 2 April, and considered the procedures for dealing with suggestions and general recommendations.
B. Recommendations of Working Group I
31. At its 85th meeting, on 30 March 1987, the Committee considered the following proposals made by Working Group I.
32. The Working Group recommended to the Committee that it should have summary records only on substantive matters, i.e., the consideration of States parties; reports and decisions and recommendations referring to organizational matters. It took note of the measures proposed by the Secretary-General, in compliance with General Assembly decision 41/466 concerning the current financial crisis of the United Nations, to dispense with the summary records of the Committee, and took note of the provision to produce summary records in English and French only. It recommended to the Committee to accept that measure for the current session only.
33. The Working Group further recommended to the Committee that, beginning with the current session, the questions put to government representatives should be

co-ordinated by following the order of the articles of the Convention, using headings such ascqeneral comments, equality, education, health and employment.
34. in so far as a possible adjustment of the States parties' reporting period was concerned, the Working Group proposed that the Committee should not decide to permit States parties to delay the submission of reports under article 18 of the Convention. The Committee had no authority to extend the reporting periods set out in the Convention itself.
35. The Committee was called upon to decide whether, at future sessions, initial and second periodic reports should be discussed jointly, if they were available at the same time.
36. The Committee was invited to consider including in its report, at the end of its consideration of the report of a State party, a short paragraph on the appraisal and assessment of the report of each State party under consideration.
37. The Working Group proponed that two standing working groups should be established, one to consider and suggest ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee and the other on ways and means of implementing article 21 of the Convention.
38. When discussing the suggestion of the Working Group, the Committee pointed out that its budget had been underestimated from the very beginning of the Committee, and it was felt that further cutbacks could affect the work negatively. Nevertheless, different ways and means to expedite the work also had to be
considered.
39. While the Committee felt that the provision of summary records only in English and French had to be accepted as an established fact, most members expressed disapproval and emphasized that they would accept that measure only for the current session.
40. The Committee agreed to adopt the new method of co-ordinating questions on a trial basis during the current session, provided that members would be permitted to ask questions or to make comments of a general nature.
41. There was general agreement that, in the light of the obligatory character of the related provisions of the Convention, adjustments in the reporting period of States parties would not be possible.
42. The Committee felt that the volume of reports could be reduced if the questions were grouped together under specific items. As for the suggestion, namely, to introduce a paragraph of general appraisal at the end of each question period, conflicting opinions were expressed. Some experts considered that such a paragraph might provide the country under consideration with a general impression of the views of the Committee, could encourage or suggest action to some States parties and would be helpful in drafting subsequent reports. Others felt that such a general paragraph might give an Inaccurate picture of the Committee's view on a particular report, that it was difficult for the Committee to have a unanimous view on a particular report and that a certain general view might be frustrating for some States parties.
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43. The Committee welcomed the proposal to set up two standing working groups and suggested that the necessary provisions should be made.
44. At its 92nd meeting, on 3 April 1987, the Committee decided to make a general comment on the report of each State party after its consideration, when appropriate. In the absence of a consensus, the only comment would be that the report had been received and considered by the Committee and that it felt that not all questions had been dealt with. It was agreed that discouraging comments should be avoided.
45. A few experts subsequently made a reservation to the decision, which in their opinion meant a form of violation of the mandate given to the Committee and did not correspond to the provisions of the Convention. It was stressed that the Convention empowered the Committee only to make suggestions and general recommendations after examination of reports.
46. At the 99th meeting, on a April 1987, the Chairperson of the Working Group presented the conclusions of the Working Group's deliberations, which were discussed by the Committee at its 100th and 101st meetings on 9 April 1987.
47. The provisional dates for the Committee's seventh session, to be held at United Nations Headquarters, would be from 14 to 25 March 1988. It was agreed upon that seven initial reports and two second periodic reports would be considered at a two-weeks' meeting. The Working Group had proposed that the initial reports of Uruguay (CEDAW/C/S/Add.27), Indonesia (CEDAW/C/5/Add.36), the Dominican Republic (CEOAW/C/5/Add.37), Jamaica (CEDAW/C/5/Add.38), Australia (CEDAW/C/5/Add.40) and Senegal (CEDAW/C/5/Add.42) should be considered in any event. The proposed reserve list of countries to present their initial reports comprised Argentina (CEDAW/C/5/Add.39), Mali (CFDAW/C/5/Add.43), Ireland (CEDAW/C/5/Add.47), Japan (CEDAW/C/5/Add.48) and Nigeria (CEDAW/C/5/Add.49). The report of countries from the reserve list should, if possible, be considered instead of reports of other countries in the same region.
48. The Working Group also proposed that the following second periodic reports should be discussed at the Committee's seventh session: Hungary (CEDAW/C/13/Add.1) and Sweden (CEDAW/C/13/Add.6). As a reserve, the second periodic reports of the German Democratic Republic (CEDAW/C/13/Add.3) and of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (CEDAW/C/13/Add.4) were proposed. It was mentioned that other initial reports pending discussion were those of New Zealand (CEDAW/C/5/Add.41), Honduras (CEDAW/C/5/Add.44) and Romania (CEDAW/C/5/Add.45).
49. The Committee decided that it would not be fair to reject a report presented by a State party on the grounds that it did not comply with the general guidelines. However, communications with States parties whose reports were incomplete, inviting them to supplement their reports with additional information to facilitate their consideration and to give a more realistic picture of the countries' situation, were encouraged. The Committee thereupon decided that its Chairperson should address a letter on behalf of the Committee to the States parties concerned and request that additional information be sent to the Secretariat not later than three months prior to the session during which the reports were to be considered.
50. It was further decided that it was too late at that stage to work out guidelines for the preparation of second periodic reports. The second periodic
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reports already submitted would be considered as they were, in order to have some experience in the matter. The question of guideline* was deferred to a subsequent session. It was agreed, however, that the Secretariat should provide all members of the Committee with the material proposed by the Working Group for the consideration of second periodic reports, namely, the initial report, additional material presented with the initial report, summary records relating to presentation and discussion of initial reports and the report of the relevant session of the Committee.
51. The Working Group had proposed that groups of members of the Committee should be established to develop a provisional list of issues and questions under each article for each country. Several members felt that such a method might be too bureaucratic. Finally, it was decided to apply the method adopted at the current session a also tor the forthcoming session, namely, to co-ordinate the questions put to government representatives following the articles of the Convention.
52. Another proposal of the Working Group concerned the extension of the time available for the Committee's future sessions. The Committee was of the opinion that an extension of a session, in exceptional cases, was not in contradiction with article 20 of the Convention.
53. At the 101st meeting, on 9 April 1987, a draft decision requesting approval by the Economic and Social Council for additional time for the sessions of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women was then discussed. The decision was redrafted in order to incorporate the comments of the Committee to specify the additional time requested, the session or sessions referred to and to whom it should be addressed. The decision was adopted as amended (see Para. 580 below, decision 1).
54. The general paragraphs prepared for inclusion in the report as comments on the reports of States, parties were discussed. It was agreed that the report accurately reflected those proposals and all drafts, therefore, were withdrawn, except for the one for Greece, which had already been adopted. It was emphasized that the possibility for the Committee to propose general comments on the reports examined was maintained for the future.
55. Another proposal to address States parties with regard to the time required by the Committee to consider reports, in accordance with article 20, was discussed.
If. was adopted as amended (see Para. 580 below, decision 3).
C. Recommendations of Working Group II
56. At its 97th meeting, on 7 April 1987, the co-ordinator of the Working Group explained that the Working Croup had discussed a procedure for proposing suggestions and general recommendations and the type of general recommendations and suggestions that could be made under article 21 of the Convention. The Committee considered the following proposal made by Working Group II:

Suggested procedure for proposing suggestions and general recommendations
1. The Working Group considered that any expert could propose a suggestion or general recommendation at any time during a session.
2. Rule 32 of the rules of procedure could apply for that purpose.
3. The Chairperson of the Committee could call for consideration of a proposal when appropriate, under general business.
4. The Chairperson or the Committee could refer proposals to the working Group, which should consider them and report.
•>. The Working Group would have the function of considering, drafting and consolidating proposals and referring them back to the Committee.
6. The Committee could nominate one or more experts as ad hoc members of the Working Croup to take part in the discussions on a particular proposal.
7. Any member of the Committee could take part in the Working Group's discussions.
8. Between sessions of the Committee, any expert could ask the Secretariat to circulate to other experts a proposal for a suggestion or a general recommendation. The text proposed by the members of the Committee should be included in the list of materials sent to members, and the name of the member who proposed it should appear on the proposal.
9. Suggestions and general recommendation" adopted by the Committee would be numbered in series. For example: general recommendation 1 (fifth session/1986); general recommendation 2 (sixth session/1987); general recommendation 3 (seventh session/1987); etc.
10. The general recommendation and suggestion adopted at the fifth session should be included in that series and reproduced in the report of the current session. (The Working Group may propose to the Committee a general recommendation in relation to the general guidelines, adopted at the second session (CEDAW/C/7).)
11. The text of the general recommendations, suggestions and other decisions adopted by the Committee should be included in a separate part of the report of that session, headed "Decisions adopted by the Committee at its ... session".
12. The Committee could decide how to deal with draft proposals on which no action had been taken at the end of each session and whether they should be:
(a) Deferred to the next plenary session of the Committee)
(b) Referred to the Working Group for further consideration.

Scope and content of general recommendations and suggestions
that can be wade
11. Working Group IT considered the opinion of the Office of Legal Affairs, which was set out in the report of the Committee's fifth session. 3/
14. It was agreed by the Working Group that general recommendations could be addressed to all 3tates parties, in accordance with article 18, paragraphs 1 and 2, and article 21 of the Convention.
15. Examples of general recommendations that could be made were considered. Those examples were to assist members of the Committee and were not intended to be exhaustive nor intended to hind the Committee in any way. They included the content of reports and the submission of reports by States parties, the Questions to be addressed by reports under the articles of the Convention, the question of reservations and the implementation and amendment of the Convention by States parties.
16. Some members of the Working Group considered that general recommendations were more formal and a stronger expression of the Committee's decision than suggestions.
17. It was agreed by the Working Group that suggestions could be addressed to all States parties A point of difference in the Working Group was whether article 21 authorized the Committee to make a suggestion to one State party.
18. It was agreed that the Committee would decide, when adopting a proposal, whether to designate it. a suggestion or a general recommendation.

57. In the general discussion that followed, it was pointed out that such suggestions and general recommendations were different from the general paragraph at the end of each report under discussion, which had been proponed by Working Group I. Whereas such general paragraphs would reflect only comments made by the Committee, suggestions and general recommendations would allow the Committee, under rule 48 of its rules of procedure, to have a dialogue with States parties reporting to the Committee. It was pointed out that suggestions and general recommendations could be addressed to one State party provided that the procedure contained in article 21 of the Convention and rule 48 of the rules of procedure were observed, i.e., that the State party had a possibility to comment on it. The Committee agreed that it had the right under article 21 to make suggestions and general recommendations. Some members of the Committee, however, stressed that the Committee's main task consisted in examining the States parties reports and in identifying progress and obstacles, and they questioned the right of the Committee to interpret article 21 and were of the opinion that recommendations should be addressed so all States parties in a general way.
58. The Committee took the view that article 21 was a very efficient tool for monitoring the implementation of the Convention. Most members thought that, the Committee had the authority to make suggestions and general recommendations to all States parties or to individual States parties based on the examination of the report and the information provided by one State party. Several experts cautioned against an inflation of recommendations and pointed out that suggestions and general recommendations addressed to individual States parties or a group of States parties should be limited exclusively to the articles and aims of the Convention,
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and should avoid addressing the general political situation of States. Some members wanted to defer a decision on the matter to a later session of the Committee in order to give the Committee the opportunity to decide on concrete proposals for suggestions or general recommendations.
59. With minor objections, the Committee adopted the proposals made by the Working Group. With regard to paragraph 17 of the proposals of the working Group, the Committee decided that in an appropriate case, it could make suggestions and general recommendation based on the examination of a report and information received from a State party.
60. The members who had dissenting views expressed regret at the lack of consensus and asked that their opinions be reflected in the report.
D. Future work of the Committee
61. At its 101st meeting. on 9 April 1987, one member stated that no decision had been taken on the role the specialized agencies of the United Nations could play to aid the Committee in its work. She requested that specialized agencies should be invited to submit reports specifically on the States parties whose reports were being examined. It was suggested to include that item on the agenda for the subsequent session. The expert raising the subject agreed to formulate a draft proposal regarding the involvement of the specialized agencies.
62. A draft proposal regarding the involvement of the specialized agencies was presented and discussed at the Committee's 102nd meeting, on 10 April 1987. Following the discussion, the draft decision was adopted as amended, with one reservation regarding paragraph 2 (b) (see Para. 580 below, decision 2).

111. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 18 OF THE CONVENTION
A. Introduction
63. The Committee considered item 5 of its agenda at its 86th to 99th meetings, held from 31 March to 3 April and from 6 to 8 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SR.86-99).
64. The Committee had before it for consideration eight initial reports that had been submitted by the following States parties to the Convention: Bangladesh, Colombia, France, Greece, Poland, Republic of Korea, Spain and Sri Lanka.
B. Consideration of reports Greece
65. The Committee considered the initial report of Greece (CEDAW/C/5/Add.28) at
its 86th, 87th and 91st meetings, held on 31 March and 2 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SR. 86,
87 and 91).
66. In her introduction, the representative of Greece informed the Committee that since 1981 the Government's policy in matters related to the equality of the sexes had changed. While in the past the problem of equality had been of concern only to women's organizations, State agencies had been created to deal with the problem. However, in spite of the significant progress in various fields, the country had not achieved its aims. Much work remained to be done.
67. She said that although the 1975 Constitution provided for the protection of equal individual and social rights and obligations, it also allowed for deviations from the general principle of equality. Currently, the General Secretariat of Equality was working to eliminate the few discriminator/ provisions that remained in the legislation. Equality of the sexes had been included in the country's five-year Economic and Social Development Programme for the first time in 1983. Apart from the willingness of the Government to take special temporary measures, a programme was set up tor the development of activities that had been unknown in Greece until recently. The major difficulty, however, continued to be social prejudices. That was also the main reason for the low level of participation of women in the country's political life.
68. An endeavour was being made to inform the population on the subject of equality, and the social infrastructure was being developed gradually. The representative enumerated specific mechanisms that had been created to promote and monitor the new situation, such as the position of Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Women's Affairs, the Council and the General Secretariat for the Equality of the Sexes and decentralized equality offices in all prefectures of Greece.
69. As the fields of education, work, employment, social security, health, welfare and family were considered particularly important for the promotion of equality, the representative informed the Committee of the latest developments in those fields and of related positive action programmes and gave a summary of the
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activities planned for the near future. She also included in her detailed presentation recent statistical data.
70. The representative explained that the education system was passing through a period of transition. Several positive action programmes had been undertaken in that field, such as the adaptation of all school texts to the principle of equality. She mentioned, inter alia, that one of the aims of vocational guidance was to ensure that sexually stereotyped roles did not affect the professional choices of young people. A sex education programme had been set up to come into effect in 1987 and an equality guide had been prepared in order to make school teachers aware of equality issues.
71. With regard to the work-force, she said that considerable effort had been made, principally through positive action, to eliminate all forms of discrimination concerning equality of opportunity and treatment and specifically access to employment and remuneration. Women, however, did not exercise their right to work on the same terms as men did. In 1985, women constituted only 35.4 per cent of the work-force, while accounting for 53.3 per cent of the unemployed.
72. Social security for employees and the right to health care were constitutionally guaranteed and granted without discrimination. She drew attention to measures that had been taken recently, such as the granting to each parent of three months parental leave for the upbringing of small children, a right which was not transferable to the other patent. The representative also drew attention to preventive medicine and pre-natal care and mentioned the existence of provisions, for the first time, for the prevention of mental illness and the treatment of mentally-ill women and their social rehabilitation. Greece's first reception centre and shelter for abused women would become operative soon.
73. The representative mentioned that a bill concerning the control of advertising and the unacceptable exploitation of the human body by the advertising media had been presented to the Parliament. The representative made special reference to women farmers and said that, as farm workers, women were paid less than men, not with regard to the same work, but because the jobs they did were not as well paid. There was also a distinct division of labour between women and men. Finally, she enumerated the new adjustments made in family law to ensure equality in the family.
74. The members of the Committee congratulated the government representative on her presentation of the report and underscored unanimously its excellent quality. It followed meticulously the general guidelines regarding the form and content of reports received from States parties under article 18 of the Convention and gave detailed comments on each article of the Convention in addition to providing substantial information. The experts praised its frankness and its critical tone and welcomed the fact that it showed the country's strong commitment to the status of women. Most experts were impressed with the efforts made by the country in trying to eliminate discrimination against women and with the establishment of the appropriate mechanisms in related fields. They also encouraged the further development of programmes that were already set up to alter traditional attitudes or to widen the educational choices of girls, to achieve equal employment opportunities and to involve women in political and administrative decision-making in all sectors. The report of Greece showed to what extent a strong political will was able to change attitudes and how important the massive support given by women's organizations was. Some experts expressed the view that Greece, a country recently
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under a military dictatorship and located in the southern part of Europe, was now in the vanguard of Europe.
75. A question was raised as to whether the orthodox faith changed in any way the attitudes towards the equality of the sexes.
76. It was asked whether the Convention was stronger than national laws in Greece and whether a judge had to rely on treaty provisions. More information was requested on the relationship between social prejudices and the awarding of justice. Experts asked for examples of administrative measures that were adopted to penalize infringements of laws of equality.
77. Another question was whether the nationwide information network on all aspects of the equality issue also incorporated rural women.
78. It was asked whether public opinion in Greece was hostile to the women's movement and how the women's movement could be protected against political changes in future; whether article 116 (2) of the Constitution rendered discrimination possible or even legal; and what means of recourse were available in court or through other public authorities if legal provisions were not in accordance with the Constitution. It was asked whether institutions, such as the recourse of amparo or a "constitutional recourse action", existed or whether women had access to legal aid.
79. Concern was expressed as to whether the monitoring function of the specialized authorities to promote the principle of equality really reached all women in the country and whether women were aware that new laws improved their situation.
80. As to the mechanisms set up in the country to ensure equality, it was asked whether the Council for the Equality of the Sexes replaced similar existing mechanisms, what links existed between the Council and the General Secretariat for the Equality of the Sexes and whether any special committee in the Parliament of Greece dealt with women's problems. Another inquiry concerned the funds available to provide grants to encourage women's initiatives, and more information was sought on the functions of the consultative committee within the General Secretariat for Equality. A question was also asked about the way in which the General Secretariat participated in national development programmes and how those programmes related to the promotion of women. It was also asked whether equality bureaux existed for all levels of government administration.
81. Reference was made to the importance of temporary special measures, and more information was sought about them and on the evaluation of the results. It was asked whether employers showed interest in employing more women if they received special subsidies. It was asked whether training programmes for women in co-operatives were subsidized or whether the women concerned had to contribute to their financing.
82. One question concerned the existence of programmes for the education of young couples and whether those programmes penetr id married life. It was asked what the proportion was of men that participated in the seminars and conferences organized by the General Secretariat for the Equality of the Sexes and to what extent men were involved in the work towards equality. The work carried out in order to change gender roles was also welcomed. Other questions were asked about
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the achievements in making the media aware of the promotion of women and about the percentage of women working for the national radio company and the press.
83. The problem of pornography was addressed, and details were requested on the proposed bill of law to eliminate the exploitation of the female body for publicity purposes.
84. Experts were concerned about the low representation of women in Parliament and in political parties and asked why the percentage of women in 1985 was lower than four years earlier, why women had not yet attained important positions in political life in spite of all the efforts made and whether the Question had not been looked into by the General Secretariat. They also inquired how the political parties viewed the struggle for women's equality and if they took any action to increase women's representation within the parties. Astonishment was expressed at the low percentage of women representatives in smaller towns and the higher percentage in larger communities, whereas in some countries the opposite was true. Clarification was sought on the statement that the State was unable to influence the degree of female participation in non-governmental organizations. Concern was expressed about the low participation of women in trade unions, and more information was requested on clashes occurring between women's organizations and political parties.
85. It was asked about the restrictions on women entering the army and why women were not admitted to military academies. It was also asked whether social prejudices were the obstacles to the political participation of women.
86. As there was no discrimination with regard to appointments in public administration under the Civil Service Code, information was sought about the position of women at decision-making levels and about the number of women ambassadors.
87. A number of reasons for the low representation of women at the international level were suggested: it might be related to different entry conditions for women under the Public Function Code; it could stem from the lack of sufficient high-ranking women in Greece; or it could be related to the fact that women were unable to attend committee meetings outside normal working hours because of family duties. The question was raised whether a monitoring committee dealing with the entry of women into public responsibilities existed in each ministry, and whether, in the case of a married couple, both spouses were allowed to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
88. Praise was expressed for the progressive legislation in matters of nationality. Clarification was sought on the provision which related to what age a child born out of wedlock could be recognized as a lawful child.
89. The achievements made by the country in the field of education were particularly commended. Questions referred to the reasons for the high rate of illiteracy among women and to the number of women who directed institutions of higher education. Additional information was sought on concrete steps taken to attract more women to technical education, on the curricula for home economics and whether they were the same for boys and girls, on the prospects for religious academies to accept girls in the future and on the intention of the Government of Greece to terminate the existing sex discrimination in the schools of the Ministry of Public Order.
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90. With regard to the elimination of discrimination in employment, the large gap between the de jure and the de facto situation was mentioned. There was an inquiry about the number of cases concerning infringements of the legal provisions and whether the differing minimum ages for appointment to the public sector based on sex led to segregation. It was asked whether Greece indeed intended to abrogate the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention ***. 45 on women and underground mining work and Convention No. 89 handing certain night work for women, in order to create equal working conditions for both sexes.
91. Other questions ions referred to the situation in practice as reqards the rule on equal pay for work of equal value. Figures on differing waqes for male-dominated Jobs compared with female-demined jobs were requested. Clarification was sought on the frequency of job evaluation schemes and on the results of cases of sex discrimination that were taken to court. Experts asked which jobs were prohibited for women and for what reasons. The revision of over-protective legislation was welcomed. It was asked why under the work-force employment agency programme, the subsidy for each man taken on was 900 drachmas a day and for each woman
1,000 draclinas a day.
9 2. Information was sought on the proportion of women migrant workers compared to men and on whether the employment situation of women migrant workers returning to Greece from abroad was any different from that of men.
93. Statistics referring to the unemployment rate of women, in general, and of divorced women, in particular, were requested.
94. While the institution of a non-transferable right to parental leave was particularly commended, it was asked whether and to what extent it wan utilized by fathers. The ratification of the ILO Convention No. 156 concerning equality of opportunity and workers with family responsibilities was welcomed.
95. It was asked whether the Government undertook any measures to influence the private sector as regards the provision of social security measures for women. Other questions referred to the functioning of crèches and to the general attitude of Greek employers to such facilities. It was asked whether maternity leave meant leave with or without pay.
96. Experts asked whether married female civil servants could include their husbands in their medical insurance coverage and whether single people also had the right to retire after 15 years of service and, if not, why not. It was asked whether the existing system of unemployment benefits discriminated against women.
97. Whereas in one part of the report abortion was said not to be a method of family planning, it was referred to as being a means of birth control in another part thereof. Information was requested on the rate of abortion, whether it was being reduced as a result of family planning measures, whether abortion services were available for rural women and whether AIDS (Acquired immune deficiency syndrome) was becoming a problem in the country.
98. Clarification was requested on family allowances and pensions for married and unmarried women.
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99. Information was sought on the programmes envisaged by the Government to do away with the sex discrimination inherent in national collective labour agreements with regard to marriage allowance.
100. Questions were asked about co-operatives in the agricultural and the tourist sectors and about the ownership relation, referring to property of rural women. Experts also asked whether rural women could take out mortgages and bank loans and whether they could make contracts in their own name. Co-operatives for women only were welcomed} it was asked whether mixed co-operatives were allowed.
101. It was noticed that no data were provided on women in prison and on the education of women in prison. It was asked if it was difficult for women in practice to produce evidence for a claim in justice, even in a case of sex discrimination. It was also asked whether the fiscal and tax systems affected married and divorced women in different ways.
102. Experts wanted to know whether an infringement of the rule of equality before the law had legal consequences.
103. it was asked whether families still gave dowries, what the situation in rural areas was and what happened to such gifts in case of divorce. It was also asked whether women were adequately protected during the transition period from the old dowry system to the modern system.
104. Other questions referred to the sharing of property after divorce: whether women who left marriage suffered penalties with regard to maintenance, custody and property and whether divorced women who were working to maintain themselves experienced prejudice in seeking custody. It WAS asked whether domestic violence constituted a problem in Greece, whether women had the possibility to obtain protection and whether the number of refuges was sufficient. Information was sought on the options of a divorced wife as regards her surname. It was asked whether a single mother who had children was legally protected if her relationship had lasted for more than five years, as was the case in one expert's country.
105. In replying to questions asked by members of the Committee, the representative of Greece first explained that the fundamental legislative, social and political changes did not give rise to opposition among the people of Greece, allough measures related to divorce, marriage and abortion had elicited strong reactions In conservative circles and in the orthodox church. Because of the general awareness of the problem of equality between women and men, the recently implemented measures had been well established in everyday life, in spite of initial fears raised by conservative political forces.
106. Policy measures to eliminate discrimination were the setting up of S4 decentralized equality offices, which were co-ordinated by the General Secretariat. The Council for Equality had been upgraded to the level of a General Secretariat with its own budget and staff and belonging to the Ministry of the Prime Minister. it distributed many publications on women's legal rights throughout the country. Discrimination in favour of women was legitimized by the Greek Constitution only in matters related to maternity and child care. Women had never campaigned to serve in the armed forces.
107. The representative said that the General Secretariat had participated in the drawing up of the five-year national development programme of the country. it also
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supported activities of the women's movement. Its Consultative Committee was composed of members of the largest women's organizations. But it could not currently subsidize women's organizations, although they were able to apply to the Ministry of Culture for assistance.
108. The representative said that women were being trained in traditionally male occupations with the support of the Work-force Employment Agency and the General Secretariat for Equality, and the percentage of women in those occupations was rising. Vocational training was also given to female co-operative members.
109. The representative said that family planning centres and municipal health care offices throughout the country provided family planning advice. The General Secretariat was involved in the selection of programmes in the mass media and in the preparation of a new mass media bill to prevent the reproduction of sex stereotypes. Exact figures for the number of women employed in the media were not available. Only few held technical jobs.
110. The representative also said that the General Secretariat had drafted proposals for specific measures and women's organizations were asked to assist in the drafting of a bill on the exploitation of the female body in advertising and prostitution.
111. She said that the number of women in trade unions was not known, but it had been slightly increasing. She stated further that recent changes in the electoral law had had negative effects on women. The participation of women in political life was smaller in rural than in urban areas because of deep-rooted traditions.
112. The decentralization process in the country since 1981 had been helping women to become more active in local bodies. However, the political parties and government bodies had a sad record in promoting women in political life. The same applied in the diplomatic sphere. In 1981, 24 out of 120 new diplomats had been women and, in 1985, 39 out of 415 diplomats had been women. In reply to a specific question, she said that married couples could be employed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and serve at the same mission.
113. The representative explained that compulsory education, changing social attitudes and the rule banning children below 15 from working restricted illiteracy to adults, especially the elderly. The actual rate of illiteracy was lower in reality than in the statistics. She gave some statistical data on women in the teaching profession and said that programmes of women's studies had been introduced at one university. Their purpose was to raise consciousness and to bring about a feminist perspective in education. Girls were encouraged to take up technical career options thanks to the abolishment of stereotypes in school textbooks and to vocational guidance in school. She further explained that curricula for home economics courses were the same for girls and boys and included subjects such as nutrition, child-care, health, hygiene and environment. No girls were admitted to religious schools because the graduates had to be ordained priests.
1.14. The representative said that while the law on equal pay for work of equal value applied only to the lower-income groups, discrepancies existed in many sectors in the higher levels. She supplied some vivid examples in the clothing and metallurgical industries. In 1986, some 13,498 complaints had been made with respect to employment. Protective legislation could not be repealed, as the
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country was bound by international covenants from which the country could not derogate before their expiry.
115. The representative further explained that many improvements had been made in social security in the private sector. A self-employed mother on maternity leave was paid a childbirth allowance and a post-natal allowance as well as a salary. A mother who was not employed but covered by her husband's social security received only the two allowances. An unemployed mother was covered by grants from the Ministry of Health before and after giving Erth to a child. The transfer of a pension from wife to husband was possible only if the husband was destitute or an invalid. However, proposals to change that rule existed already. Unmarried mothers were entitled to a lump-Sum allowance, followed by monthly grants until the child was 16 years old. She stated that, in 1986, 264 women and 116 men had made use of parental leave.
116. The representative said that, although abortion had never been considered as a means of contraception, it. had been used as such. With family planning centres currently in service, it was hoped that the number of abortions could be reduced. No statistics were available vet. AIDS was not vet a problem in Greece. Relevant information material was being distributed. She also said that the Ministry of Cultural Affairs organized seminars for women in prison.
117. She also d that there was no discrimination regarding women's access to bank loans or her credits. Spouses were taxed individually on their personal income. Alimony was taxable, and single mothers received a discount according to the age of their children.
118. The representative further explained there were 114 women's co-operatives working in agro-tourism and handicrafts. The Government save subsidies, and hanks and regional authorities and other organizations provided support. In supporting them, the General Secretariat aimed at enhancing women's experience in management and financial control. It was hoped that women would eventually become equal partners with men in the decision-making process in the production field.
119. The representative said that many judges were still, influenced by traditional beliefs leading to discrimination against women. Seminars for judges were organized jointly by the General Secretariat and the Ministry of Justice to inform them of international conventions, family law and other legal provisions relating to equality between the sexes. She said that neither sex had access to legal and services in Greece, but that women could get help from regional equality offices.
120. Equality bureaux existed in major government bodies throughout the country.
In 1986, 104 cases of discrimination against women in employment were heard by the courts.
121. An amendment to the Penal Code, she said, led to automatic prosecution and longer imprisonment of rapists. Sexual abuse was, in general, punished by imprisonment. Having recognized the social problem of battered women, the General Secretariat took the initiative of opening shelter houses. In May 1987, a refuge and an information and counseling office would be opened as a pilot project.
122. The representative stated that between 1980 and 1985 many women expatriates had returned to Greece and 70 per cent of them had become housewives. The
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Work-force and Employment Agency organized seminars for them to smooth out their repatriation.
123. The representative said that children born out of wedlock could be recognized voluntarily or through court procedures. They enjoyed the same rights and obligations as other children. The length of time of a de facto union of couples was no reason for granting them fringe benefits.
124. Although fathers were no longer obligated to provide their daughters with dowries, the system as such was not yet fully abolished. However, the taxation benefit, which was one of the main reasons for the giving of a dowry, had been replaced by the right of parental donation to girls and boys equally, which led also to a reduction in tax. Assets given to husbands as dowries had to be returned to the women.
125. Several members of the Committee congratulated the representative on her extensive replies and proposed the holding of a seminar in Greece at which the methodology for drawing up reports under article 18 of the Convention in compliance with the requirements contained in the guidelines could be discussed.
126. In answering additional Questions posed by experts, the representative replied that no general statistics were available as regards requests 'or paternity leave by fathers, in one municipality, however, 106 men and 240 women had made such requests. The rate of unemployment was higher among single than among married women because of the higher number of demands.
127. As to the legal force of the Convention in comparison with national laws, it was said that in Greece, as in other countries, international conventions once ratified by Parliament became part of national legislation and, thus, superseded any contradicting and earlier national laws. Therefore, citizens could appeal to the courts directly on the grounds of the Convention.
128. The Committee thanked the Government of Greece and expressed its appreciation and satisfaction for the manner in which the report had been prepared, particularly as regards its organization and content, as well as for the detailed statistics, which supported the information presented, and its open acknowledgement of the obstacles "omen continued to face in Greece.
129. The Committee requested that the next report of Greece should contain further information about programmes directed towards changing attitudes to the role of women and men in society.
Republic of Korea
130. The Committee considered the initial report of the Republic of Korea (CEDAW/C/5/Add.35) at its 87th and 91st meetings, on 31 March and 2 April 1987 (CHDAW/C/SR.87 and 91).
131. The representative of the Republic of Korea, in introducing the country report, stated that in the preparation of the report special attention had been paid to the Government's policies for eliminating discrimination against women in all forms and to the family law of the Republic of Korea. She said that the introductory part of the report reviewed the constitutional principles of the Government, the institutional and legal framework to enhance women's status at both
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governmental and private Jevels and the problems related to the family law, which had been alleged to contain discriminatory provisions. She stated that under the Constitution, amended in 1980, equality of treatment and equality of opportunities for all regardless of sex, had been emphasized. She outlined the institutional machineries that existed, including the Women's Development Institute and the National Committee on Women's Policies, which was the co-ordinating body to review policies and develop strategies for the advancement of women in the Republic of Korea. She said that the Long-Range Plan for Women's Development had been adopted by the Government to integrate women's development into the national development programme. The Guidelines for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, also adopted by the Government, contained concrete countermeasures against possible barriers to women and those had the same effect as domestic laws.
132. The representative stated that the second part of the report covered specific Information on the articles of the Convention, and the institutional arrangements to eliminate discrimination were explained in detail. She referred to the national family law, which contained some tradition-bound provisions handed down from feudalistic society that seemed to be contrary to the spirit of the Convention. However, a revised proposal to that Law had been submitted to the National Assembly which would eliminate sexual discrimination in property inheritance and also allow women to become the head of the family, contrary to the present law. She reported that a draft of the Equal Employment Law had also been prepared for the purpose of Costing the welfare of female employees. She further reported that those programmes had been included in the Sixth Five-year Socio-Economic Development Plan.
133. in conclusion, the representative emphasized that the Government of the Republic of Korea would pursue, as in the past, a positive and consistent policy against discrimination against women in all forms and continue every effort to fulfil its obligations under the Convention.
134. The members of the Committee expressed appreciation for the report of the Republic of Korea and commended the progress made to eliminate discrimination of women. However, in view of the reservations that had been made concerning articles 9 and 16 of the Convention, many experts expressed doubts as to whether there was a real commitment to eliminate all Kinds of discrimination against women in the Republic of Korea. They also expressed their concern with the reservations, which some of them considered to be incompatible with the Convention. The Committee urged the Government to consider a withdrawal of the reservations an soon an possible.
135. Although some advancement had been made, the considerable problems to overcome tradition in family law were recognized. Although the experts noted the establishment of various organizations and committees, they expressed concern over the aims and direction of those bodies and wondered if having the Prime Minister as Chairman was entirely beneficial. here was concern that the rapid industrialization of the country, although increasing women's participation in education and training programmes, would not lead to greater equality between women and men. Freedom of speech and therefore the ability of women's movements to act freely was queried. Generally, more statistical data were requested to make comparisons possible.
136. Information was requested on laws for the protection of women in the criminal court, e.g. in the case of rape or other sexual offences.
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137. More details were sought on the three sectors of the Long-Range Plan for Women's Development and the Five-Year Socio-Economic Development Plan, mentioned in the report, as the inclusion of those documents would have been useful. It was asked if the Government had taken any concrete measures on the improvement of women's capabilities. The absence of decentralized organizations for equality work was regretted.
138. It was asked whether temporary special measures to accelerate women's de facto equality had been considered, as they were not mentioned in the report.
139. Experts wanted to know whether the Government had taken any special measures aimed at protecting maternity and to improve the status of women as a whole, and what the practical effects were of the new laws that had been enacted in that field. Data were requested on child-care facilities, and it was asked whether they were free and where they were located and what measures had been taken to protect women and children.
140. it was asked if the Republic of Korea had any plans or movements concerned with changing the consciousness of men and society as a whole. The progress that had been made was noted, and details were requested on the family education courses, particularly whether they *** available to all and the exact curriculum. It was asked if anything was being done to modify traditional gender roles, whether anything was being done to overcome the preference for sons and if there was any encouragement for men to contribute to household duties to ease the double burden of their working wives.
141. In the report, it was stated that the Long-Range Plan for Women's Development, drafted by the Women's Development Institute, offered some measures to seek a reasonable division of responsibilities between women and men, in order to create a harmonious home milieu and to encourage the self-development of each family member. It was asked what those measures were and what the definition of "reasonable" was.
142. Concern was expressed, since it was felt that there was so great an emphasis on the reproductive role of women that the "private aspect" of a woman, her life as a person, was not at all stressed and that menstruation was regarded as an illness. It was asked why mother and child were always dealt with as a unit.
143. Questions were also asked as to the meaning of the concepts "family education", "health of the household", "work against morality" and "utilization of women".
144. Concern was expressed with regard to prostitution in the country. Interest was shown in the vocational rehabilitation programme for prostitutes, and more information was requested, particularly on the duration of the programme, the numbers of participants and whether women were monitored until otherwise employed. It was asked about the social problems of prostitution, whether it had been brought under control and if any research had been carried out and, finally, whether the prostitution areas had been eliminated. Experts inquired whether action had been taken against the sex tourism that seemed to be going on in the Republic of Korea and whether it was also oriented against the clients. They also asked whether the law penalized not only the client but also the prostitute and, if so, why. Attention war, drawn to the counseling centres mentioned in the report, and it was
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stated that a distinction should be made between prostitution and violence against women in the family.
145. Clarification was sought on the representation in Parliament by women and the number elected to public bodies as well as the number of women ministers. A question was asked about the difference between organizations registered with the Government and those that were not. Other questions were on the aims of women's organizations and on co-ordination problems between the many women's organizations.
146. It was asked how many women held diplomatic posts.
147. Concerning the reservation to article 9 of the Convention, details were requested on the legal situation reading nationality and of planned government action to remove the obstacles to the implementation of that article.
148. Concern was expressed regarding the figures stated for the number of co-educational schools and the progressive drop in the participation of women at higher levels of education, and more details were requested on the remaining types of schools and whether equality in education was indeed a fact. It was asked if there were any plans to abolish the separated system of education and if there were any universities or colleges that were not open to women. Details about the curriculum of the home economics courses were sought.
149. It was asked if all occupations were open to women, and concern was expressed that the protective legislation prevailing from the patriarchal system was equivalent to discrimination and impeded the free participation of women in the labour market. Details were requested with respect to the civil service, particularly the incidence of women in the armed forces. It had been stated in the report that 39 per cent of the work-force were women, and it was queried what they did, what pay they received and how many were in qualified posts. Details on the Equal Employment Law presently being enacted, and more statistical information and background facts in general were requested, particularly with regard to daily and weekly working hours, retirement age and numbers of working wives and mothers. It was asked how women and men managed to combine family obligations with work outside the home, as there did not appear to be sufficient child-care facilities. Information was requested on equal pay policies and average earnings as well as on unemployment rates for women and men. Information was also requested with regard to sexual harassment in the country.
150. The contribution of women to the high growth rate of the gross national product (GNP) of the country was not reflected in the report. Information was sought on the conditions of service and safety as regards working conditions for women in the manufacturing industry, since they constituted the majority of the workers within that industry. It was asked whether employers were free to dismiss workers without any justified grounds. Concern was expressed on the negative impact on workers in labour-intensive Industries, and it was asked what protection was offered to them.
151. Details were requested on the measures taken to improve health services for women and children and on conditions under which they operated, for example whether they were free to all women and whether access was available to all.
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152. More information was requested on family planning services, sex education and health programmes and on the rate of abortion and the legal provisions in that context. Statistics on the current birth rate and the incidence of mother and infant mortality were also requested.
153. It was asked whether adultery on the part of the husband was admitted and what the relationship was between an illegitimate child and the wife of the natural father.
154. Experts asked what the prospects were to withdraw the reservations with regard to family law. They wanted to know the Government's intentions to reform that law, in which direction reforms would be made and how soon action would be taken. Further clarification was sought on the rights of women under the present law, in particular details on freedom to marry and divorce and the custody of children. Details on the kind of cases brought before the Family Court were also requested.
155. in responding to the questions raised, the representative from the Republic of Korea began by prodiving details of the National Committee on Women's Affairs. She reported that the 20-member Committee comprised public officials at ministerial level and the President of the Korean Women's Development Institute (KWDI) . The Committee was chaired by the Prime Minister or his designated deputies, as necessary, and more than half of the members were women. There were two other important government offices concerned with women's affairs. Those were the Bureau of Family Welfare (Ministry of Health and Social Affairs), which was connected with the promotion of women's status in general, and the Women's Affairs Guidance Office (Ministry of Labour), which dealt with women's labour conditions. She reported on the government-supported KWDI, whose manifold functions included research, the development of education, training programmes for working women and teaching materials and support of non-governmental women's organizations.
156. The representative listed the recent achievements of those organizations such as the enhancement of general consciousness with regard to women's status and issues and the improvement of job opportunities and labour conditions for women workers.
157. In response to the general concern voiced by the experts with regard to the reservations made by the Republic of Korea upon ratification, the representative explained that the domestic laws of the country, in particular the Law on Nationality, the Civil Code and the conflict of Laws Act, conflicted with the provisions of articles 9 and 16 of the Convention. However, as had been reported, the Government was making efforts to change the domestic laws in order to make them compatible with the Convention.
158. With regard to article 3 of the Convention, the representative explained that the Long-Rang Plan for Women's Development concentrated on the development of women's potential capabilities, the promotion of working women's welfare, upgrading their skill training and increasing job opportunities for women.
159. She stated that the Long-Range Plan had been incorporated into the sixth Five-year Socio-Economic Development Plan and would therefore be carried out in parallel to the National Development Plan during 1987-1991. The period from 1992 to 2000 would be a period of consolidation.

160. As requested, she explained that the phrase "utilization of the Female work-force" meant the development of women's full potential so as to enhance job opportunities for women, and it did not mean exploitation. She elaborated that the principles of co-operation, harmony, humanization and comprehensiveness, mentioned in the Long-Range Plan, were meant to narrow the gap between sexes, classes, regions, employers and employees and promote equality between women and men, and enhance women's status in general, on the part of Government as well as other non-governmental organizations concerned.
161. It was explained that the Guidelines for Elimination of Discrimination against Women were a set of standard rules for government, private enterprises and the general public, with the purpose of the substantial and satisfactory implementation of the Long-Range Plan on a wide basis. She also reported that the Government had enacted the Legal Aid Act.
162. As requested, she explained various concepts with regard to article 5. The "family education" mentioned in the report meant the education of children in family relations and etiquette by their parents, carried out in parallel with school education, before the children reached adulthood.
163. The concept of "health of household" meant the well-being of family members, with special emphasis on the mother-child relationship. The concept of "work against morality" indicated jobs which went against the common-sense meaning of morality, such as prostitution.
164. The current family law in the Republic of Korea contained discriminatory articles that reflected male-preference attitudes, but that law had been partially revised following pressure by women's organizations. Further amendments were currently being presented to the Government.
165. The representative reported that, although prostitution was legally prohibited, total eradication remained a problem and, as of 1986, 10,000 women were officially known to be prostitutes. She reported that sex tourism was not a serious problem in the Republic of Korea because tourism itself was not a major source of revenue.
166. The required vocational training and guidance was provided by the rehabilitation programme for prostitutes, and details were given on the Counseling Centres and Job Guidance Centres for women which had been established throughout the country. She regretted that some women rethread to prostitution, but the Government was making great efforts to reduce those numbers and maintain the women in useful employment.
167. The representative said that there had been rive women ministers since 1948 and the number of female civil servants currently working at the level of deputy-director and above represented 1.1 per cent of the total high-ranking civil servants. She reported that in the judiciary sector women lawyers formed only 0.5 per cent of the total.
168. She informed the Committee that military service was compulsory for men for a period of three years, while for women it was voluntary; the highest-ranking woman officer was at the level of colonel and no women had been promoted beyond that rank.
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169. The experts were informed that women's organizations registered with the Government received subsidies and administrative support, whereas unregistered ones received only the latter.
170. The representative reported that three women held middle-level diplomatic positions.
171. She explained that the curriculum in elementary and secondary schools was the same as in other countries and that recently many secondary schools had started courses on sex education. Education was compulsory until the sixth grade. She reported that most universities and colleges, except military academies and police colleges, were co-educational, but only 30 per cent of high schools ad 50 per cent of secondary schools were co-educational. A few universities admitted only women students. Over 30 universities currently had women's studies courses as part of the general education course. The Government was urging the gradual expansion of the co-educational system at all educational levels in order to contribute to the removal of prejudices and provide equal opportunities for women and men.
172. The representative stated that, in 1985, 5.4 per cent of the total female work-force were engaged in professional, technical and administrative fields, 9.8 per cent did clerical jobs and 35.3 per cent were in the sales and services sector. Those in the primary sector accounted for 27.6 per cent, and the manufacturing and transport sector employed 21.4 per cent of the total female work force. The total number of unemployed women was 124,000 in 1984, with
15.2 per cent between 20 and 25 years of age and 37 per cent in the 15 to 19 age group.
173. The draft Equal Employment Law provided for equality in job opportunities, placement, promotion, in-service training and retirement and made provisions for extended maternity leave and child-care facilities. The purpose of that law was to provide and enforce equality in employment, and under it a new machinery, the Equal Opportunity Promotion Committee, would be established to monitor the enforcement of the law and deal with complaints and labour disputes.
174. The retirement age of women in professional jobs was reported as the same as that of men but it was lower in blue-collar jobs. The representative reported that, in cases where female workers had been compelled to retire against their will and had taken the case to court, favourable rulings had been received. It was hoped that the new legislation on equal employment would redress those malpractices. She reported that salaries of female workers were generally lower, being half that of male workers in the primary sector but tending to be equal in white-collar jobs.
175. The experts were informed that women in the Republic of Korea worked an average of eight hours a day, but were encouraged to work overtime voluntarily. Insurance coverage was the same for women and men.
176. The representative reported that dormitory facilities and educational courses were provided free of charge by employers in the manufacturing sectors to enable female workers to complete their secondary education. The representative gave data concerning child-care centres and stated that most of those were located near the working areas so as to be convenient for women workers.
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177. The Government of the Republic of Korea was going ahead with the present industrialization process, and female workers would play an important role, even more so after certain bans were revised to increase job opportunities for women.
178. The representative stated that, in view of the gravity of the population problem in the Republic of Korea, the Government had pursued a family planning policy for the last two decades. However, abortion was legally banned except on medical grounds. The birth rate in 1986 was at 2.3 per cent and the death rate 0.63 per cent.
179. Additional information was provided on the Maternal and Child Health Aco and the Maternal and Child Health Centres, which had been established in both rural and urban areas.
180. The representative answered questions as regards to the freedom of marriage, grounds for divorce and the custody system in case of divorce. She said that men of 18 and women of 16 could enter into matrimonial engagement with the consent of the parents or guardians. The bases for divorce were itemized, and the rate of divorce in the Republic of Korea was 2 per cent.
181. According to the present family law, :he parental lineage between legitimate mother and illegitimate child was deemed to be the same as that of the child of the father's spouse. It was hoped that the clause would be revised to remove the discriminatory elemen. against women.
182. The representative concluded by saying that the signing of the Convention had enabled the Government of the Republic of Korea and the non-governmental organizations to make great efforts to change the situation created by long tradition. Although only a beginning had been made, it was hoped that substantial progress would be achieved in the next four years, and that it would be reflected in the second periodic report to be presented to the Committee.
183. The Committee thanked the representative for her detailed replies and commended the efforts being made to improve the status of women in the Republic of Korea and to modify existing laws that discriminated against women. The experts reiterated their concern over the reservations made to two articles of the Convention.
184. It was hoped that the imbalance in the representation of women in the legal profession would be corrected. More data were requested on actual weekly working hours of women in the Republic of Korea, and experts requested clarification of the situation, under the male-lineage lawn, if there was no son in the family.
Sri Lanka
185. The Committee considered the initial report of Sri Lanka (CMDAW/C/5/Add .29 and CEDAW/C/5/Add.29/Amend.l) at its 88th, 92nd and 93rd meetings, held on 1 and 3 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SR.88, 92 and 93).
186. The Committee commented on the report of Sri Lanka before it was introduced. Some experts expressed their concern about whether to consider the report, since it lacked adequate information on the situation of women in Sri Lanka. Other experts felt that the report had to be considered despite inadequate information, stating that, since the representative of Sri Lanka had come so far, it would be unfair not
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to allow her to present the country's initial report. One expert observed that the report had been submitted before the guidelines had been distributed. Another expert pointed out that similar short reports had been presented and the Committee had considered frem; to disallow the report of a developing country, such as Sri Lanka, would amount to political prejudice. Others felt that the time had come to discontinue the practice of Accepting reports that did not meet the standards that needed to be maintained.
187. After a long discussion regarding the acceptability of the report and the
procedure to be followed in such cases, it was agreed that the report would be
considered, since neither the Committee nor the Secretariat had informed the
Government of Sri Lanka in advance that the report would not be considered.
Experts considered, in addition, that the representative of Sri Lanka should inform
her Government of the Committee's concern about the report: that the report did
not present the true situation of women in Sri Lanka and also that it had not been prepared in accordance with the Convention. However, it was also suggested that those shortcomings could be rectified in the next report submitted by Sri Lanka. The secretariat suggested that the Committee might wish to formulate procedures for future sessions, in case a similar situation arose.
188. The representative of Sri Lanka introduce. her country's initial report by
giving a summary of the historical, political, social, economic and cultural
aspects. In the first part of the report, a general picture of the status of women
in Sri Lanka was presented; the second part related to the articles of the
Convention. She stated that, from the fourteenth century until independence in
1948, Sri Lanka had been under the domination of various colonial powers. Laws
introduced during the social and economic development of the nineteenth century
were out] med. Su sequently, revisions and events such as the introduction of
universal suffrige, the first women Prime Minister and the introduction of the Free
Education Scheme were enumerated.
189. in the second part of her statement, the representative of Sri Lanka presented information on specific articles of the Convention and additional up-to-date information on the organizations established and the initiatives taken by the Government. Among these was the setting up of a high-level committee to examine the possibility of formulating uniform laws to replace the different systems of personal laws.
190. The representative also mentioned that a proposal to grant 12 weeks maternity leave, which, had already been introduced in the private sector of the labour market, had been approved by the Government also for the public sector.
191. She further informed the Committee that maternal and child health clinics as well as family planning devices were increasingly being made accessible to women. The Women's Bureau had centred its activities around mobilizing women in the rural areas to enable self-employment for rural women.
192. With regard to family law, the representative stated that a father was still considered the natural guardian of a child born within wedlock, but not of an illegitimate child. She also gave further information concerning divorce.
193. Experts thanked the representative of Sri Lanka, stating that they found the additional information helpful, but some of them considered that sufficient information had not been provided to make it possible to draw conclusions.
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Therefore, they were not able to make any comments on specific articles. Others regretted that some issues were totally left out in the report and asked whether that meant that the Government of Sri Lanka did not wish to make any observation on those issues.
194. Experts understood that many problems were faced by the country because of the variety of races, religions and ethnic groups, and they were pleased that the Ministry of Women's Affairs and the Women's Bureau had been established to deal with the problems of discrimination against women. It was asked whether any bureaux other than the Women's Bureau were under the authority of the Ministry of Women's Affairs.
195. While there was almost no discrimination in law against women in Sri Lanka and although the Constitution of Sri Lanka guaranteed equality, such discrimination still existed. It was felt that much remained to be done in the fields of education, employment and the status of rural women and that the problem of equality in family and personal law also required further attention. It was asked which problems had been dentified by the Government of Sri Lanka as the main obstacles to the implementation of the Convention and which obstacles should be identified by the Ministry of Women's Affairs for action over the next three to five years. it seemed that the Government had Snown the political will to bring about change and it was time for women to seize the initiative and fight for their rights. It was considered essential for women's organizations in Sri Lanka to work towards positive change, rather than merely to accept measures which, while protecting women, served to consolidate the patriarchal system.
196. It was pointed out that, according to article 18, paragraph 1 (b), of the Convention, the Committee could request a further report from Sri Lanka within a shorter period of time than the normal four years after the first report had been submitted to the Committee. Experts appealed to the Government of Sri Lanka to take the comments of the members of the Committee seriously and act accordingly to improve the situation of women in Sri Lanka. They also appealed to the Government of Sri Lanka to provide more information in the next report.
197. Experts wondered how a country could operate with different legal systems for different ethnic groups. It was pointed out that it would be logical to develop a single legal system that was applicable to all groups.
198. Information was requested on the role of the Supreme Court in the area of an alleged violation of article 126 of the Constitution and on whether there were any judgments in favour of women already , It was asked whether courts were prepared to enforce the law and who enforced the right to go to court.
199. More information was requested on development and the advancement of women with regard to article 3 of the Convention. It was asked whether the goals were sanctioned by all ethnic groups.
200. More information was requested concerning articles 4 and 5 of the Convention, particularly as to what actions were being taken by the Government.
201. Experts asked how the Ministry of Women's Affairs functioned and about its structure and its relationships with the women's bureaux, other women's organizations and national programmes for women's development They also asked whether it had executive power and whether it represented ethnes groups. Details
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were requested on programmes and plans that were being developed in connection with the Convention and a how the information was presented to the population. It was asked whether there was a time limit for envisaged changes and if there was any hope that such changes would take place. It was asked whether there was any kind of discrimination against ethnic groups by the Government and whether those groups had any place to turn to for protection.
202. Information was requested on the actual situation with regard to prostitution, although it was prohibited by the Government, and on the link between prostitution and tourism and whether only prostitutes or also clients end others involved were prosecuted.
203. In that context, a question was asked about domestic violence in Sri Lanka and if there were any policies developed regarding it by the Women's Bureau. It was asked if rape and sexual harassment, in particular of women in custody during the civil strife, was a serious problem and whether means were being developed for the protection and improvement of conditions of women in Sri Lanka who were recruited as domestic servants in the Middle East.
204. Experts wanted to know whether it was possible for a woman in Sri Lanka to confer citizenship on a foreign husband and they also asked about divorce. They wondered if a wife was considered subordinate to her husband with regard to citizenship and how the concept of women achieving the rank and dignity of her husband should be understood.
205. More information was requested on education, particularly on the Sex Disqualification Removal Ordinance.
206. Concrete provisions to ban discrimination at work were considered necessary to achieve equality, and it was asked whether such provisions existed and, if not, whether there was any intention to enact such a law.
207. An explanation of the differences between maternity leave granted in the private and the public sectors was requested. It was asked what were the specific conditions under which women were in fact working at night. Experts also requested more concrete and up-to-date data on married women at work and on precise conditions of employment, such as social benefits, wages, health care and working hours. The protective legislation that existed could be counter-productive, and more details were requested on practical applications in Sri Lanka. It was felt that it could mean that employers would rather not employ women. It was also disturbing to note that the actual effect of laws and decrees seemed to be to limit the number of women who could work in the public sector. Particular concern was voiced about younger women in the work-force of multinational corporations, and more details were requested on wages and equal pay and on whether employment opportunities were maintained when the corporation left the country. It was pointed out that the Government had no reason to be proud of the high percentage of women working in ports and the free-trade zone, for the eruditions there violated the relevant ILO Conventions.
208. Information was sought on the recruitment of Sri Lankan women to work in
domestic service in the Middle East and whether measures were taken to deal which
that issue.
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209. It was asked whether women had access to health service* and what part the 32 organizations played in the field of health services. Information was requested on sex education, population policy and access to family planning, particularly in rural areas, as well as on the situation with regard to policies on abortion.
21C. Information was sought on the status of rural women in Sri Lanka, particularly on how they were mobilized in order to reach a high level of employment.
211. Experts asked about the different legal systems in existence in Sri Lanka. It was asked what happened when a man deserted a woman who was unable to own property in her name and what policies were being developed to stop impediments to women's rights, as seen in the difference in personal laws. It was also asked whether the personal laws were based on religion. More information was requested on the prospects of a uniform law in the future. The question of sexual harassment of incarcerated women was also raised.
212. it was suggested that the Ministry of Women's Affairs could work together with the Ministry of Justice and women's organizations in proposing a family code that would harmonize the different legal systems. Experts were concerned about: the low minimum age at which women could be married, both because of the age itself and also because of the difference to that of men, and wondered if the Government planned to revise the law. They asked whether there were provisions for women who married at an early age to continue to be educated and trained for a future position in society. A clearer picture of the situation of single mothers was requested. Concern was expressed about the use of the terminology "legitimate" and "illegitimate", which was considered to be discriminatory.
213. It was asked if polygamy existed in any communities, whether arranged marriages still existed and whether there was a system of dowry And, if so, who controlled it. Experts asked what were the grounds for divorce, about the guardianship of children and whether the best interests of the child were considered.
214. The representative of Sri Lanka thanked the Committee for its views and gave assurance that those views would be transmitted to her Government.
215. In replying to questions asked by experts, the representative of Sri Lanka stated that it was unfortunate that the alleged inadequacy of the initial report had not only created the unfavorable impression that discrimination against women was far from eliminated in Sri Lanka but had also raised the question of whether Sri Lanka was implementing the Convention at all. She hoped, however, that her replies would clarify the actual position of women in Sri Lanka.
216. The representative of Sri Lanka informed the Committee that the Government of Sri Lanka had established a Ministry of Women's Affairs and a Women's Bureau. She stated that the Women's Bureau had been established in 1978, and the Ministry of Women's Affairs was created in 1983. She explained that both bodies had been established as government agencies to increase the attention given to women's issues during the United Nations Decade for Women. She also elaborated on their roles and objectives. She briefly summarized the administrative structure of the Women's Bureau and the relationship between it, the Ministry of Women's Affairs and other organizations. She stated that "women's units" had been established in several ministries to co-ordinate women's activities and programmes with the Ministry of Women's Affairs. She explained that the Women's Bureau had a very
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comprehensive national strategy on such matters as the problems of women in development, goals and activities and the responsible institutions.
217. The representative of Sri Lanka affirmed that under the Constitution of
Sri Lanka "all persons are equally protected by the law* and "no citizen shall be discriminated on the grounds of sex". She further stated that under article 12 (4) of the Constitution, it was recognized "that nothing shall prevent special provisions being made by the law, subordinate legislation or executive action for the advancement of women".
218. She also mentioned the significant role played by the Supreme Court and the Commission of Sri Lanka, which provided legal aid to indigent persons.
219. She stated that the goal of the programme of the Women's Bureau was to change attitudes and social and cultural patterns, to liberate women from any existing cultural conditioning, to discover changing perspectives and attitudes of women and to encourage shared responsibilities for household tasks between women and men.
220. She said that it was true that prostitution was linked to tourism; however, under the law of Sri Lanka, not. only prostitutes hut also clients were liable to penalties upon conviction. She also said that under the Brothels Ordinance Ant, a person keeping a brothel could be prosecuted.
221. The representative of Sri Lanka pointed out that the major political parties in her country had established women's groups, but women's participation in the decision-making process was mainly confined to exercising the right to vote, owing to the greater family commitments of women. There were no legal harriers preventing women from entering public services, however.
222. The representative stated that there was no discrimination against women in
the area of the representation at the international level. She added that
Sri Lanka had three female diplomats at ambassador level.
223. She explained that "race" referred to the various ethnic groups in Sri Lanka. Concerning the statement that a wife acquired the rank and dignity of the husband, she stated that it merely meant that, a wife assumed the family name of the husband.
224. The representative submitted further statistics to the Committee that showed that the number of girls and boys enrolling in schools was roughly equal and that 40 per cent of those who had enrolled at the university in 1984 had been women, although they were poorly represented in technical and agricultural institutions.
225. The representative of Sri Lanka referred to various statutes that pertained to employment for female employees, such as the Factories Ordinance and the Shop and Office Employees Act, which had provided safeguards for women. She further stated that both sexes enjoyed equal opportunities for employment. She also mentioned that the Maternity Benefits Ordinance stipulated that women's employment could not be terminated because of pregnancy, confinement or related illness. The provision of maternity benefits, such as crèches and time off for breast feeding, had been described in the initial report.
226. The representative further mentioned that women were forbidden to work in
mines, except in a managerial capacity where no manual labour was required. The
regulation governing night work had been drawn up to give protection to women. As
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regards the disparity between the maternity leave available in the private sector and that in the public sector, she explained that the Government had, in principle, approved the proposal to increase maternity leave for public sector employees, and a study was currently under way to determine the effect the increase would have on government services. she also mentioned that the concept of equal pay for equal work was now recognized in Sri Lanka. She explained that the majority of workers in the clothing industry in the Free Trade Zone were women, who were considered to be cheap and easily dispensable labour. She also referred to the statistics in that regard. She mentioned the increase in the number of women working abroad, stating that it had reduced unemployment and brought additional foreign exchange. She also gave further statistics on the distribution of female employees among major occupational groups and in various ministries and governmental departments.
227. She said that Sri Lanka's action programme for family health education had enabled house inspectors, public health nurses and midwives to reach even the most remote areas of the country and that the country was committed to the achievement of health for all by the year 2000, with particular emphasis on the health of mothers and children. She also stated that the Government was concerned at the rate of population growth and provided family planning services and financial Incentives for those practicing family planning. She also stated that abortion was a criminal offence in Sri Lanka.
226. She stated that the Women's Bureau was trying to help rural women gain access to higher level jobs, although that problem affected rural men as well as women.
229. The representative of Sri Lanka further stated that an individual was subject to one of the systems of personal law by virtue of their religion, race or residence in a specified area of the country.
230. Regarding the age of marriage, she said that the age varied according to the personal law to which an individual was subjected. She revealed, however, that there was a proposal to raise the age of marriage to 21 years for both women and men under all legal systems in an attempt to reduce maternal mortality and the birth rate. She stated that, from 1975 to 1979, there had only been 500 cases of marriage in which the bride was under 16 years of age.
231. As regards the rights of married women to own property, she said that the only restriction on that right was contained in the Tesawalamai system of personal law, which stated that a married woman could not dispose of her immovable property without the consent of her husband. Nevertheless, she might apply to the court for such authority if her husband unreasonably withheld his consent. She also mentioned that, in case of divorce and the custody of children, judgement based on the best interests of the child had almost entirely replaced judgments granting automatic custody to the father.
232. On the issue of domestic violence, she said that, although official statistics did not indicate that it was a serious problem, Sri Lankan women had drawn attention to the issue, since women often refrained from reporting cases of domestic violence. She further stated that the national strategy of the Women's Bureau was to provide support for battered women and children. Assault or abduction of women was a criminal offence in Sri Lanka, and rape carried the death penalty. She also stated that sexual harassment of female prisoners did not seem to be a serious problem, because prison rules stipulated that female and male
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prisoners should be segregated and that female prisoners should be supervised by female officers.
233. Under universal law, grounds for divorce were adultery, desertion and incurable impotence at the time of marriage. Also, under all legal systems, the consent of the bride was a prerequisite for marriage, even in the case of an arranged marriage. The provision of a dowry was not a legal requirement, although a dowry was usually paid in the case of an arranged marriage. As regards polygamy, she said it was practised only among the Muslim community. The Government had considered the introduction of a single law, which would be binding on all ethnic groups and religions. However, the individuals subject to the various systems of personal law had resisted the introduction of a universal code, and in a domestic society the Government could not override their wishes.
234. On the role of the Supreme Court in cases of alleged violation of the fundamental right to equality between the sexes, she stated that no such cases had been brought before the Supreme Court, although judgement had been passed in several cases on the violation of other fundamental rights. She reaffirmed that Sri Lanka would continue its programmes to try and achieve the full advancement of women.
235. The representative said that she hoped that the replies she had given to the Committee confirmed that there was no policy of discrimination against women in Sri Lanka.
236. The Chairperson congratulated the representative of Sri Lanka on the monumental task she had achieved; it seemed that she had practically rewritten the report in the preceding two days.
237. Experts thanked and congratulated the representative of Sri Lanka for the additional valuable information and statistics submitted to the Committee. There was general consensus that the replies had been very useful. They were much more detailed than the initial report and had given a different picture of Sri Lankan women. The statement delivered by the representative of Sri Lanka had reaffirmed one expert's views on the working problems for women, such as in the Free Trade Zone, and the circumstances of work in Sri Lanka. It was stated that the questions and comments made by the Committee would assist the Government to produce a further report with more detailed information. It was said that the excellent replies given by the representative of Sri Lanka amply justified the Committee's decision to hear the presentation of the report of Sri Lanka.
Spain
238. The Committee considered the initial report of Spain (CEDAW/C/5/Add.30 and Amend.1) at its 89th and 92nd meetings held on 1 and 3 April 1987 {CEDAW/C/SR.89 and 92).
239. The representative of Spain introduced her country's report by referring first to the principle of equality before the law specified in the Constitution, which led to a reform of all unconstitutional laws.
240. The representative said that her country's joining the European Economic Community in 1986 increased women's access to legal instruments governing their rights, discriminatory treatment of women in the media was prohibited and
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discriminatory advertising had been eliminated. New administrative units or antiparliamentary commissions had been created in 10 out of 17 autonomous communities where political actions were set in favour of women.
241. The representative informed the Committee that women working in a mining company had received a lot of media attention recently. They were seeking to make the company renounce article 8 of the European Social Charter in order to keep their jobs. Also, recently the request of a woman to enter the military academy had triggered a parliamentary debate as to whether women were allowed to enter the armed forces. Appropriate norms for women to enter military academies needed to be established, however.
242. Spain still had considerable deficiencies in the provision of social services, the representative said, which had a negative impact on the further personal development of most women. Despite all those difficulties, more and more women were seeking paid work. The situation in the health sector had changed, as it currently included family planning services for women. Paid household work was regulated by law.
243. The representative stated that the percentage of educated women had increased considerably, but only a minority chose technical studies.
244. in the employment sector, the percentage of economically active women had risen over the preceding five years, whereas the rate of economically active men had declined. There were still far fewer women in the economically active population than men, however. Women continued to be found mostly in traditional jobs, mostly in the service sector, and the majority of women were not very interested in politics, although interest was increasing.
245. The representative informed the Committee that the creation of the Institute of Women's Affairs had raised the awareness of the Spanish population to the principle of equality of opportunities for both sexes and that the Institute had begun to disseminate information on women's rights. Presently, there were 65 information centres on women's matters, 17 refuges for battered women and 327 family-planning centres. The work that had been accomplished was not sufficient, however. Therefore, the Institute had submitted to the Parliament a three-year Plan of Action to speed up equal opportunities for women and men, and it was currently being considered by the different ministries.
246. The members of the Committee congratulated the representative of Spain on the excellent and comprehensive report of her Government, which followed the general guidelines, and on the valuable statistical data provided therein, as well as on her presentation which supplemented the report. Admiration was expressed for the commitment shown and the significant progress made by the country during only
10 years of democracy and for the consistent reforms in legislation. The critical approach and frankness in recognizing existing discrimination were much appreciated. The example of Spain showed that the appropriate constitutional framework was not enough to establish complete equality in a country. The Institute for women's Affairs was recognized as a constant vacillator over the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women in the country, and experts were pleased that the report had been presented by the Director of the Institute.
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247. F perts' questions concerned the time schedule for implementing the proposed new legislation in the area of civil law and whether the discrimination established by articles 1066 and 1267 of the Civil Code had already been done away with. It was asked whether the international covenants referred to in the report had already entered into effect.
248. It was asked whether the fair interpretation of the new law on sex discrimination by the courts constituted a major problem in Spain, whether the recourse procedure of amparo existed and how many cases were brought to the constitutional court because of violation of the principle of sexual equality. Furthermore, it was asked whether the pardoning of the aggrieved party under the Penal Code had a negative impact on the situation of women. The question was posed as to whether women had access to free legal aid.
249. As regards the autonomous communities, an inquiry was made as to whether the Constitution applied directly to the entire country or whether the communities had individual, separate courts.
250. It was asked how the Institute for Women's Affairs dealt with complaints by women on specific cases of de facto and de jure discrimination on the grounds of sex, how many complaints were received and what the sanctions were. Other inquiries were made about the co-operation between the Institute for Women's Affairs and women's non-governmental organizations, as well as about the decentralization of the machinery on equal opportunities. Experts wanted to know whether the subordination of the Institute to the Ministry of Culture reflected the view that the monitoring of de facto equality was linked with the needs to eliminate "machismo".
251. Comments were made on the usefulness of temporary special measures to accelerate de facto equality between women and men, and experts inquired whether such special measures existed.
252. Several questions were asked about education programmes for young people before their marriage and about common-law relationships between women and men. Experts inquired about the status of women and children of such relationships, their rights and benefits and whether common-law unions could be registered. Information was sought on the new draft law in advertising.
25J. It was asked whether women were at all involved in the process of achieving equality between women and men and whether the Catholic Church encouraged or discouraged the prose Statistics were requested on the distribution by sex of paid and unpaid work. was asked whether there were any measures undertaken to instruct fathers in the upbringing of children, whether parental leave referred to mothers and fathers equally, whether the social security allowances received by women during maternity leave were paid in addition to salaries and whether leave for nursing their children was granted to women as paid leave.
254. It was asked whether the exploitation of prostitution was sanctioned by law. Information was requested on rehabilitation facilities for prostitutes. Inquiries were made as to whether the Spanish Government was aware of the importation of Portuguese women for prostitution, whether the situation was changing and whether programmes existed to reduce the high rate of Prostitution.
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255. Information was sought on special services for victims of sexual assault and rape, and details on article 583, paragraph 2, of the Penal Code on conjugal abuse were requested. It was asked whether rape within marriage was considered an offence.
256. The low participation rate of women in the Parliament and in ministerial departments and the discrimination against women in political participation in general were viewed with concern. Experts asked whether the Government or political parties were undertaking steps to remove discrimination in that field and whether the Institute for Women's Affairs foresaw any action programmes to overcome that situation. The Institute's attitude vis-a-vis a quota system for political parties was also questioned.
257. Experts asked about the attitude of political parties as regards feminist organizations. It was noted that in Spain, as in other countries, the representation of women was higher in fringe parties. However, there seemed to be a contradiction in the report because it stated that women who reached the Senate were from the socialist group, which was a majority party. Information was sought on reasons for the decrease in women's representation in the Cortes Generates from 1977 to 1982, and current statistics were requested on the Cortes Generals as well as on the political parties. Questions were asked about the status of women with reference to the election lists of the political parties in view of the importance of the way in which lists were composed.
258. More information was sought on the plan of action concerning measures to be taken to encourage the sharing of roles between women and men in order to reduce unemployment and to increase female political participation. Questions were asked on how the discrepancy between the higher female party affiliation and the low percentage at the executive level could be explained. It was asked why the only high position in Government occupied by a woman was that of Secretary of State for Autonomous Communities.
259. Experts wanted to know whether the percentage rate of female civil servants had increased recently and whether any particular fields in civil service were not accessible to women. They asked why there were more women than men with university diplomas in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but fewer women than men in its upper echelons of service. They also asked why there were so many women with secondary education in the Ministry and what posts they held and whether the reasons for there being no women with only primary education were the lack of interest or the unavailability of suitable functions. Clarification was sought on the low rate of women diplomats and the much higher rate in the technical scale.
260. It was to he hoped that the reservation made by Spain under article 7 of the Convention as regards the right of succession to the throne would he reconsidered soon.
261. More information was requested on the representation of women in international organizations.
262. It was asked whether there was a nationality or domicile requirement for filing an application for divorce, and an inquiry was made about the historical background for the right of women to have the domain adjudicated by the court. It was asked whether it would not be better to *** married women a domicile of
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choice. Further information was requested on the new legislation proposed i in respect of international private law.
263. Appreciation was expressed for the way in which the country coped with illiteracy. Questions were asked as to whether teachers underwent special training to make them abandon the old stereotyped sex-related methods and whether the new school text books were adapted accordingly. Experts inquired whether sex education was obligatory, whether women experienced difficulties in taking up studies because of scarce child-care facilities and whether anything was done to attract more women to scientific subjects. It was asked whether the principle expressed in the "Report on Spanish youth", which had been cited in the report, was a fundamental principle or whether it referred only to the education of youth.
264. As concerns the poor educational level of older women, it was asked whether any particular efforts had been made or specific results achieved since 1985. Doubts were expressed as to whether women should really strive for admittance to ***** academies.
265. Inquiries were made about the reasons for job segregation for women workers, for the unemployment rate being higher for single than for married women and for the decrease of men in the economically active population over the preceding 10 years. Further reasons were requested for the relatively low economic activity rate for women, and it was asked whether the scarce child-care facilities were not also responsible for it. It was thought that the low figure could also be the result of technological developments in the country, and experts asked about the plans of the country to introduce new technologies. It was asked whether the rates included also women working in the non-formal sector, rural women and women in cottage industries.
266. Clarification was sought on the *********** in the statistics on employment between marital status and age brackets. Further statistical data on the economic activity rates of married women were requested, and questions were asked about the levels of work and the tasks carried out by women in the different economic sectors and on jobs carried out in the co-operatives and about the types of work not permitted for women.
267. Appreciation was expressed for the widowhood protection provided by the Government, and it was asked whether working women could extend social security protection in the health field also to children, spouses and parents. Appreciation was also expressed on the programmes introduced to encourage occupational training for women. Experts inquired about unemployment insurance in Spain and about measures taken to increase the working hours for women in gainful part-time employment. Another question concerned the weakly working hours. Details were requested on the public infant care programmes and private child-care institutions.
268. More information was ought on policies on equal pay for work of equal value, the frequency of job evaluation schemes for the comparison of female-dominated with male-dominated jobs and on any attempts to review the protective legislation regarding women that was considered to be outdated as discriminatory to women. It was asked whether the Statute of Workers of 1980 was not discriminatory to mothers. Another inquiry concerned the instruments and measures available to avoid the traditional causes of discrimination in employment.
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269. Several questions were related to the new family planning and health programmes; it was asked whether family planning devices were in reach of all women, whether they had reduced the high rate of abortion, whether medical practitioners were still prosecuted for carrying out abortions and what the frequency rate was. Several comments were made on the decriminalization of abortion, and experts inquired about the reaction to that measure by Spanish women.
270. Appreciation was expressed for the existence of statistics on internal and external migration, and it was asked how it affected rural women and children. A question concerning integration measures vis-a-vis migrant women in Spain was raised. Other causations concerned any efforts undertaken by the Government to bring new technologies to rural women and concrete programmes established by the Institute for Women's Affairs for rural women.
271. having taken note of the abolishment of dowry, in general, experts inquired about the de facto situation in rural areas.
272. A comment was made, on the affiliation procedures based upon legal preemptions by the courts, and it was asked how fathers whose paternity had not been evidenced biologically could be forced to pay alimony. Experts asked about the number of divorce suits filed by women in Spain and about the division of property in divorce cases. It was asked whether the courts continued not to give women who were involved in divorce proceedings the administration and disposition of common assets. It was felt that it was unfair that working women separated from their spouses through divorce did not set any pensions. Further comments concerned the delays attributable to lengthy court proceedings in attributing to wives in divorce the domicile or in granting them alimony payments. Many Spanish lawyers had made pertinent petitions, and experts inquired about the results.
273. Questions were raised about the maintenance and social security situation of abandoned children. Further questions concerned adoption by single persons and the possibility to choose freely the name of the father or the mother.
274. Before replying to questions posed by the members of the Committee, the representative of Spain drew the Committee's attention to a document issued by the Institute for Women's Affairs entitled "Situation social de la major en Esparto", which contained, in Spanish, information on the social situation of women in Spain as at December 1986 and which could be consults at the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat.
275. In answering the questions posed by the members of the Committee, the
representative of Spain first dealt with the social and political matters and later
passage the floor to her colleague from the Institute for Women's Affairs, who spoke
on legal matters.
276. The representative said that the Convention had become part of Spanish national legislation following its publication in the official Gazette. Consequently, it could be directly invoked before the court and contravening laws were null and void.
277. The Committee was informed that, by a ruling of the Constitutional Court in 1981, the grounds for affirmative action and temporary special measures under the Convention were clearly established. The most outstanding of those measures was the creation of the Institute for Women's Affairs by the Spanish Government.
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278. Replying to a question on the number of cases brought to the attention of the Institute, the representative said that by 1986 approximately SO complaints had been received.
279. The Institute for Women's Affairs came under the Monastery of Culture as a result of the restoration of democracy and had nothing to do with "machismo". The Institute would probably be transferred to another ministry 3oon. The Plan of Action submitted by the Institute consisted of 140 proposals covering a wide range of activities. In an effort to achieve greater political participation of women, consciousness-raising campaigns would be launched, and the Institute would support initiatives taken by women's organizations and would exert pressure for the implementation of related provisions.
280. The representative said that, prior to the establishment of the Institute of Women's Affairs, a television campaign had been carried out to change the attitude of people in the fields of education and work. The Institute would undertake a campaign in the near future to break down stereotyped images of women in domestic and professional life and in advertising, and a draft law against discriminatory advertising was being prepared.
281. Studios showed, she said, that domestic work was mainly performed by women with very little assistance from their husbands, and only very few men were interested in questions of equality between women and men.
282. In Spain, the Catholic Church was very conservative with regard to women, although many Spanish Catholics had more advanced views than the clerical hierarchy, especially as regards the use of contraceptives and the right to abortion.
283. The representative stated that the Penal Code defined infringements of moral integrity, sexual abuse and rape. Prostitution was not penalized, only its exploitation and encouragement. Prostitutes were not yet protected by special assistance measures, but they were entitled to receive health care benefits from local governments. She said that the problem of prostitution was currently being discussed in Parliament at the instigation of the Institute for Women's Affairs. The Government was aware of the illegal traffic in women, often minors, at the Portuguese border, and steps were being taken to try to solve the problem.
284. The combating of sexual harassment was foreseen in the Plan of Action, and it was felt that the best policy was to make women aware of their rights and of institutions available to help the victims and to encourage them to report on related inside its. Recently, a special service consisting of women officials had been set up for victims of rape or sexual abuse at the Ministry of the Interior. Furthermore, women victims could obtain advice through a network set up by one of the women's associations. The criminal offence of rape did not exclude rape between spouses. In 1985, the total number of complaints for sexual abuse came to 1,630. Violence in the family was punishable by imprisonment, but judges preferred to inflict fines. The Plan of Action contained a proposal that repeated offences should be punished by arrest during weekends so that the culprits would not be prevented from working, which would punish the whole family by curtailing the family income.
285. The representative said that currently only males could succeed to the throne but that the situation was likely to change in the near future. At the general
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election in 1966, the percentage of women in Parliament was 6.57, in the Senate it was 5.5 per cent and in parliamentary committees between 0 and 18 per cent. The Socialist Party was attempting to increase' the number of women in its electoral lists to 25 per cent. She also said that it was not possible to vote specifically for women. The Institute for Women's Affairs was trying to encourage women to stand for elections to school councils. The proportion of women in public administration had risen from 1.8 per cent in 1975 to 18.4 per cent in 1985.
286. It was explained that currently 10 per cent of the career diplomats were women and 16 per cent of the persons entering the diplomatic service were women. There was only one woman ambassador. Of the staff at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 41.2 per cent were women, but only 10.5 per cent of the higher officials were women. The percentage of women representing the Government at international meetings was also relatively low.
287. The representative stated that the Civil Code still permitted discrimination in nationality questions. In cases of conflict concerning matters of international private law, the law of the husband's country prevailed.
283. The representative informed the Committee of a decision taken by the Minitary of Education, according to which all public primary and middle schools had to be mixed and teaching materials had to be free of sexual discrimination. Sex education was provided but was not compulsory. Research was being carried out on ways of increasing the interest of girls in new technologies, and a pilot project on non-discriminatory career guidance was being conducted, illiteracy had been reduced for both sexes, but it was higher for women than for men. About 50 per cent of graduate students were women.
289. It was stated that in Spain the economic activity rate for women was lower than in other European countries and that job segregation was based on cultural patterns, as elsewhere in the world. The economic activity rate for men had decreased because of the extension of compulsory education and the ***** retirement age. The same applied to women, but more women than previously were doing paid work outside the home. The high unemployment rate of single women was explained by the high number of young single women. More women had professional or technical jobs in the public than in the private sector.
290. The principal of equal pay for equal work was reflected in the laws and was watched over closely by the trade unions. But no statistics on its implementation were currently available. Women were allowed to perform any type of work except underground work in mines and service in the armed forces. No special programmes for migrant women existed, but migrants could receive unemployment benefits. Details of the workers' entitlements under the unemployment benefit programme were given by the representative. Of the jobs recently created, 33.9 per cent were held by women, of whom 58.9 per cent were in part-time jobs. It emerged from one of the statistics that 36 per cent of working women were employed in the "hidden" or informal economy.
291. No data were available on subsidies provided by the State to the employment sector. But it was known that programmes specifically intended for women had not been very successful in the past. Further legislative reforms were planned to expand equality in employment.
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292. The working week was 40 hours. Lactating mothers were entitled to reduced working hours. Fathers and mothers of children below the age of six years were allowed to cut down their working days by one third to one half, with pro rata salary reductions. During maternity leave, 75 per cent of the salaries were paid by way of social security benefits, but, under most collective agreement. J, the employers had to provide the remaining 25 per cent. Participation in the social 3ecurity system by working women, including domestic helpers, was compulsory. It provided widower's pensions, orphan's pensions and health benefits. The Working Women's statute regulated, in particular, the protection of pregnant women against dismissal. Employers' decisions could be appealed at the Labour Court, and complaints could also be lodged with the Constitutional Court.
293. The representative explained that the use of contraceptive devices was increasing. The Institute for Women's Affairs had waged campaigns on family planning in all media. Since the decriminalization of abortion in cases specified by law, only 1,500 legal abortions had been carried out. That low figure was due to conscientious objections raised by doctors and hospital staff. Efforts were being made to broaden the allowable conditions for abortions. According to a recent survey, about two thirds of the population approved of the new law, while one third supported the idea of free abortion at the request of the woman.
294. The representative pointed out that Spain was mainly an industrial country and that the majority of the population lived in cities. Certain social security services were not available in some rural areas. Radio programmes were set up and Bocio-cultural campaigns were carried out to reach the most underprivileged areas, however. The representative explained that three mechanisms were operative in the autonomous communities for carrying out policies for the promotion of women: interdepartmental commissions; administrative units with selective responsibilities} and parliamentary commissions.
295. it was explained that the judiciary was identical throughout the Spanish territory. In cases of violations of a citizen's fundamental rights, the constitutional court could be seized of the matter by virtue of the recurso de amparo. A woman who lacked financial resources could request free legal aid.
296. Under the current law, the domicile was chosen by common accord between the spouses, failing which domicile was adjudicated by a judge by taking into account the family's best interest.
297. The applicant did not have to have Spanish nationality to file a suit to divorce or separation. The suit could be filed at the applicant's final place of residence.
298. The system of dowry no longer existed in either urban or rural areas. The abolishment of the reference to the sex as an aggravating circumstance in cases of intimidation, as defined by article 1267 of the Civil Code, was included in the proposals put forward by the Institute for Women's Affairs in its Plan of Action.
299. The provision under which a son took the family name of his father followed by that of his mother until the age of 18, women he could change the order of the names, was being reviewed in Parliament.
300. The representative said that adultery had disappeared as a crime under the terms of the Penal Code Although it could still be cited as a cause for
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separation, it had no effect on the custody of children. The removal of parental authority had to be based on the failure to fulfil parental duties or on physical abuse. Single men or women could adopt children. Parental authority was shared by both parents, and children born within and outside wedlock had equal status.
301. In order to solve the problem of undue delays in separation and divorce proceedings, the Plan of Action contained a proposal to establish more family courts and to increase the staff in existing courts. The representative explained that the courts refused women as well as men the disposal of communal goods during divorce proceedings, as the sharing of matrimonial property was decided in separate proceedings.
302. The Spanish legal system had two types of subsistence allowances: one was fixed by the judge and either of the spouses was entitled to it; the other one was the payment of alimonies for the children. As regards paternity procedures, the presumed father could not refuse the biological proof of paternity. If he did, the court took his refusal for sufficient presumptive evidence to ascribe paternity.
303. Members of the Committee commended the extensive replies given, which had the volume of a supplementary report, and congratulated the Institute for Women's Affairs on its efforts. In answer to a question raised about actions taken by the Spanish Government to counter the exclusion of women from dining rooms and kitchens in the Gastronomical Society in the Basque Autonomous Region, the representative replied that private clubs were free to have their own rules.
304. In reply to other additional questions raised, she commented that information seminars would be organized to counter the alleged discriminatory behavior of judges. She further said that as men usually earned more than women, it was more natural for women to take parental leave. She would also provide more information on the "hidden" economy in the subsequent report.
Poland
305. The Committee considered the initial report of Poland (CEDAW/C/5/Add.31) at its 90th, 95th and 96th meetings, held on 2, 6 and 7 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SR.90, 95 and 96).
306. The representative of Poland gave a brief summary of the information contained in the report submitted by her Government and highlighted some selected issues of the Convention. She pointed out that the report, which had been completed two years earlier, did not cover the latest developments in areas directly affecting women, for example; the further development of social benefits connected with maternity,
307. The system of social benefits connected with maternity leave had been further developed. The representative explained that legislation on the rights of working women in connection with child birth in force since 1981 had been extended to include paid child-care for a duration of three years. During the leave, for two consecutive years, a mother was entitled to a child-care allowance, which amounted to at least 80 per cent of her regular salary. In the case of disabled and seriously ill children, the duration of leave would be extended by three more years. She pointed out that single mothers received double the allowance that they would have received if they were married. She explained that a major role in the
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social security system was being played by the Alimony Fund; the State provided financial support to children and mothers in need, especially when it was not possible to exact alimony payments..
308. The representative referred to a new institution, the Government Office of Plenipotentiary for Women's Affairs, which was established by the Council of Ministers on 1 September 1986 to co-ordinate the implementation of measures designed to ensure equal rights of women and men in all aspects of political, economic, social and cultural life. It also co-ordinated co-operation between Polish institutions and women's organizations and with the United Nations, as a focal point for the implementation of the Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women. 1/ She also informed the Committee that the Constitutional Tribunal had begun to function on 1 January 1986 and its main task was to ensure that ordinances and other regulatory decisions adopted by the Government were consistent with the Constitution.
309. The representative mentioned that the Constitutional Tribunal has recently ruled on the decision by the Minister of Health and Social Welfare to set
50 per cent quotas on the number of women admitted to medical schools in order to neutralize the "feminization" of the medical profession. She pointed out that, while 87 per cent of pharmacists and 81 per cent of dentists were women, there were very few women in such areas as surgery and nuclear medicine. The Tribunal overruled the decision on the grounds that it was inconsistent with the constitutional principle of equal rights of all citizens, and the practice has been abandoned.
310. Concerning the position of women in the political and social life of Poland, the representative stated that the Parliament of Poland presently has 93 women deputies out of a total of 460 deputies. There is one woman in the Council of State and one at the ministerial level; there are also three female deputy ministers and one female Director-General.
311. She said that in Poland's central administration, women occupied 25 per cent of the managerial posts, in local administration 53 per cent and in co-operatives 47 per cent. She said, however, that the participation of women in political life, in particular with respect to foreign affairs and diplomacy, was not satisfactory.
312. She stated that various surveys were under way to study the social and occupational situation of women and their living conditions. For example, there wa3 a great deal to be done with regard to easing the housekeeping burden of women.
313. Many experts congratulated and thanked the representative of Poland for her statement, which contained valuable additional information. They stated that high standards had been reached both de jute and de facto, although discrimination against women seemed to exist in some cases. Some experts pointed out that the Government had shown interest in further improving the situation of women, thus implementing the Convention. The inclusion of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies in the five-year plan of the country was also appreciated. Others thought, however, that it was too early to assess the achievements made in implementing the Convention and that the absence of enough data made it difficult to monitor whether progress had been achieved.
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314. It was pointed out that women in Poland had suffered a great deal during the Second World War; since that time, women had played a major role in the efforts that had been made to promote world peace: The excellent infrastructure that had been established for providing services relevant to the problems of women, such as family courts, the Institution on Family Diagnosis and counseling centres was noted.
315. It was asked whether there were any plans to establish an institution such as an ombudsman on equal opportunities, where women could complain on receive legal aid, or whether that was already the task of the Plenipotentiary. It was also asked whether the Constitutional Tribunal dealt with the right of women to belong to trade unions. Appreciation was expressed on the ruling of the Tribunal mentioned by the representative, and experts wanted to know whether there had been other cases of discrimination against women. More information was requested on government measures to combat discrimination and on whether there were any action programmes to implement the Convention. Clarification was also sought on some contradictory statements in the report concerning whether discrimination was a problem in Poland or not.
316. It was pointed out that the Go/eminent of Poland had taken steps to cope with the new problem of urbanization and its effect on social life by providing social benefits to working women and by helping them to combine household work and gainful employment. It was said that little emphasis seemed to be placed on the active participation of women in all aspects of society in Poland. An inquiry was made about the actual achievements of the sector of the Polish Workers' Party concerned with women's affairs.
31''. Since the Government itself had accepted that legal guarantees were not enough, the assertion in the report that there was no need for temporary special measures to accelerate de facto equality was questioned. More information was sought on existing legal guarantees.
318. It was asked whether the interdepartmental team monitoring the implementation of social policies on behalf of women and the family continued to pursoe its original aims.
319. It was noted that the participation of women in paid employment and in public and political life was important for equality. Women in Poland were not only hampered by the lack of household mechanization, their possibilities for participation also depended on the extent to which their husbands contributed to household work and child rearing, Therefore, information was requested on the distribution of women and men in paid and unpaid work and on the amount of time that was left in reality for women to participate in public and political life.
320. More information was requested on the efforts of the Government to prepare young people for family life. It was asked whether men were being made aware of their roles as fathers and in doing household work. Information was sought on the role and influence of the Roman Catholic Church on the work towards equality between women and men.
321. Clarification of the statement that "special respect" was accorded to women was sought, since in the past such statements meant that certain rights had been withdrawn from women. Concern was also expressed about the emphasis placed on the role of women as mothers. It was also risked whether the attempt to portray a "new
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woman" in the media and in schools had been successful and to what extent the portrayal of a "desirable model of the family" in the media had encouraged men to change their behaviour.
322. It was asked whether there was any prostitution in Poland.
323. Information was requested on the extent to which women were represented in political parties and to what extent they were involved in decision-making in Poland. Experts asked whether any measures had been taken to increase women's involvement in political life, whether the political parties dealt with that issue themselves and whether women entered politics through political parties in the usual manner.
324. It was asked how women's organizations worked with ministries, for instance through the Committee on Women's Affairs. It was also asked whether the Office of Plenipotentiary and woman's organizations had been working to involve women in politics.
325. More information was requested on the role played by women's organizations and co-operatives and also on their activities in the field of environmental protection and the campaign against prostitution. It was noted that the women's organizations referred to in the report concentrated on social issues rather than on women's participation in political life. It was asked whether there was any pressure from the women's organizations to bring about changed in stereotyping.
326. Statistics were requested on the percentage of women at different government levels as well as in trade unions, and it was asked whether there had been any plans on how to increase the number of women in the higher levels of government administration and trade union management.
327. With reference to the statement in the report that the small number of women representing Poland abroad wan of particular concern to women's organizations, it was asked what steps the Government was taking. Another question was whether there was legislation on the integration of women into the Foreign Office and the diplomatic and consular services.
32c. It was asked why women were so poorly represented in lower-level secondary schools and whether curricula were identical for girls and boys. Further information was requested on the eradication of illiteracy in Poland. It was felt that, although facilities for the education of women in Poland were increasing, there was a need for additional vocational training. It was also asked why the representation of women in some field3 of education was very low while exceedingly high in others.
329. The extent to which women enjoyed the right to work was shown by the fact that the rate of female employment in Poland was impressive, but job segregation still existed. It was pointed out that the high work-force rate for women included many women working on their own farms, thus performing work near or in their own households.
3 30. Statistics were requested on the proportion of women in high-level jobs, particularly in female-dominated sectors, and about women who had been able to enter new professions.
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331. It was asked whether women in Poland were guaranteed in practice equal pay for work of equal value, since it was felt that job segregation created problems in carrying out an objective appraisal of female-dominated jobs. Experts also wanted to know what jobs were not open to women, what professions "needed to be performed by men" and whether there had been any plans to revise Polish protective legislation, as suggested in article 11, paragraph 3, of the Convention. It was also asked whether there were problems of sexual harassment at work.
332. Experts also asked how many worn in took the full maternity leave, whether women had the right to take leave before childbirth and whether there were any plans to grant fathers the right to paternity leave.
333. Experts asked why there were different retirement ages for women and men, which one expert considered discriminatory, and whether there also wore differences in pay received after retirement.
334. it was felt that further efforts would have to be made to increase the number of women occupying positions of responsibility. It was asked whether the
Government of Poland or any governmental, body had implemented programmes or planned to includes quotas or other temporary special measures to bring women into technical, governmental and other fields where their employment rates were low. Information was also sought on the special measures that had been implemented by the Government to correct the over-representation of women in professions such as medicine and teaching.
335. A comment was made on article 154 of the Penal Code, which made it a crime to perform abortions. Information was requested on the number of abortions performed each year, on whether a woman who had an abortion performed because she did not want a child would be punished and on the opinion of the public with regard to that issue.
336. It was noted that many women were engaged in agricultural work, which had been Identified as a problem, and that women's organizational were trying to solve such problems.
337. with reference to the many Rural Housewife Centres to help women through courses in cooking, etc., experts wants to know whether there were also institutions to help "modern" husbands by offering such courses.
338. It was noted that divorce was not granted if it adversely affected the interests of the children. In that connection, experts asked how much consideration was given to the interests of the parents and especially to the interests of the woman or whether she was totally subjugated to the interests of the children. It was noted that the number of divorces in Poland was very small, and therefore an explanation of that phenomenon was requested. It was asked whether mutual affection between the spouses was considered and what happened to the couple when divorce had been refused.
339. It was noted that single parents were mentioned only once in the report; in that context, experts wanted to know what the Government and women's organizations were doing to ensure acceptance and equal treatment of 3ingle parents.
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340. The establishment of the Alimony Fund and the family courts was welcomed. It was asked whether the Alimony Fund was not "abused" by husbands. More information was requested on the operation of the family courts and on how payments were made in case of a divorce. Another question was raised on the differences in the minimum age for marriage between women and men, and experts asked whether it would be possible to raise the age also for women to 21 to achieve equality.
341. It was asked how provisions regarding the equality of spouses in choosing a family name operated in practice and how many women exercised the right to retain their own name.
342. In replying to the questions and comments made by the members of the Committee, the representative of Poland stated the. although Polish legislation complied in all respects with the principle of equal rights between women and men, in certain cases practice deviated from the spirit and the letter of the law. Efforts were being made by the Government and by women's organizations to achieve full de facto equality. Owing to the need for strengthening centrally programmed action, the Government Office of Plenipotentiary for Women's Affairs had been set up to integrate the functions of all quasi-governmental bodies for the advancement of women. The Office of Plenipotentiary would monitor research studies undertaken by the Main Statistical Office on the working and living conditions of women in Poland and on their participation in political, economic, social and cultural life. A special data bank was to be established on the social and occupational situation of women.
343. The main task of the Office of Plenipotentiary was to co-ordinate measures designed to enhance the status of women, to ensure equality of rights between women and men in all aspects of political, economic, social and cultural life and to undertake activities aimed at bettering their living conditions and facilitating the performance of their manifold roles in society and in the family.
344. She explained that, in establishing the Office of Plenipotentiary, the Council of Ministers had also specified a Programme of Action to improve the socio-occupational status and living conditions of women, consisting of 22 areas of activity scheduled for implementation during the years 1987 to 1990.
345. The Council of Ministers had requested central and regional administrative bodies to elaborate detailed plans of activities in favour of women.
346. With regard to "temporary special measures", she stated that all measures and decisions undertaken so far in respect of women were of a permanent and not of a temporary character.
347. The representative stated that Poland had for many years been making efforts to eliminate existing shortcomings, particularly with regard to the participation of women in the decision-making process. Although some progress had been made, efforts would continue to be made to enhance the participation of women in the socio-economic development of the country as well as their level of education and professional qualifications.
348. In response to questions on the percentage of women in political parties, trade unions and administrative bodies, the representative presented statistics , In 1984, women constituted 26.9 per cent of the Polish United Workers Party, 26.0 per cent of the United Peasant Party and 32.4 per cent of the Democratic
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Party. In 1983, 15.2 per cent of the members of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers Party and 16.2 per cent of the Central Commission of Intra-Party Control were women. She noted' that there were 134 branch-oriented independent trade unions within the All-Poland Trade Unions Agreement; women occupied 48 per cent of the administrative posts in that Agreement, and in the Council, women constituted 9 per cent and in the Executive Committee, 8.3 per cent. Some unions were dominated by women; in the light industry and food-processing industries unions, women made up 75 and 60 per cent, respectively, of the membership. She stated that nine of the branch trade unions were chaired by women and that 15 per cent of the 1,480 delegates to the Congress of trade unions were women. According to recent statistics on women in central, regional and municipal administrative bodies, women occupied 32.9 per cent of posts in central administration and 5 to 6 per cent of posts of ministers, deputy ministers, votives and mayors of the largest cities. The low representation of women at all governmental levels continued to be a matter of concern.
349. The representative said that setting quotas in the higher levels of Government and trade unions was not part of the Government's policy. Women had to undertake activities to improve their level of representation. With regard to quotas for women in Parliament, she said that regulations on elections to the Sejm of the Polish People's Republic, in force since May 1985, granted the right to propose candidates to women's associations, among others.
350. The representative said that the establishment of a post of spokesman for civil rights had been initiated by the Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth and discussions were currently under way.
351. The representative stated that the members of the Constitutional Tribunal were elected by the Sejm, and its main task was to ensure that legal and other regulations of leading and central organs of the State were in compliance with the Constitution. Its five verdicts on non-compliance with the constitution were subject to review by the Parliament and were binding.
352. The representative stated that certain stereotypes and behavior connected with long-standing traditions, customs and mentality still existed in Poland. Recent investigations proved that women spent five hours a day on household duties while men spent two hours, women had four hours a day for leisure while men had five hours. She also reported that only 15 per cent of men did housework,
25 per cent did the shopping and 28 per cent cooked meals. She said that younger men, however, were taking on more household duties.
353. Concerning the meaning of "special respect" accorded to woman in Poland, she said that women in Poland had traditionally and continued to be highly regarded because of the important roles they had played throughout Polish history, not only within families but also in the struggle for independence and maintaining national identity.
354. The representative said that prostitution existed In big cities and ports. Professional prostitution, however, no longer existed because the problem of poverty had been eliminated.
355. Measures had already been taken on the integration of women into diplomatic and consular services. In 1986, women occupied 34 per cent of the posts at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, although only three were at high levels, and 58 women
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were employed in diplomatic and consular poets abroad, including 24 with diplomatic status, among them one ambassador.
356. The representative explained that the high percentage of girls in post-secondary schools derived front the fact that the majority of girls chose general secondary schools, which did not prepare them for a concrete profession. Girls tended to continue their vocational education in post-secondary schools in such fields as secretarial work, economic and commercial activity, linguistics, draughtsman ship, dental techniques, nursery care or medical rehabilitation, while boys tended towards vocational training in engineering industries, building construction and other jobs requiring physical strength. The representative said that the problem of illiteracy no longer existed.
357. women and men received equal pay for work of equal value. Professions in such fields as education, health care services and textiles, where about 80 per cent of workers and employees were women, were less well paid,
358. She said that in Poland it was prohibited to employ women in jobs that were particularly onerous and hazardous to their health, and there were no plans to change regulations in that regard. She also stated that the problems of sexual harassment in the work place did not exist in Poland.
359. with reference to the legal age for marriages, the representative stated that for many years the age limit of 18 years was the same for women and men. The man's age had been increased to 21 years because the majority of men between 18 and
21 years were in the military services.
360. The representative explained that the law of 1956 allowed women to obtain abortion for medical, social or legal reasons. Juveniles, however, must have the approval of their parents on a decision by the court. She further stated that widely disseminated methods to prevent pregnancy had caused a decrease in the number of abortions. In 1962, about 200,000 abortions had been registered in Poland compared to 135,564 in 1985) however, not all cases had been registered. She also explained that the Catholic Church in Poland was opposed to abortion.
361. With regard to the functioning of family courts. the representative stated that they had become a durable Institution in the Polish legal system.
362. with regard to the concern expressed about the same judge dealing with matters of a family, she said that while ruling on a specific case, the judge should use all relevant information.
363. With respect to the questions concerning divorce, she stated that the court might delay a final decision, especially when children were involved. Focus on children did not mean that the interests of women were not taken into consideration.
364. On the issue of the "Alimony Fund", she stated that a responsible father would acknowledge his responsibilities. The State had found it difficult to execute payments from irresponsible fathers, however, and only 50 per cent of such payments were regained. She stressed that the main priority was to ensure that mothers bringing up children alone had regular financial support.
365. The representative explained that spouses were entitled to choose a family name, but that, unless the woman was eminent in a professional, scientific or
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artistic field, they generally agreed to adopt the husband's name. She also explained that recently a considerable number of women had kept their name and added the name of the husband. Women who had names of historical origin did not change them. In some cases, both spouses kept their names and commonly decided about the name of their children.
366. The representative of Poland was thanked for her replies and for the offer to provide more information later; the presentation would provide useful guidelines for developing countries. The large and varied body of information the representative of Poland had submitted was considered to be very useful, particularly the sociological data, which showed the attitude of the women themselves to their work and to the changing social climate. It was asked whether there had been any research to indicate that women were interested in jobs that were closed to them by law. It had been shown that "protective" legislation only excluded women from highly competitive jobs and did not protect them from health hazards in traditionally female areas of work, such as the health services and catering. it was suggested that the next report could include details of any changes in protective legislation. Reference was made to the principle of equal pay for work of equal value, and it was asked whether there had been any attempt to compare jobs usually done by men with those usually done by women, since jobs involving physical labour were usually better paid, and the physical effort involved in many female-dominated jobs was often not acknowledged. It was asked whether any studies had been carried out in that area.
367. Concern was expressed that the lower retirement age for women meant that a woman had to withdraw from paid employment and return to her main priority in the society, such as household and family affairs. That attitude was an indirect obstacle to women's active participation in society.
368. Replying to the point raised by experts, the representative of Poland said that the list of professions closed to women was not considered to be an attempt at job segregation, but reflected the Government's special concern for women's health. She would report the Committee's comments to the Office of Plenipotentiary for Women's Affairs.
369. The Chairperson thanked the representative of Poland for the frank and informative report submitted by her Government and for the replies given to questions posed by the experts.
France
370. The Committee considered the initial report of France (CEDAW/C/5/Add.33 Ana Amend.1) at its 93rd to 95th meetings, held on 3 and 6 April 1987 (CEDAW/SR.93-95).
371. In his presentation, the representative of Prance said that he was honored to speak before the Committee that represented a beacon at the international level in the fight for women's rights. He drew attention to the large delegation that had been sent by France, stressing the importance the Government attached to the subject. He apologized for the late submission of the revision to the initial report.
372. The representative regretted that the report appeared very factual and legal and did not reflect the human side of the struggle against resistance, lack of understanding and the personal strife women had encountered in the fight for their
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rights. He outlined the history of the struggle in Prance and named many prominent women in that struggle.
373. The representative and the Government of France fully realized the amount of work still to be done, despite the achievements of the last 15 years to redress the inequalities resulting from tradition.
374. Regarding the recent achievements that ensured the promotion of women as persons and citizens, the representative drew attention to the withdrawal of the reservation to article 7 of the Convention, which had been made possible when a constitutional article on acquired nationality had been repealed in 1983.
375. He gave additional data with regard to education, stating that women constituted 51.33 per cent of students in secondary education and 48.7 per cent in primary schools. In 1985, 57 per cent of students admitted to the baccaiaureat were women, and, in 1983, the proportion of women at universities was
51.1 per cent. He emphasized the national campaign on professional orientation and training, which was aimed at increasing the number of professions selected by women. Current data were presented that illustrated the low levels of participation of women in political life, namely 6 per cent in the National Assembly, 3 per cent in the Senate and 10 per cent in the Government, with 21 per cent representation in the European Parliament and 14 per cent in the municipal councils. However, figures for participation in trade unions were encouraging, he said, and 57 per cent of French women currently belonged to a union.
376. The representative reported that, for the first time, the law had given a
legal definition to rape and had given certain associations, whose statutory aims
were against sexual violence, the power to bring civil actions to court. He stated
that a number of seminars on the theme "Women, violence and security" had been held
recently and refuges for battered women had been opened. Existing provisions
against procurement had been enforced and the penalties had been increased. He
also reported that the police services were developing independent studies in that
area.
377. Achievements that had consolidated the position of women in employment had led to an increase in the percentage of employed women between the ages of 25 and 50 from 57 per cent in 1975 to 70 per cent at the current time. Breaks in work were reported as being shorter, and more women resumed work after a break. Women currently benefited from equality in recruitment and dismissal policies and equality of rights and opportunities.
378. In the public sector, women currently represented more than 50.8 per cent, as opposed to 48.6 per cent in 1976. Certain public sectors, such as the police, the army, the magistrature and education, had experienced progressive feminization, and there was a notable increase in women taking employ cent requiring university qualifications; 41.8 per cent currently as compared to 11.2 per cent in 19b8.
379. in the private sector, the representative reported that since 1975 the law had forbidden discrimination in employment based on sex or family situation. Severe penalties, such as imprisonment or fines, could be invoked to ensure equality in law and professional life, and the law was reinforced in 1985, bringing discrimination against women to the same level as discrimination against race or religion. It was reported that, also in 1985, a new law had been introduced
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enabling trade unions to take civil action in cases of discrimination in all aspects of employment.
380. Two councils had been set up, one for the public and one for the private sector, to ensure the application of the principles of equality of the sexes in employment.
381. The representative stated chat in France equality in pay and minimum salaries had been guaranteed for both women and men since 1972, although some anomalies continued to exist in the private and semi-public sectors. Equality of salaries had been in existence since 1978.
382. A 1983 law contained precise provisions to remove flagrant obstacles to the equality of opportunity in employment.
383. Innovative action to improve access to professional training was reported as having benefited more than 10,000 women, particularly single women without resources.
384. The representative outlined action that had been instigated to enable women to combine their work as mothers with professional activities. It was recognized that in France working women spent an average of four hours daily on household duties, compared with 1.7 hours for working men.
385. The representative reported that contraception had been available in France for the last 20 years. An adult woman could request abortion on medical grounds without any action being taken against her, and the expense was covered by social security. He stated that there were many centres giving advice on birth control, the family and sex education.
386. The representative reiterated the information on maternity leave contained in the most recent revision of the report submitted by France. Parental education leave allowed either parent to Interrupt their employment in the three years following the birth or adoption of a child, with a guarantee to resume their post after the period of leave.
387. He reported that considerable efforts had been made to increase the number of places in crèches and to provide a more flexible system as well as to increase the number of child-care assistants. He outlined the improved opportunities for home care and taxation allowances.
380. Mothers without regular employment currently had access to training for professional employment.
389. The personal rights of women as mothers had been increased to include free membership in insurance and pension schemes; age limits for public posts had been removed and mothers had been given priority for training.
390. The representative concluded by stating that the French Government had in recent years worked towards the removal of the obstacles and reluctance to women choosing their own destiny. It recognized that to enable women and men to carry out the same functions, policies had to be ambitious in order to achieve equality, autonomy and dignity. Stereotypes that produced the image that women were to be considered as domestic help or objects of desire were not to be tolerated.
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391. The Government considered that the elimination of discrimination against women had been realized in Prance at the legal level and that it must he reflected in the real world so that the community could benefit from the capacities and talents of women.
392. Members of the Committee thanked the representative of France for the oral presentation, which they considered to have overcome some of the deficiencies of the initial report presented in 1986. They expressed disappointment at the form and standard of the written report and appreciated the supplement that had been produced, although it had been submitted too late for proper examination. Several experts were perturbed by the example of its first written report set by a country that had had a long and successful history of achievements in the struggle for the rights of women and trusted that that example would not be followed by other countries.
393. The experts felt that the report of France should have kept more accurately to the guidelines set by the Committee. Some areas of the Convention had been overlooked, and it was considered that the report did not reflect the real situation of women in France. Appreciation, however, was expressed concerning the inclusion of certain legal texts. It was observed that, although the reports were dated 1986 and 1987, the most recent data contained in the tables were from 1984. It was commented that comparative data were more useful than absolute figures, which required analysis.
394. Concern was expressed about the reservations and the declaration made by France upon ratification of the Convention, out experts commended the withdrawal of one of the reservations, as had been mentioned by the representative, after a constitutional article on acquisition of nationality had been repealed in 1983.

395. A major concern was the apparent step backwards caused by the replacement, in 1986, of the Ministry for Women's Rights by the "Delegation a la condition feminine". Experts requested more information on the nature and function of the "Delegation" and on the relative budgets and powers of those two bodies. Experts wondered if the change in responsibilities signified that women's rights no longer came under human rights and whether the tasks formerly undertaken by the Ministry, such as the prevention of violence against women, the training of staff dealing with that problem and the emphasis on women's dignity, still continued. It was asked if the Higher Council for Professional Equality between Women and Men, which had acted as an advisory body to the former Prime Minister, still existed.
396. Praise was expressed for the action taken in recent vears in the face of tradition, religious differences and the impact left by the Napoleonic Code. It seemed that the emphasis was on women as mothers and workers rather than as individuals. Clarification was requested on the role of women that was valued most by the Government of France.
397. A good effort had been made to raise the visibility of women and to enable them to assert their identity, as in the feminization of professional titles, and appreciation was expressed that the role of women i\ culture had been emphasized in the introductory statement.
398. It was asked which provisions of the Convention could be invoked before the
courts and other authorities.
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399. Since it was stated in the report of France that discrimination on the grounds of sex was punished by imprisonment or fines, it was asked to what extent and degree those penalizes, if enforced, helped the status of women.
400. It was asked what temporary special measures to accelerate de facto equality had been tried in practice in France and if those were by quota or preferential treatment.
401. Experts wanted to know what actions were being taken to change stereotypes, if men considered that their traditional role had been questioned and how much men were involved in the work for equality of the sexes. Data was requested regarding the distribution of paid and unpaid work. It was asked to what extent fathers made use of parental leave opportunities, how a decision was taken if agreement could not be made as to whom should take parental leave, how parental leave worked in practice and also what the reaction of French society was. Experts inquired about the influence of the Roman Catholic Church in the work towards equality and a change in traditional roles. Referring to the child-care facilities provided by the State to encourage and enable women to work, experts requested statistics on the number and the demand compared to the supply of such facilities, and whether the lack of facilities had forced women to take part-time work. It appeared that the current policies of France were to increase the population by giving additional support to the third child and emphasizing the maternal role of women; it was asked if there were any programmes to encourage men to be more involved in domestic duties.
402. Experts wanted to know if the exploitation of women in advertising in the mass media was monitored.
403. it was asked whether financial or other support was given to rape crisis centres and shelters under the new laws and what provisions had been made to protect women from sexual harassment. It was also asked if the commendable cultural policies were being continued.
404. Experts asked what the Government was doing to inform and educate women in France about their rights and wondered if the reports submitted to the Committee would be published and disseminated in France.
405. Experts requested information on prostitution, particularly on rehabilitation programmes for prostitutes, refuges for battered women and general measures against pornography and exploitation of the female body.
406. Many questions referred to whether the involvement of women in the political field had changed after the replacement of the Ministry for Women's Rights, as it was noted that the number of women ministers had fallen. Up-to-date data were requested on participation in the political parties and on the effects, if any, of the introduction of the proportional electoral system. Details of the current representation by French women in the European Parliament and in the military were requested.
407. Experts inquired about the role of non-governmental organizations and the real situation of those movements in the fight for women's equality.
408. Clarification was requested of the word "any" in the statement that "women, on equal terms with men and without any discrimination, have the possibility of
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representing the French Government at the international level and participating in the work of international organizations".
409. More information on the specific training programmes for the most disadvantaged women was requested. Experts asked if textbooks had been modified to abolish stereotyped roles. The professional orientation campaign was considered to be a very positive move, and data on the participation of women were requested.
410. Questions were asked on the implementation and interpretation of the laws on employment. More statistical information was sought or. working women, on the levels at which they were employed and on salaries. Many questions referred to [art-time work and whether its increase had only a positive impact. An explanation was requested of the problems of job segregation, the trend of feminization in certain jobs and whether the principle of equal pay for work of equal value was implemented in practice. It was asked how widespread the job evaluation schemes were, whether there were any cases of sex-based wage discrimination, whether the ban on sex discrimination -'so covered indirect discrimination and who took the cases to court. In that regard, information was also sought as to whether the trade unions had in fact ever taken legal action on behalf of a woman employee. More details were requested on associations, rather than unions, that had taken action. It was asked if the penal sanctions that could be invoked with regard to sex discrimination had ever been, or still were, applied. More information was sought on the mechanisms and power of the courts to waive sentence against employers under certain conditions.

411. A list of posts and professional activities in which the sex of the applicant was a condition was requested. It was asked if there were any special occasional health and safety measures for women other than pregnant women and if the protective legislation had been reviewed or abolished. Experts inquired if the retirement age of 60 for women was compulsory and about the situation for men.
412. Experts wanted to know about the situation of migrant and immigrant women workers and whether children of migrant workers born in France were eligible for French nationality.
413. Questions were asked about the willingness of employers to establish contracts to promote equality. Experts wanted to know the impact, and role of the Works Committees with regard to the situation of women and what those Committees did with the compulsory annual reports submitted by companies. More background information was requested on the policies controlling terminations of employment contracts.

414. It was asked under which ministry the question of women and work came, since the Ministry for Women's Rights had been abolished. Another question concerned the level of the budget for the "Delegation" and the proportion to the total national budget. More details were requested on the measures being taken to widen the scope of careers selected by women. Experts asked if there were any results from the specific training schemes for new technologies, in which section those applied and the number of women that had benefited from the schemes. Experts inquired about the labour market regulations in regard to the status of artisan wives, whether they had formed associations and whether they profited from the regulations.
415. More details were requested on the series of measures that had been instigated to combat unemployment among women and on the response of women in France to those measures.
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416. Information was requested regarding abortions, particularly at what stage of pregnancy it was performed, whether minors could obtain an abortion and who had to give permission and what the reaction of society was. It was asked if abortion was free, easily available and treated as other medical services under social security and if sterilization was legal and available and under what conditions it was performed. It was also asked if doctors were insured and if there had been any cases of prosecution of medical personnel.
417. Experts asked whether contraception, sex education and family planning were dealt with by public authorities and what the relationship was with other concerned authorities.
418. It was asked if and to what extent social security benefits were available to single parents and if they were equally available to men caring for children on their own. It was also asked if women were entitled to obtain loans or credit without the husband's signature. With regard to finance laws, experts wondered if a separate assessment as regards taxation had been considered and how the finance laws worked in practice.
419. Members of the Committee inquired about the real situation as regards the reservations made by France to articles 15 and 16 of the Convention. They were interested in the reactions to those reservations by French women and what the prospect was to withdrawing them. It was asked how French women had managed to achieve so much in the fight for their rights before the laws were amended. Members of the Committee asked about the situation of the family in France and if the recent modifications to the family law were merely modernization. It was asked whether a women was entitled to retain her maiden name, and information was requested on a woman's independent legal identity.
4 20. Clarification was requested as to parental authority with respect to disputes over the custody and education of minors. It was asked how claims on paternity were considered under the family law.
421. Clarification was requested of the apparent contradictions as regards the rights to dispose of common property, and it was asked what real power had been granted to women and what happened when no agreement could be reached by partners in that regard.
422. The representatives of France replied to the questions and comments made by the Committee. One representative apologized again for the late submission of the revised report and for the form of the initial report, and supported the suggestion of one Committee member that seminars should be held to help States parties prepare reports in accordance with the Committee's guidelines. He thanked the Committee for the interest it had shown and assured them that he would transmit their comments to his Government and endeavour to make the reports available to the public in France.
423. The representative explained that ratification of an international convention was paramount to making the conditions therein part of French domestic law and applicable in the courts. Therefore, the general declaration made upon ratification of the Convention neither added to nor detracted from the Convention or the French domestic law.
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424. Another representative of Prance gave details on the "Delegation a la condition feminine" (DCF) which, she explained, had an Interministerial monitoring role and studied all measures concerning women submitted to the Government. The four main aspects that concerned the DCF were the promotion of women at work and as individuals and the promotion of the status of mothers of families and women in cities. An Interministerial committee would be reconvened in the near future under the Prime Minister to co-ordinate the various ministries involved with women's issues. The allocated budget in 1987 represented 109 million French francs, which was used not only for the central services but also for 26 regional delegates and 100 departmental delegates. DCF spent a quarter of its budget on a network of information centres to collect and disseminate information on the rights of women and families.
425. One success reported was that measures against violence towards women had been integrated into the normal training for police personnel, as it was considered that women should not be treated as a separate case. Refuges for female victims of violence had been examined by the Ministry of Social Affairs, and work continued on establishing the best way to operate those refuges, either by giving women more independence or giving them more protection.
426. In response to the questions on women in political life, it was stated that the figures quoted in the first report of France were still valid) however, representation in the National Assembly had dropped, although it was difficult to attribute that specifically to the change in the voting system.
427. it was reported that women participated at all levels in the political parties of France, and membership figures were given for various sections of all parties. The representative stated that 91 per cent of women were registered voters, representing S3 per cent of the electorate in 1980. Since 1951, there had been increased absenteeism by women voters in relation to men.
428. Substantial financial support was provided by DCF to feminist movements and constructive collaboration had been maintained.
429. Women were usually found at the lower or intermediary levels of public life, and attempts had been made to identify the obstacles in that sphere.
430. Stereotypes were being removed from textbooks, albeit slowly, because of the inherent problems in the system of selecting educational material and the slow changes in the curriculum. The Ministry for National Education was only able to make recommendations in that regard.
431. The Bureau Verification de la Publicity (BVP) was able to make recommendations as regards the publication of advertisements concerning posts and the content of articles, but it had no power to enforce them. In the cinema, pornographic material was severely limited owing to the high tax imposed, and on television respect for the dignity of the human being was being pursued.
432. Progress as regards solving the problem of the narrow selection of professions
made by women had not been great. The Ministry for National Education was working
with DCF to raise people's consciousness and to remove stereotypes. The Government
of France believed that the problem occurred at the initial stage of career choice
by young girls, when wrong choices were often perpetuated by the family and
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educational personnel. It was hoped that scholarships offered in the fields of technology and science would encourage more women to enter those professions.
433. with regard to professional training, DCF at the regional level had set up 50 courses which had benefited 10,000 women. She stated that temporal special measures operated by preferential treatment rather than the quota system.
434. The representative outlined posts occupied by women, training courses and training in the workplace, unemployment benefits, job creation schemes and job segregation. Proportional recruitment policies were being instigated by the Government. In response to the current economic situation, there had been changes in employment patterns and more women currently benefited from training programmes, and responsibility for those programmes had been given to prefecture administrations.
435. The Enterprise Committee was working towards professional equality by analyzing and discussing the annual compulsory reports submitted by companies. The Government provided financial support to develop contracts for professional equality on the basis of increased training opportunities, access to higher qualified posts and recruitment and promotion policies. That was believed to be effective, as indicated by the increased numbers of observed violations submitted by work inspectors.
436. The number of employed women had risen since 1975, despite the overall increase in unemployment levels. The pattern of employment for women had become more flexible, and more women were employed in part-time work (22.5 per cent in 1986, compared to 21 per cent in 1985). That trend reflected demand in the public sector but represented fill-in or second jobs of an unqualified nature and at lower pay levels than in the private sector. Part-time workers' rights were in direct proportion to those of full-time workers and they were elected on an equivalent basis for tasks in trade unions.
437. More women than men were on fixed-terr contracts, and statistics showed that women were at the lower end of the salary scale and employment for women had in fact decreased in relative terms, as had been demonstrated in the report. Equal pay for equal work had been in force in the public sector since 1950 and that principle had been reinforced in 1972.
4. Migrant workers and their spouses and children had equal rights to lead a normal family life, equal access to services and schooling and the same employment rights as French nationals. Children of migrant workers could acquire French nationality if born in the country and resident for the five years prior to adulthood, but could also renounce French nationality one year before their majority.
439. No cases were cited in which trade unions had taken legal action on behain of employees.
440. Details of the Higher Council for Professional Equality were given, and the representative explained that the Council worked through committees in order to control conditions of employment.

441. in the public sector, 11 classifications of posts were open to one sex only, such as in certain areas of the police corps and educational areas and in the legion d'honneur. Protection against dismissal during pregnancy and the post-natal period existed. Special measures were in force to protect women in areas of employment considered to be dangerous to their health, and new standards were being introduced to accommodate changes in materials used and methods of protection.
442. Contraception had been free and anonymous, even for minors at recognized family planning centres, for the last 20 years. Information on sex education and contraception was organized by the public authorities. Abortions were authorized and available on medical grounds to all adult women without incurring penalties. Minors needed to consent and have the approval of one of their legal guardians. Expenses were covered by social security. Sterilization was available only in therapeutic situations. No specific cases of prosecution of medical personnel when sterilization was used as a means of birth control had been reported, although that could happen.
443. There were equal rights between women and men in the administration of joint property.
444. Reforms in 1983 in the taxation system to retract the notion of "husband as head of household" had given women fiscal independence. Discussions were continuing in order to find solutions for full equality in the taxation of income. The absence of one signature on tax declarations did not invalidate them.
445. The representative stated that, although it was difficult to establish the exact division of labour in the home, surveys had shown that there had been no radical changes in the distribution of household duties and women still performed most of them. Women were legally able to make purchases, tax declarations and obtain credit.
446. since 1904, the Church had been separated from the State. Only civil marriages were respected. In the last 60 years, laws had been revised to give the same rights to illegitimate and legitimate children, to make divorce laws more flexible and to abrogate certain adultery clauses.
447. In response to many questions on parental leave, it was reported that only 1 per cent of male civil servants took advantage of that facility, despite the protection of career development. More details would be produced for the second periodic report of France.
448. The representative outlined the various methods for ensuring payment of alimony from either spouse, through salary deductions or taxation. Non-payment was treated as abandonment and invoked penalties under the law. There was also the possibility for State coverage of unpaid alimony.
449. On questions of parental authority, a judge could give custody of children to either parent on a permanent or temporary basis. The opinions of minors were considered when they were able to express themselves. Paternity claims had to be submitted within two years of the child's birth, and efforts to determine paternity or claim allowances could be made during the child's minority.
450. Owing to the time available and in order not to delay the work of the Committee, the French delegation interrupted its reply to questions and agreed to
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submit the remaining replies in writing. They again thanked the Committee for its indulgence and interest.
451. Members of the Committee commented again on the dissolution of the Ministry
for Women's Rights and wondered why that had not happened to other ministries and
if the DCF had the same functions and powers as the previous ministry. They hoped
that other countries would not follow the example of France in that respect.
Further information was requested on how the DCF was elected and how its members
were paid. It was asked how the Government could rule on such a personal matters
sterilization and whether that threatened the freedom of choice. It was also felt
that more could be done in France to ban sexist advertising.
Colombia
452. The Committee considered the initial report of Colombia (CHDAW/C/5/Add.32) at its 94th and 98th meetings, held on 6 and 8 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SK.94 and 98).
453. In her introduction, the representative of Colombia said that, although women had made good progress in her country, major obstacles remained in achieving the objectives of the United Nations Decade for Women in areas such as Communications, co-ordination with voluntary organizations and problems connected with housing and food. Consequently, concrete special measures were called for to strengthen the integration of women in the development process. She also said that the obstacles should serve as a stimulus to make even greater efforts to achieve the goals set for the year 2000.
454. The representative drew attention to the supplementary report, which had been submitted during the session, and made specific reference to the updated statistical data given therein. The report could not be considered as exhaustive, she said, because it was particularly difficult to obtain information and statistics about marginal sectors of society. The supplementary report also contained documents emanating from the Ministry a of Justice, Agriculture and Education and the Institute of Family Welfare.
455. While introducing both reports, the representative went through the Convention article by article and highlighted the most important achievements made by her country. She said that politics were of great importance to Colombia, but that women had not yet been able to overcome the obstacles that prevented them from benefiting from the political rights they possessed. Their power was particularly severely limited in the trade unions. She underscored the legislative reforms with regard to equality before the law and explained that three types of matrimonial unions existed: the free union, the Catholic marriage and the civil marriage. She was prepared to provide more information if the Committee so decided.
456. Members of the Committee commended the representative of Colombia on her excellent presentation and expressed satisfaction at the frankness of the report. The report was praised for being very detailed, and it was stated that, for a developing country, the relatively advanced legislation showed the political will of the Government to eliminate discrimination. It was found, however, that some of the information provided was not entirely relevant and that the original report did not comply with the requirements set out in the general guidelines. It was felt, however, that the legislative information provided was not sufficient, that the implementation of the laws seemed rather slow and that traditional stereotypes seemed to persist in the country. The report did not make it clear which measures
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had actually been implemented. Experts found the late submission of a supplementary report a bit confusing and suggested that the setting of a deadline for the submission of addenda by a State party should be discussed in Working Group I.
457. In the course of the general comments, it was asked what was meant by the "geographical position" of women. There was a contradiction in assertions that women were "an important half of the national work-force" and yet that an increase in maternity leave might force women out of the work-force. No reference could be found in the two reports to the demographic problem of the country and to the situation of abandoned children. Whereas one expert regretted the lack of detailed information on women in rural area.", another one found the account given in the report on the problems faced by rural women truly moving. The presence of women in decision-making positions was welcome, but it was felt that those few were not representative of the status of women in the country in general.
458. Members of the Committee recalled the stipulation made in the Constitution that women should have the same political rights as men and asked how their civil, social and other rights were protected and whether the Government was contemplating any concrete measures to ensure the practical realization of the principle of equality between women and men. It was asked whether rights traditionally accorded to men had been extended to women through constitutional amendments, whether discrimination was prohibited by legislative measures or sanctions and which organ supervised the execution of laws against discrimination. Clarification was requested of the apparent contradiction between the assertion that Colombian legislation did not permit any discrimination and the reference in the Civil Code "with no distinctions as to sex, except as expressly stated ...". It was asked whether there was a clear distinction in the country between the legislative, judicial and administrative authorities.
4 59. It was asked whether there was a problem of drug abuse among women and particularly among school girls.
460. A certain discrepancy was noted between the importance given in the report to women in development and the recent curtailment of the activities of the Colombian Council for the Integration of Women into Development. It was asked which other body had taken over its functions and whether the regional councils had even been operative, and information on any other similar bodies was requested. The importance of consciou3ness-rai8ing efforts for women as well as for men was noted, and experts asked for more information on concrete steps taken in that direction.
461. Clarification was sought on the existence and use of temporary special measures to permit equality. The introductory statement and the report seemed to contradict each other in that respect. It was asked whether the fact that in Colombia the mother was responsible for the care of her children was not in contradiction with the shared responsibility for child rearing, as stipulated in the Convention. An inquiry was made about concrete actions regarding family planning and sex education, about the practice of co-education and about measures to protect women from being utilized as sex objects in the mass media.
462. Information was requested on the functions and working methods of the Institute for Family Welfare, and experts asked whether it had taken over the tasks of the Institute of Women's Affairs. They asked whether it was concerned only with women who had children or whether it cealt with non-mothers too. They also
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inquired about programmes to change the patriarchal structure of society and about the role played in that context by the Council for the Integration of Women. Other questions referred to the distribution of household tasks in the family and to the percentage of families that could afford domestic servants. It was noted that the heading of the Institute of Women's Affairs by the President's wife merely reinforced the stereotyped image of first ladies involvement in social activities.
46*. It was asked whether any policies existed and programmes were set up to deal with the problems of domestic violence and sexual harassment.
464. Addressing the issue of prostitution, it was asked which body was responsible for combating prostitution, for dealing with associated problems and for integrating prostitutes in social life. It was asked what the related penalties were, whether they applied to the prostitutes themselves, and whether there was a law that excused rape in cases of prostitution.
465. It was noted that the participation of women in political life seemed to be confined to their right to vote, but no reference was made to their participation in everyday political life. It was also noted that the performance of Colombian women in the political arena had not been outstanding. They needed to present a common front in order to acquire their own place in political life.
466. Data on the number of women ambassadors and the number of women in the foreign service were requested.
467. Experts asked whether the Government undertook any measures to combat the high rate of illiteracy and whether they included also women in rural areas; what the "variety of reasons" for the high drop-out rate of girls was and what they did after leaving school) and whether that part of the rural population that wished to receive secondary education had to move to the cities. As the statist ion on education did not give any data on law and political sciences, it was asked whether any women studied those subjects. Other questions referred to the reasons for the lack of women in adult education and to the number and fields of women teachers.
468. Clarification was sought concerning discrimination in admission to medical and engineering schools and the school fees for private and public universities and as to whether there were adequate provisions for women in State universities.
469. Many questions addressed employment issues. It was asked whether any measures had been adopted to eliminate wage discrimination, whether a married woman needed her husband's consent to enter an employment contract, what the retirement age for women and men was, whether working women received maternity benefits, what the rates of unemployment in urban and in rural areas were, whether unemployment insurance existed, why the female work-force had decreased between 1973 and 1983 and whether the same had applied to men and whether housework had been given monetary value.
47'. Experts inquired about paid domestic work. They asked what the percentage of women in domestic service was, whether they were entitled to social security benefits and employment protection and whether they were protected against exploitation. Experts also asked when the law referring to the improvement of the conditions of work of domestic servants would be enacted and whether women's organizations were trying to speed up its enactment, whether the new law would give
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domestic servants a recourse possibility against employers that did not comply with it and whether it would limit the hours of work per day.
471. A question referred to the system of "learning contracts"; it was asked whether the practice was restrictive and whether it was accepted by women.
472. It was asked whether the proposals and strategies prepared by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security had shown any results. Experts inquired about the special provisions governing the employment of women and the reasons for the job segregation in the technical and managerial fields. It was asked whether any job evaluation systems were in use and what the role of trade unions was in that area.
473. Comments were made on the legislation in force that banned women from certain types of work. As it had adverse effects on women, experts inquired about plana to amend that legislation. It was also asked whether the performance of night work, which was actually forbidden for women but in practice was being done, was placed under legal sanctions.
474. It was asked whether the proposed Office of Labour Affairs and Social Security for women and the advisory committees had actually been established.
475. Experts asked whether abortion was permitted, what the frequency rate was, how many women died in the process, whether the Colombian Family Welfare Association had achieved any positive results, whether it was subsidized by the State, what the percentage of women was who took advantage of family planning services and what the extent of those services were, as many of them were provided by hospitals run by the Catholic Church.
476. Several questions were raised about women working in rural areas, who constituted a very high percentage of the labour-force. Hope was expressed that women rural workers could benefit from social security and training programmes and had access to land ownership and credit. It was asked whether the reference to skilled work performed by men and unskilled labour mostly performed by women implied discrimination and whether women were mainly employed in seasonal work. More information was sought on the National Federation of Coffee Growers and its legal standing as well as its programmes and their accessibility to women. It was asked whether the lower salaries received by women were justified, whether new technologies were also available to women and whether women had access to multilateral of bilateral international assistance. Experts asked whether any projects similar to the floriculture project in Bogota existed, they expressed concern over the inherent health hazards to women and asked whether the women working under that project received minimum wages.
477. it was asked whether women and men had equal rights to conclude contracts and administer property and who chose the family domicile. Experts wanted to know whether there was a reduced penalty for a man who had murdered his wife for having committed adultery. Members of the Committee welcomed the fact that it was no longer permitted to kill a woman taken in adultery and asked about the current penal provisions applicable to cases of adultery.
478. The three different types of matrimonial unions were discussed. It was hoped that free cohabitation that had lasted for many years could be legalized to the benefit of both the partners and the offspring, and information was sought on the provisions of property adjustments within such de facto unions. Considering that
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the canonic law had precedence over civil law and that the Civil Code applied only to registered marriages, it was asked what the legal status of a marriage between non-Catholics was. It was asked whether the separation of a Catholic marriage could be transferred into divorce and whether anything was being done to harrronize procedures of separation of marriage under canonic and civil law.
479. it was asked whether the impact of the Catholic Church in society had reinforced traditional gender stereotypes, and more information was requested on the 1.5 per cent birth rate.
480. Information was requested on the number of Colombian babies that left the country per year to be adopted abroad and on whether any support mechanisms were being considered for destitute mothers who saw no other solution but to give up their babies.
481. The representative of Colombia introduced her replies by saying that one should bear in mind that Colombia was a developing country in Latin America. Big strides forward had been made, but social and regional differences still persisted. As to the apparent confusion over the two reports presented by her Government, she stated that both reports were official documents and both should be considered.
482. The representative explained that the 75 per cent of the female work-force referred to in the report concerned only workers in the floriculture industry. The term "geographical position" meant that the status of women was different, depending on the geographical part of the country where they lived. The principles of "public morality" meant that improper behavior was not tolerated and the showing of obscene films and the sale of pornographic material were not allowed. Vulgar forms of publicity, which denigrated women, were illegal. Abandoned children constituted only a small portion of the society. They could mainly be found in the over-populated capital and were covered by governmental measures and institutions to eradicate poverty and to protect the family.
483. She also said that in Colombia, an in any other country, there were social differences owing to economic factors and that any situation of marginalization was a handicap to equality.
484. The Colombian Council for the Integration of Women into Development had been in function since 1978. With the change of Government in 1982, that office had not disappeared, but the new Government was currently investigating how the Council's work could best be co-ordinated with that of the Institute for Family Welfare. Governmental and non-governmental organizations were encouraged to develop programmes beneficial to women.
485. Among the laws concerning a betterment of the rights of women enacted in the past were; a law liberalizing the patrimonial property system, a law on the recognition of illegitimate children, a law that gave women the right to vote, a law on equal parental rights and women's entitlement to maintenance, a law under which women were no longer obliged to bear their husband's name, a law giving women equal civil rights and obligations, a law legalizing divorce in civil marriages and a law giving children born within and outside wedlock equal inheritance rights.
486. The representative explained that the indigenous tribes had formed a matriarchal society and that in Colombia women were very much aware of their own
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value. In rural areas, most of the important family decisions were made by women. Only in the cities, the Spanish tradition of male superiority prevailed. The idea of discrimination tended to disappear among young people, although deep-rooted prejudices remained.
487. She said that the Constitution guaranteed the equality of political rights. The equality of civil, economic and social rights were dealt with in other legal instruments. The Constitution was monitored by the Supreme Court of Justice and the Office of the Procurator-General, which included a Bureau of Human Rights and a section to monitor the implementation of the Convention. Women had a right to take their cases to court.
488. The representative explained that adultery was no longer a crime or a reason to deprive offenders of social and economic rights and of custody over their children.
489. She said that the country did have a drug problem, but national campaigns had been waged and a crop-substitution programme had been developed to fight the problem. Several official bodies were involved in setting up appropriate programmes for children and adults to prevent drug abuse and rehabilitate drug addicts.
490. She stated that parents had equal duties in caring for their children. As to the Institute of Family Welfare, she explained that its functions were to prevent families from disintegrating, to provide marriage guidance counseling, to help protect minors, to supervise school curricula and to combat malnutrition. Her country considered it to be very positive sign that the President's wife headed the Institute) her position did not have only ceremonial value.
491. Inducement to prostitution was a criminal offence, and the Government had organized rehabilitation programmes for prostitutes.
492. The representative said that the high rate of illiteracy in no way contradicted the large number of women in decision-making positions, because they were held by those who had the necessary professional qualifications. The Government had established programmes to reduce illiteracy in rural areas. They included also training programmes in agricultural techniques and special training programmes for women. As the national economy was mainly based on coffee and flower cultivation, both of which occupied many women, women contributed largely to the economy of the country.
493. Both public and private schools were co-educational and they had the same school programmes. Primary education lasted five years and it. was planned to extend it to nine years. Both public primary and secondary education were free, and establishments existed in urban and rural areas. State universities were open to both sexes and entrance examinations were required at private and State universities. About 70 per cent of the students in political sciences and in law were females. Concerning supposed discrimination in the admission of women to medical and engineering schools, she stated that only two universities discouraged women from enrolling because their enrolment had exceeded normal levels. Forty-eight per cent of all university students were women. The drop-out rate was high for both sexes. Girls who left school got married or were engaged in professions that required less training. The country had over 30 universities, but only very few in rural areas.
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494. Women in Colombia did not need their husbands' permission to do paid work, and they had a right to inherit and to take on any type of obligations. There was no discrimination between women and men with respect to skilled or unskilled labour. The retirement age was 55 years for women. The regulations that applied to women only were aimed at protecting pregnant women and women as mothers. No special legislation covered domestic work. Non-resident servants worked seven hours per day; resident servants participated in family life and worked more irregular hours. Their conditions of employment were closely watched by non-governmental organizations. She said that no statistics on the number of women employed in domestic work were available.
495. The representative explained that abortion was not permitted) however, women who aborted were not legally prosecuted. Abortions were carried out only in a few private institutions. Family planning advice was received by 60 per cent of all couples, and thus, the annual growth rate of the population could be reduced to 1.5 per cent.
496. Women in rural areas had access to credit, land ownership and also to new technology, although women ased agricultural machinery very rarely. Women could also sign contracts, administer property and have recourse to the courts, freely and under the same conditions as men.
497. The National Federation of Coffee Growers was an association of growers and manufacturers and governed production, internal consumption and export and was, therefore, a very important organization that promoted programmes for rural areas. Of its programmes, 144 had already been implemented for women. The draft law concerning the setting up of the Federation foresaw equal opportunities for women and men and was being debated in Parliament.
498. As concerned occupational hazards in the flower growing industry of Colombia, she explained that only the universally accepted chemicals were used.
499. The representative said that 32.2 per cent of women worked in rural areas; no corresponding statistics were available for urban areas. In 1986, over JO per cent of bank credits had gone to women.
500. As regards marital unions, she explained that the Catholic and the civil marriage were equally valid, as both had to be registered. In addition, there were many common-law unions. Since 1981, couples could choose between civil and religious marriage. Both types? gave rise to civil rights and obligations, while in a civil marriage the partners could seek divorce, a religious marriage could only be separated. The division of property was decided by a civil court. There was complete religious freedom in the country. In some capes of common-law unions, the woman could benefit from maintenance, transfer of her companion's pensions and assistance from social security funds.

501. in 1986, some .3,700 children had been adopted, 50 per cent of whom by parents abroad.
502. The representative concluded by hoping that when the country's subsequent report was submitted some of the problems mentioned would have been solved.
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Bangladesh
503. The Committee considered the initial report of Bangladesh (CEDAW/C/5/Add.34) at its 96th, 97th and 99th meetings, held on 7 and 8 April 1987 (CEDAW/C/SR.96, 97 and 99).
504. In her introduction, the representative of Bangladesh presented historical and geographical data on the country. Women represented 48.5 per cent of the total population of about 100 million, a high percentage of which were under 14 years of age. Muslims constituted 85 per cent of the population. The economy of Bangladesh was reported to be mainly based on agriculture, with only 4.66 million people engaged in the non-agricultural labour force. The level of literacy of the population was very low: 14.3 per cent for women and 32.9 per cent for men, and about 81 per cent of the female population over 15 years was illiterate. it was estimated that from one quarter to one third of the female labour force was unemployed or underemployed, and women were paid little or less than men for the same work. The Government of Bangladesh had reserved 20 per cent of all Government jobs for women. The representative said that all services were open to women. Thirty of the 330 seats in the Parliament were reserved for women, in addition to any seat to which they were directly elected. The representative reported that Government land was being distributed to female heads of households and also jointly to husband and wife.
505. She stated that the Third Five-Year Plan of the Government was aimed at providing education, equality and employment, and 20 per cent of the entire budget had been allocated to education.
506. The representative presented details on the Bangladesh Constitution and the legal reform and policy measures taken by the Government. With regard to education, she reported that 47 per cent of the education budget had been earmarked for primary education. Forty per cent of scholarships were reserved for girls, and 1,200 women had been given intensive training to become primary school teachers. The Third Five-Year Plan was also aimed at reducing the gap in educational opportunities between the sexes.
507. The representative said that the Government had developed a comprehensive employment policy and had established hostels and day-care centres for children. Credit facilities were extended to landless women in order to generate
self-employment.
508. As part of the comprehensive health policy, the Government was aiming at a
drastic reduction in fertility and an improvement in services and the overall
nutrition of women. The representative said that nearly 37 per cent of hospital
beds were for women, and there were nearly 2,500 rural medical centres. The major
achievements of the health service were a reduction in morbidity and mortality
rates and an improvement in the life expectancy level. Family planning programmes
had been expanded and currently included vocational training programmes to improve
the status of women. The representative said that it was planned to adopt a
rural-oriented health service for women in which maternal and child health care,
family health, education and environmental sanitation were major components. It
was reported that 21,000 field workers in rural areas offered family planning,
maternity and child health care services to women in family welfare centres, which
were expected to increase in number to 3,000 in the current Plan.

509. The representative reported that the objectives of the Third Five-Year Plan were to reduce the imbalance in the development of women and men, to motivate greater participation of women in education and skill training, to expand credit facilities for working women, to provide leadership and managerial training, to take measures for the moral, physical and cultural development of women and to train and rehabilitate socially handicapped and deserved women. In order to achieve those objectives, a Supreme Council for Children and Mothers had been set up and strategies to promote organizations and programmes had been planned. She also informed the Committee on the work of non-governmental organizations, particularly in respect of health care programmes.
510. The representative concluded that, although the Government of Bangladesh had taken legal steps, women could not fully benefit from the laws to protect their rights because of a lack of education, the traditional values in society and the economic situation for women. It was necessary to change social attitudes in the country and realize the potential of Bangladeshi women. The Government had accepted the challenges and was committed to eliminating all forms of discrimination against women.
511. Members of the Committee thanked the representative of Bangladesh for the comprehensive and frank presentation. It was obvious from the presentation and the report that Bangladesh was taking its commitments to the Convention seriously and was making great efforts to implement it. Bangladesh faced the obvious problems of a developing country that had a large population, widespread poverty and a high level of illiteracy. Illiteracy was one of the obstacles to an understanding of Islamic law. it was suggested that Bangladesh should undertake a study to identify the exact obstacles to help the Committee to understand the problem. The Committee commended the emphasis on the development of women in the five-year plans and the establishment of the Ministry for Women's Affairs. A comment was mad on the structure of the report, and it was asked if the Government of Bangladesh had been aware of the guidelines set by the Committee. It was commented that the quality and presentation in the English version were poor.
512. Exports were very concerned about the reservations made by Bangladesh upon ratification of the Convention, particularly to article 2. The experts found it difficult to understand why a reservation had been made to that article, since equality was granted in the Constitution, and it was hoped that Bangladesh would reconsider and withdraw all reservations if possible.
513. There was an apparent contradiction in the Constitution: on the one hand, it provided for equality but, on the other hand, it allowed certain groups to prevent the effective recognition of the rights of women, for example, in the Muslim population. Experts asked if the family law was governed by the Koran and whether any constitutional reforms would apply to all the population.
514. It was recognized by the Committee that there was a great difference between the de jure and de facto situation in Bangladesh owing to current social problems. Clarification was requested of the constitutional, criminal and personal laws in Bangladesh. It was asked how much information filtered down to the grass-roots level.
515. It appeared that policies were directed more towards improving the welfare of women and towards women in connection with children than to the development and equality of women as individuals.
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516. It was asked if consideration had been given by the Government and non-governmental organizations in Bangladesh to separating the issue of the rights and status of women from the religion of the country. Information was also sought on the rights and duties of religious groups other than Muslims.
517. it was suggested that the part of the report on Islamic law could have been more clearly presented and that there was not sufficient emphasis on the effect of Islam on the situation and rights of women in Bangladesh. It was considered that Islam had often been misinterpreted by men in their own Interests and that that could be dangerous in a country with a high level of illiteracy such as Bangladeshi new developments in the world should force a new interpretation of Islam to be made.
518. It was noted that women were in the minority in Bangladesh, and background information was requested as to why. More information was also requested on the five-year plans and on all government structures. Comments were further invited from the Government of Bangladesh on the link between the growth rate of the population and the level of education.
519. The high number of non-governmental organizations in respect of health-care programmes was queried, and it was asked how those were co-ordinated with the Government.
520. It was asked whether in practice the dowry prohibition act helped. with respect to the amendments to the Penal Code in cases of violence against women, it was asked if offenders were executed in reality.
521. More concrete details were requested on the facts given for article 3 of the Convention.
522. Information was requested on other measures, either temporary or permanent, that had been implemented to educate and inform the public and women about their rights. It was also asked if there were any provisions for maternity benefits. Details were requested on the Shish Academy, which was a proposed project under the Third Five-Year Plan. Experts asked about the results of implementing the quota system in political bodies and about the total number of parliamentarians.
523. Experts asked if social programmes existed to make rural women aware of their rights and about the social background and the instances of murder in connection with dowry payments, rape or disfigurement. They further asked whether policies were being developed to prevent recurrence of the acts or only to punish the offenders and if rape was a punishable offence. A Question was asked about the law in regard to cases of violence against men.
524. More details were requested on the steps taken to create awareness of and eliminate prejudices based on ideas of inferiority of women.

525. Experts requested statistics on the proportion of women in the legal profession and on the number of men who were magistrates or civil judges for comparison purposes. It was asked if anything was being done to encourage women to qualify in that field and if the conditions were the same for women and men to qualify as judges in the Supreme Court, civil courts or as magistrates.
526. It was felt that the reserved places in elected bodies might be discriminatory, and it was asked whether women had to meet special conditions to be
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eligible for them or if those were the same as for men. The actual figures on the participation of women in political parted were requested, and it was asked whether there was any link between programmes of the non-governmental organizations and political parties with regard to political participation.
527. Clarification of the term "non-gazette" posts was requested, and it was asked if the quotas might be restrictive in view of future education levels.
528. Experts asked if there was a difference in the maximum age limit for recruitment for government posts for women and men and, in that connection, whether women over 30 years of age would be considered for the government service and whether there was an age limit for men to enter the government service.
529. it was asked if the reserved posts were low-level posts and, if so, whether women were really being given an opportunity to show their capabilities. It was also asked whether there were reserved posts for women in the diplomatic and consular services.
530. Clarification was requested as to children's nationality when a Bangladeshi woman married a foreigner, and experts wanted to know if a Bangladeshi woman could confer nationality on a foreign husband.
531. As there was no mention in the report as to whether primary or basic education was compulsory, experts wanted to know whether plans were being introduced, if it was not compulsory, and whether fines were imposed on parents when children did not attend school, if it was compulsory. Information was requested on vocational
training and the level of participation by women. Experts asked if education was free at all levels to all people, whether any services were provided in connection with education, for example textbooks, what the curricula was for girls and boys and whether those were of the same level.
532. Experts wished to know which type of work was considered unsuitable for women, and who classified it as such and on what grounds. They asked if there were any plans to raise the present quota of 20 per cent for women in the public sector and was there any prospect to fill it.
533. Experts asked under what conditions all people were gainfully employed, whether women over 30 years of age would be considered for the government service and if there was an age limit for men to enter government service.
534. Experts wanted to know if any study had been carried out on the working conditions, the kind of work and any special hazards that might be encountered by children entering the work-force.
535. It was asked whether the lower salaries received by women were for work requiring fewer qualifications. It was further asked how other international Conventions were applied in Bangladesh and under what conditions all workers were employed, particularly women in the textile industry.
536. It was asked whether the Government of Bangladesh had implemented in-depth measures to increase the number of medical personnel to meet the needs of the country and whether women received priority treatment in that regard.
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537. More details were requested on technical and training programmes in the agricultural sector.
538. Experts asked if polygamy still existed and whether, in cases of separation or divorce, there were problems of custody, and a clear explanation was requested of the family law on polygamy. It was asked if single mothers were protected by law in regard to guardianship and child support. Experts asked what the Government's commitment was to implement the Forward-looking Strategies in regard to equal rights for women and men in divorce and the custody of any children.
539. It was asked whether women were accepted as witnesses in court in the same way as men.
540. Experts asked if the conditions of the Islamic shariab applied in Bangladesh to land tenure, polygamy or a girl's ability to stipulate her right to divorce in her marriage contract, and clarification of the inheritance laws was sought.

541. It was asked which laws applied to the family courts.
542. The representative of Bangladesh thanked the Committee for its concern and encouragement.
543. In replying to the questions and comments made by the members of the Committee, the representative of Bangladesh informed the Committee that their comments on the reservation to article 2 had already been conveyed to the Government and assured them that there would be positive action to be reported in the next periodic report. She stated that the Government was aware of the problems and moves were being made to remove discrepancies in the Constitution and discrimination against women.
544. She informed the Committee that women formed the minority in every age and religious group. They were less well-nourished, more likely to be ill, married younger, had many children and mostly lived in rural areas. She stated that, in 1983, infant mortality was higher for girls than boys, which translated into a life expectancy at birth of 52.8 years for men and 48.1 years for women. She reported that children who reached the age of four years could expect to live on the average until the age of 64, with no marked difference between the sexes.
545. She referred to data on child mortality which showed that 29 per cent of all recorded deaths were of children under one year and over 50 per cent were of children of four years and under.

546. with regard to questions raised on growth rate of the population related to the level of education, she reported that in 1980 the fertility rate in Bangladesh remained close co 7 per cent. However, in 1983, it had dropped to 5.6 per cent overall and 5.0 per cent in cities, which provided encouraging evidence that family-planning programmes were beginning to have an effect on national fertility rates. She stated that there were indications that primary education was associated with higher fertility and that the higher the education, the lower the fertility.
547. The representative said that there was a strong connection between education and a lower death rate.
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548. Media facilities such as television and radio had helped create public awareness in family planning and education.
549. The representative said that women were eligible for public offices. She
considered that the practice of reserved seats in Parliament might not be continued
as women had been elected outside that quota. she gave
representatives at various levels of public office.
550. in response to questions regarding non-governmental organizations, they were reported to be oriented towards welfare or community development. Activities by non-governmental organizations in technical and service areas were not promising yet, but they were extremely important in creating job opportunities. A 1961 study by the United Nations Children's Fund revealed that the organizational structures of non-governmental organizations in Bangladesh were weak and their effectiveness was limited.
551. Data from the Gramean Bank study indicated that the beneficiaries of their programme were able to increase the family income, and that was supported by data from other training and credit schemes. No information was available as regards employment levels and income for women with primary education.
552. With reference to comments on education and employment, a 1972 study showed that only 17 per cent of children from families! with less than five bigbas of land attended school, compared to 62 per cent of children from families with more than five bighas.
553. There was a tendency for girls to leave school and start work in the home or in the fields at 8 to 10 years of age, earlier than boys. The distance of the schools from the home and the number of female teachers were considered negative factors in the attendance of girls at school.
554. Most primary schools were reported to be co-educational. Education was not free, but textbooks were. The curriculum war. the same for girls and boy, although the relevance of that curriculum might also contribute to girls not counting in school. Few girls' schools offered instruction in agriculture and related topics or prepared students for nursing, paramedical work or nutrition-related work.
555. On questions regarding employment opportunities for women in Bangladesh, she referred to the Government's new Industrial Policy, which had given sufficient attention to women involved in various crafts and cottage industries in order to train them and to improve the quality and markets for the products.
556. She stated that a bank was to be set up to benefit women entrepreneurs in the small and cottage industries who currently received training and loans from the Ministry of Industry.
557. The representative stated that the maximum age level for men to enter government service was 27 years. The age limit had been raised to 30 for women to accommodate those who had completed their education later.
558. Women were found only at the .middle level of government service, owing to the fact that they had been admitted to public service only since 1972. Training and promotion prospects were identical to those for men. The quotas of posts reserved for women had not yet been filled in some areas, but were over-subscribed in
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others. The reserved posts were competitive, and women had to fulfil certain conditions for employment.
559. The representative of Bangladesh referred to maternity benefit laws.
560. She pointed out that land was the basic resource in rural Bangladesh} 18 to
40 per cent of households were landless and more than 50 per cent had less than one half an acre. She stated that women could own property in Bangladesh under both secular and religious law.
561. She reported that the constitutional guarantees of equality were supplemented by special provisions that favored women with regard to criminal law. For example, if they kept prudish, they might be exempted from appearance in court. Women were allowed to enter into contracts, but, in the case of a dispute over a contract, men might arque that women did not understand its provisions.
562. Bangladesh was a secular State and all religions were tolerated. The non-Muslim population was governed by its own laws, and she pointed out that the dowry tradition also affected Hindu marriages. More information was to be provided in the next report.
563. She said that family laws were guided by personal laws based on Islam. With regard to the custody of children, she explained that under Islamic law the mother had physical custody of children and the father had the obligation to support his children. The courts could expand on a mother's custodial rights, and she could apply to be made a guardian under the Guardian and ward Act.
564. The Muslim Family Laws Ordinance covered succession, polygamy, divorce, dissolution of marriages by means other than divorce, maintenance and dowry. She also said that there were 404 family courts in the country.

565. The representative reported that disagreements over dowry, which was not allowed under Islam, were a significant source of violence, which sometimes resulted in death. The Government of Bangladesh had enacted severe punishments, including execution for murder of the wife. Those recent laws followed sensational media coverage of some cases of disfigurement by acid and violence and had considerably decreased instances of abuse against women.
566. She reported that the latest amendment to the Child Marriage Restraint Act made any adult person who contracted a child marriage punishable by law.
567. The Shishu Academy was for children and was organized down to the district level.
568. The representative suggested that reports submitted by States parties to the United Nations specialized agencies under other Conventions should be made available to the Committee to avoid duplication. She thanked the Committee for their interest.
569. The representative of Bangladesh was thanked for preparing the replies in such a short time and for her frankness and sincerity. The idea of co-operation between the specialized agencies of the United Nations was supported. The need for the Government of Bangladesh to withdraw the reservations to the Convention was again stressed. The attention of the representative was drawn to the guidelines
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formulated by the Committee to aid States patties in the preparation of reports.
570. It was hoped that the next report would include a special section on family
law and the Islamic shariah, and it was recommended that research work should be
carried out on the rights of women under Islamic law.
571. Concerns with regard to cases of violence reported since 1985 were repeated,
and it was asked whether many people had been punished for committing that
offence. It was asked whether it was true that International non-governmental aid
organizations discriminated against women who were employed in road-maintenance
projects.
572. In replying to one of the questions raised, the representative of Bangladesh
said that it was a fact that poor divorced women were undertaking such
non-traditional work as building and maintaining roads, which involved hard
physical labour, and that they received less pay than men doing equivalent work.

IV. WAYS AND MEANS OF IMPLEMENTING ARTICLE 21 OP THE CONVENTION
573. The Committee discussed, at its 101st meeting, held on 9 April 1987, a draft general recommendation to the States parties conveying its comments on the use of the general guidelines (CEDAW/C/7), adopted in August 1983, in the preparation of initial reports submitted under article 18 of the Convention.
574. Following the discussion, the draft was adopted by the Committee as amended (see Para. 577, general recommendation 2).
575. At its 102nd meeting, held on 10 April 1987, the Committee discussed and adopted as amended a draft general recommendation to States parties referring to the implementation of article 5 of the Convention, concerning the adoption of education and public information programmes (see Para. 578, general recommendation 3).
576. At its 102nd and 103rd meetings, held on 10 April 1987, the Committee discussed a draft general recommendation by which it expressed its concern in relation to the significant number of reservations, and suggested that all States parties concerned reconsider such reservations (see Para. 579, general recommendation 4).
General recommendations based on article 21 of the Convention
577. General recommendation 2, adopted by the Committee as amended, reads as follows:
General recommendation 2 (sixth session, 1987)
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Bearing in mind that the Committee had been faced with difficulties in its work because some initial reports of States parties under article 18 of the Convention did not reflect adequately the information available in the State party concerned in accordance with the guidelines,
Recommends:
(a) That the States parties, in preparing reports under article 18 of the Convention, should follow the general guidelines adopted in August 1983 (CEDAW/C/7) 4/ as to the form, content and date of reports;
(b) That the States parties should follow the general recommendation adopted in 1986 in these terms: 5/
"Initial reports submitted under article 18 of the Convention should cover the situation up to the date of submission. Thereafter, reports should be submitted at least every four years after the first report was due and should include obstacles encountered in implementing the Convention fully and the measures adopted to overcome such obstacles." 6/
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(c) That additional information supplementing the report of a State party should be sent to the Secretariat at least three months before the session at which the report is due to-be considered.
578. General recommendation 3, adopted by the Committee as amended, reads as follows:
General recommendation 3 (sixth session, 1987)
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Considering that the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has considered 34 reports from States parties since 1983,
Further considering that, although the reports have come from States with different levels of development, they present features in varying degrees showing the existence of stereotyped conceptions of women, owing to socio-cultural factors, that perpetuate discrimination based on sex and hinde: the Implementation of article 5 of the Convention,
Urges all States parties effectively to adopt education and public information programmes, which will help eliminate prejudices and current practices that hinder the full operation of the principle of the social equality of women.
579. General recommendation 4, adopted by the Committee, reads as follows:
General recommendation 4 (sixth session, 1987)
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
Having examines reports from States parties at its sessions,
Expressing concern in relation to the significant number of reservations that appeared to be incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention,
Welcomes the decision of the States parties to consider reservations at its next meeting in New York in 1988, and to that end suggests that all States parties concerned reconsider such reservations with a view to withdrawing them.
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V DECISIONS ADOPTED BY THE COMMITTEE AT ITS SIXTH SESSION
580. The decisions adopted by the Committee at it* sixth session read as follows!
Decision 1
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Bearing in mind that, as at 31 March 1987, 92 States had ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
Recalling that, under article 18 of the Convention, States shall undertake to submit initial reports to the Secretary-General within one year of entry into force for the State party concerned,
Taking into account that 34 initial reports of States parties had been
considered by the Committee at the conclusion of its sixth session and that 14
initial reports and six second reports remain to be considered, and that a
further 37 initial reports and 24 second reports are due for submission,
Noting that the number of initial reports submitted by States parties has been increasing over the last few years and that, if they are not considered within a reasonable period following their submission, the information will become obsolete,
Also recalling that, in accordance with article 20 of the Convention, the Committee has only two weeks for each annual session, during which it is possible to receive and consider not more than eight reports,
Taking into account the financial constraints affecting the United Nations,
Requests the Economic and Social Council to recommend to the General Assembly to adopt the following resolution:
"The General Assembly,
"Having considered the report of the sixth session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
"Noting the difficulties the Committee is facing owing to the large number of reports of the States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the limited time the Committee has for consideration of these reports and the necessity to deal with them within a reasonable period after their submission,
"1. Decides to approve, on an exceptional basis, eight additional meetings of the Committee in 1988,
"2. Requests the Secretary-General to provide the Committee with necessary resources for this meeting."
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Decision 2
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Bearing in mind measures that could be taken to assist it in the examination of reports of States parties,
Decides:
(a) That specialized agencies should be invited to submit reports on the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against women in areas falling within the scope of their activities, in accordance with article 22;
(b) That such reports might include:
(i) Information about such programmes and activities of the agencies as might promote the implementation of the Convention:
(ii) Additional information provided to the specialized agencies by
States parties concerning the relevant articles of the Convention and within the framework of the agenda of the Committee.
Decision 3
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against women,
Referring to the decision taken by the Committee concerning the difficulties encountered in dealing with a large number of reports of States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in a limited period of time,
Decides to recommend that the States parties should consider at their next meeting what action should be taken to ensure that adequate time is available to the Committee to carry out its task of considering the reports of States parties in accordance with article 20.
Decision 4
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Bearing in mind discussions that took place during its sixth session,
Requests the United Nations system as a whole, in particular the specialized agencies of the United Nations, and the commission on the Status of Women, to promote of undertake studies on the status of women under Islamic laws and customs and in particular on the status and equality of women in the family on issues such as marriage, divorce, custody and property rights and their participation in public life of the society, taking into consideration the principle of El Ijtihad in Islam.

VI. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT
581. At its 103rd meeting, held on 10 April 1987, the Committee considered the draft report of the sixth session, which was adopted as amended.
Notes
1/ Report of the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of
the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace, Nairobi,
15-26 July 1985 (United Nations publication: Sales No. E.85.IV.10), chap. I,
sect. A.
2/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Fortieth Session, Supplement No. 6 (A/40/67, vol. I, part IV.
V Ibid., Forty-first Session, Supplement No. 45 (A/41/45), Para. 359.
4/ See annex IV to the present report.
5/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-first Session, Supplement No. 45 (A/41/45), Para. 362.
6/ General recommendation 1 was adopted at the Committee's fifth session.

ANNEX I
States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as at 30 March 1987

States parties to the Convention
Angola
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belgium
Bhutan
Brazil
Bulgaria
Byelorussian Soviet Socialist
Republic Canada Cape Verde China Colombia Congo Costa Rica Cuba Cyprus
Czechoslovakia Democratic Yemen Denmark Dominica
Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt
El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Ethiopia Finland France Gabon
German Democratic Republic Germany (Federal Republic of) Ghana Greece Guatemala Guinea
Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hungary

Date of receipt of the instrument of ratification or accession
17 September 1986 a/
15 July 1985
28 July 1983
31 March 1982
6 November 1984 a/
16 October 1980
10 July 1985
31 August 1981
1 February 1984
8 February 1982
4 February 1981
10 December 1981
5 December 1980 a/
4 November 1980 ~
19 January 1982 26 July 1982 4 April 1986
17 July 1980
23 July 1985 a/
16 February 1982
30 May 1984 a/
21 April 1983
15 September 1980
2 September 1982
9 November 1981
18 September 1981
19 August 1981
23 October 1984 a/ 10 September 1981 4 September 1986 14 December 1983
21 January 1983
9 July 1980
10 July 1985
2 January 1986
7 June 1983
12 August 1982
9 August 1982
23 August 1985
17 July 1980
20 July 1981
3 March 1983
22 December 1980

Date of entry into force
17 October 1986
14 August 1985
27 August 1983
30 April 1982
6 December 1984
3 September 1981
9 August 1985
30 September 1981
2 March 1984 10 March 1982
3 September 1981
9 January 1982 3 September 1981
3 September 1981
18 February 1982
25 August 1982
4 May 1986
3 September 1981 22 August 1985 18 March 1962 9 June 1984
21 May 1983
3 September 1981
1 October 1982
9 December 1981 18 October 1981 18 September 1981
22 November 1984
10 October 1981
4 October 1986
13 January 1984
20 February 1983
3 September 1981 9 August 1985
1 February 1986
7 July 1983
11 September 1982
8 September 1982
22 September 1985
3 September 1981 3 September 1981
2 April 1983
3 September 1981

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states parties to the Convention

Date of receipt of the instrument of ratification or accession

Date of entry into force

Iceland 18 June 1985 18 July 1985
Indonesia 13 September 1984 13 October 1984
Iraq 13 August 1986 a/ b/ 12 September 1986
Ireland 23 December 1985 a/ 22 January 1986
Italy 10 June 1985 10 July 1985
Jamaica 19 October 1984 18 November 1984
Japan 25 June 1985 25 July 198'
Kenya 9 March 1984 a/ 8 April 1984
Lao People's Democratic Republic 14 August 1981 13 September 19B1
Liberia 17 July 1984 a/ 16 August 1984
Malawi 23 March 1987 a/ b/ 11 April 1987
Mali 10 September 1985 10 October 1985
Mauritius 9 July 1984 a/ 8 August 1984
Mexico 23 March 1981 3 September 1981
Mongolia 20 July 1981 3 September 1981
New Zealand 10 January 1985 9 February 198S
Nicaragua 27 October 1981 26 November 1981
Nigeria 13 June 1985 13 July 1985
Norway 21 May 1981 3 September 1981
Panama 29 October 1981 28 November 1981
Peru 13 September 1982 13 October 1982
Philippines 5 August 1981 4 September 1981
Poland 30 July 1980 3 September 1981
Portugal 30 July 1980 3 September 1981
Republic of Korea 27 December 1984 26 January 1985
Romania 7 January 1982 6 February 1982
Rwanda 2 March 1981 3 September 1981
Saint Christopher and Nevis 25 April 1985 a/ 25 May 1985
Saint Lucia 8 October 1982 a/ 7 November 1982
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4 August 1981 a/ 3 September 1981
Senegal 5 February 1985 7 March 1985
Spain 5 January 1884 4 February 1984
Sri Lanka 5 October 1981 4 November 1981
Sweden 2 July 1980 3 September 1981
Thailand 9 August 1985 a/ 8 September 1 985
Togo 26 September 1983 a/ 26 October 1983
Tunisia 20 September 1985 20 October 198S
Turkey 20 December 1985 a/ 19 January 1986
Uganda 22 July 1985 21 August 1985
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist 12 March 1981 3 September 1981
Republic
Union of Soviet Socialist 23 January 1981 3 September 1981
Republics
United Kingdom of Great Britain 7 April 1986 b/ 7 May 1986
and Northern Ireland
United Republic of Tanzania -0 August 1985 19 September 1985
Uruguay 9 October 1981 8 November 1981
Venezuela 2 May 1983 1 June 1983
Viet Nam 17 February 1982 19 March 1982
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Data of receipt of
States parties to the instrument of Date of entry
the Convention ratification or accession into force
Yugoslavia 26 February 1982 28 March 1982
Zaire 17 October 1986 16 November 1986
Zambia 21 June 1985 21 July 1985
a/ Accession. b/ Reservation.

ANNEX II
Submission of reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention as at 1 April 1987
A. Initial report*.

tes parties to *** Convention
Angola Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belgium
Bhutan
Brazil
Bulgaria
Byelorussian Soviet
Socialist Republic Canada
Cape Verde China
Colombia
Congo
Costa Rica Cuba
Cyprus Czechoslovakia
Democratic Yemen Denmark
Dominica Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador

Date due
17 October 1987
14 August 1986
27 August 1984
30 April 1983
6 December 1985
3 September 1982 9 August 1906 30 September 1982
2 Match 1985
10 March 1983
3 September 1982
9 January 1983
3 September 1982
3 September 1982
18 February 1983
25 August 1983
4 May 1987
3 September 1982
22 August 1985 18 March 1983
29 June 1985 21 May 1984
3 September 198 2 1 October 1983
9 December 1982
18 October 1982
19 September 1982

Invitation to submit reports
22 October 1986
16 August 1985
12 September 1983
23 April 1982
2 April 1985
2 March 1 2 16 August 1985 2 March 1982 2 March 1984 2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 March 1982 2 March 1982
2 March 1982
14 September 1982 7 May 1986 2 March 1982
23 August 1985
14 September 1982
24 August 1984
7 July 1983
2 March 1982 14 September 1902
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 March 1982

Date of submission
6 October 1986
(Add.39) 3 October 1986 (Add.40) 20 October 1983
(Add.17) c/ 12 March 1986 (Add.34) e/
13 June 1983 (Add.15) c/ 4 October 1982 (Add.5) a/
15 July 1983
(Add.16) c/
25 May 1983 (Add.14) b/
16 January 1986
(Add.32) c/
27 September 1982 (Add.4) a/
4 October 1964 (Add.26) d/
30 July 1984 (Add.22) d/
2 May 1986 (Add.37) 14 August 1984 (Add.23) d/
2 February 1983 (Add.10) b/
3 November 198 3 (Add.19) d/

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States parties to
the Convention Date due
Equatorial Guinea 22 November 1985
Ethiopia 10 October 1982
Finland 4 October 1987
France 13 January 1985
Gabon 20 February 1984
German Democratic
Republic 3 September 1982
Germany (Federal 9 August 1986
Republic of)
Ghana 1 February 1987
Greece 7 July 1984
Guatemala 11 September 1983
Guinea 8 September 1983
Guinea-Bissau 22 September 1986
Guyana 3 September 1982
Haiti 3 September 1982
Honduras 2 April 1984
Hungary 3 September 1982
Iceland 18 July 1986
Indonesia 13 October 1985
Iraq 12 September 198'/
Ireland 22 January 1987
Italy 10 July 1986
Jamaica 18 November 1965
Japan
Kenya
I.ao People's Democratic Republic
Liberia
Malawi
Mali
Mauritius Mexico
Monqo1i a
New Zealand
Nicaragua
25 July 1986
8 April 1985 13 September 1982
16 August 1985
11 April 1988
10 October 1986
8 August 1985
3 September 1982
3 September 198 2
9 February 1986
26 November 198 2

Invitation to submit reports
2 April 1985
2 March 1982
4 October 1986
8 February 1984
28 February 1983
2 March 1982
16 August 1985
7 July 1983
14 September 1982 14 September 1982 25 September 1985 2 March 1982 2 March 1982 13 April 1983
2 March 1982
16 August 1985 31 October 1984
1 September 1986
24 January 1986
11 July 1985 31 October 1984
16 August 1985
16 April 1984
2 March 1982
24 August 1984
14 October 1985
24 August 1984
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 April 1985
2 March 1982

Date of submission
13 February 1986 (Add. 3 3) */
30 August. 1982 (Add.l) a/
23 April 1985 (Add.28) e/
3 December 1986 (Add.44) 20 September 1982 (Add. 3) b/
15 March 1986 (Add.36)
18 February 1987 (Add.47)
12 September 1986 (Add.38)
13 March 1987 (Add.48)

13 November 1986 (Add. 43)
14 September 1982 (Add.2) a/
18 November 1983 (Add. 20) d/ 3 October 1986 (Acid. 41)

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States parties to the Convention
Nigeria
Norway
Panama
Peru Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Republic of Korea
Romania
Rwanda
Saint Christopher
and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and
the Grenadines Senegal
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sweden
Thai land Togo
Tunisia Turkey
Uganda Ukrainian Soviet
Socialist Republic Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics United Kingdom of
Great Britain and
Northern Ireland United Republic
of Tanzania Uruguay
Venezuela

******* 13 July 19B6
3 September 198 2
28 November 198 2
13 October 198 3
4 September 1982
3 September 198 2 3 September 198 2 26 January 1986
6 February 198 3
3 September 198 2
25 May 1986
7 November 1983
3 September 198 2
7 March 1986
4 February 1985
4 November 198 2
3 September 198 2
8 September 1986
26 October 1984
20 October 1986 19 January 1987
21 August 1986
3 September 1982
3 September 1983
7 May 1987
19 September 1986
8 November 1982
1 June 198 4

Invitation to Submit reports
14 July 1985
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
12 October 1982
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
2 April 1985
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
24 June 1985
17 December 1982 2 March 1982
2 April 1985
8 February 1984
2 March 1982
2 March 1982
10 September 1985
9 November 1983
22 October 1985
22 January 1986
23 August 1985 2 March 1982
2 March 1982
8 May 1986
23 September 1985 2 March 1982 7 July 1983

Date of submission
1 April 1987 (Add.49)
18 November 1982
(Add.7) b/
12 December 1982
(Add.9) c/
22 October 1982 (Add.6) b/
10 October 1985 (Add.31) e/
19 July 1983
(Add.21) d/
13 March 1986 (Add.35) e/
14 January 1987 (Add.45)
24 May 1983 (Add.13) b/
5 November 1986 (Add.42) 20 August 1985 (Add.30) e/ 7 July 1985 (Add.29) e/ 22 October 1982 (Add.8) a/
(Add.24) d/
27 January 1987 (Add.46)
2 March 1983 (Add.11) a/
2 March 1983 (Add.12) a/
23 November 1984
(Add.27) 27 August 1984

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States parties to the Convention Date due 19 March 1983 invitation to Date or

submit reports submission
Viet Nam
14 September 1982 2 October 1984 (Add.25. d/
Yugoslavia 28 March 1983 14 September 1982 3 November 1983 (Add.18) c/
Zaire 16 November 1987
Zambia 21 July 1986 16 August 1985
a/ Considered by the Committee at its second session, held from 1 to 12 August 1983.
b/ Considered by the Committee at its third session, held from 26 March to 6 April 1984.
c/ Considered by the Committee at Its fourth session, held from 21 January to 1 February 1985.
d/ Considered by the Committee at its fifth session, held from 10 to 21 March 1986.
e/ Considered by the Committee at its sixth (present) session.

B. Second periodic reports of States parties due in 1986

States parties to the Convention
Barbados
Bhutan
Byelorussian Soviet
Socialist Republic Cape Verde China Cuba
Dominica Ecuador Egypt
El Salvador
Ethiopia
German Democratic
Republic Guyana Haiti Hungary
Lao People's
Democratic
Republic Mexico Mongolia
Nicaragua
Norway
Panama
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Rwanda
Saint Vincent and
the Grenadines Sri Lanka Sweden
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics
Uruguay

Date due
3 September 1986
30 September 1986
3 September 1986
3 September 1986 3 September 1986 3 September 1986 3 September 1986 9 December 1986 18 October 1986
18 September 1986 10 October 1986 3 September 1986
3 September 1986 3 September 1986 3 September 1986
13 September 1986
3 September 1986 3 September 198b
26 November 1986
3 September 1986
28 November 1986
4 September 1986
3 September 1986
3 September 1986
3 September 1986
3 September 1986
4 November 1986 3 September 1986
3 September 1986
3 September 1986
8 November 1986

Invitation to submit reports
30 January 1987* 30 January l987* 12 August 1985
30 January 1987* 12 August 1985 12 August 1985 30 January 1987* 12 August 1985 12 August 1985
12 August 1985 30 January 1987* 12 August 1985
30 January 1987* 30 January 1987* 12 August 1985
30 January 1987*
12 August 1985 12 August 1985
30 January 1987* 12 August 1985 12 August 1985 12 August 1986
3 September 1986 12 August 1985 12 August 1985 30 January 1987*
12 August 1985 12 August 1985 12 August 1985 12 August 1985

Date of submission
3 March 1987 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.5)
19 December 1986 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.2)
28 January 1987 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.3)
29 September 1986 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l)
17 March 1987 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.7)
10 March 1987 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.6)
10 February 1987 (CEDAW/C/13/Add.6
* Invitation to submit second periodic reports sent with reminder for submission of initial report.
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ANNEX III
Membership of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its sixth session

Name of member

Country of nationality

Ma. Ryoko Akamatsu**
Ms. Desiree P. Bernard*
Ma. Marie Caron*
MB. Ivanka Corti**
Ms. Hadia Asaa Diallo Soumare**
MB. Ruth Escobar**
MR. Elisabeth Evatt*
MR. Norma M. Forde**
Ms. Aids Gonzales Martinez*
Ma. Guan Minqian**
Ma. Zaqorka Ilic**
Ma. Chrvssanthi Laiou-Antoniou*
Ms. Alma Montenegro de Fletcher*
Ms. Elvira Novikova**
Ms. Edith Oeser*
MB. Lily Pilataxi de Arenas**
Ms. Maria Margarida Salema*
Ms. Kongit Singegiorgis*
Ms. Ida Soekaman
Ms. Mervat Tallawy**
Ms. Rose N. Ukeje**
Ms. Esther Veliz Diaz de Villalvilla*
Ms. Marqareta Wadstein*

Japan
Guvana
Canada
Italy
Mali
Brazil
Australia
Barbados
Mexico
China
Yugoslavia
Greece
Panama
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
German Democratic Republic
Ecuador
Portugal
Ethiopia
Indonesia
Egypt
Nigeria
Cuba
Sweden

* Term of office expires in 1988. ** Term of office expires in 1990.

ANNEX IV
General guidelines regarding the form and content of reports received from States parties under article 18 of the
Convention*
1. Under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, a/ each State party has undertaken to submit a report on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which it has adopted to give effect to the provisions of the Convention and on the progress made in this respect within one year after the entry into force of the Convention for the reporting State and thereafter at least every four years and further whenever the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women established under the Convention so requests.
2. In order to assist the States parties in fulfilling their obligations under article 18 of the Convention, the Committee recommends that the States parties should follow general guidelines as to the form, contents and dates of reports. The guidelines are to help ensure that the reports are presented in a uniform manner so that the Committee and the States parties can obtain a complete picture of the implementation of the Convention and the progress made therein.
3. The report should be in two parts. Part I should describe:

(a) As concisely as possible, the actual, general, social, economic, political and legal framework within which a State party approaches the elimination of discrimination against women in all its forms, as defined in the Convention)
(b) Any legal and other measures adopted to implement the Convention or their absence as well as any effects which ratification of the Convention has had on the State party's actual, general, social, economic, political and legal framework since the entry into force of the Convention for the reporting States;
(c) Whether there are any institutions or authorities which have as their task to ensure that the principle of equality between men and women is complied with in practice, and what remedies are available to women who have suffered discrimination)
(d) The means used to promote and ensure the full development and advancement of women for the purpose of guaranteeing them the exercise and enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms in all fields on a basis of equality with men;
(e) Whether the provisions of the Convention can be invoked before, and directly enforced by, the courts, other tribunals or administrative authorities or whether the provisions of the Convention have to be implemented by way of internal laws or administrative regulations in order to be enforced by the authorities concerned.
* Adopted by the Committee at its 24th meeting on 11 August 1983 (CEDAW/C/7).
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4. Part II of the report should provide the following specific information in
relation to each provision of the Convention:
(a) The constitutional, legislative and administratis provisions or other measures in force;
(b) The developments that have taken place and the programmes and Institutions that have been established since the entry into force of the Convention;
(c) Any restrictions or limitations, even of a temporary nature, imposed by law or practice or in any other manner on the enjoyment of each right;
(d) Any other factors or difficulties affecting the exercise and enjoyment of each right;
(e) Any other information on progress made in the fulfilment of each right.

5. It is recommended that the reports should not be confined to mere lists of legal instruments adopted in the country concerned in recent years, but should also include information indicating how these legal instruments are reflected in the actual, economic, political and social realities and the general conditions existing in their countries. Data concerning these realities and conditions should also be supplied with a breakdown of the statistics on the category of sex.
6. States parties are invited to submit copies of the principal legislative, judicial, administrative and other texts referred to in the report so that these can be made available to the Committee. If is desirable therefore that, when a text is not actually quoted in or annexed to the report itself, the report should contain sufficient information to be understood without the actual reference.
7. The reports should reveal obstacles to the participation of women on an equal basis with men in the political, social, economic and cultural life of their countries, and give information on types and frequencies of cases of non-compliance with the principle of equal rights.
8. The reports should also pay due attention to the role of women and their full participation in the solution of problems and issues which are referred to in the preamble and which are not covered by the articles of the Convention.
9. The reports and the supplementary documentation should be submitted in one of the working languages of the Committee (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish) in as concise a form as possible.
Notes a/ See General Assembly resolution 34/180, annex,

ANNEX V Financial implications relevant to decision 1
1. In its decision 1, adopted on 9 April 1987 (see para. 580 of the present
report), the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women requested
the Economic and Social Council to recommend to the General Assembly:
(a) That it decide to approve, on an exceptional basis, eight additional meetings of the Committee in 1988;
(b) That it request the Secretary-General to provide the Committee with necessary resources for those meetings.

2. The Committee, prior to adopting the above decision, expressed a desire to hold its seventh session for a duration of three weeks, rather than the two weeks currently envisaged, in 1988. An estimate of the costs of holding an additional week's session either in New York or at Vienna was submitted to the Committee on 8 April 1987.
3. The Committee's attention was drawn to General Assembly decision 41/466 of 11 December 1986, wherein economy measures proposed by the Secretary-General (A/41/901 Add.1) related to a reduction in the duration and servicing of various
conferences and meetings were approved. For those meetings held at United Nations Headquarters in New York, specific reductions were mandated; for meetings held away from New York, adjustments were to be made in the number, duration and frequency of meetings and documentation requirements, in order to achieve a net reduction of 30 per cent in expenditure on temporary assistance. In view of the continuing financial crisis of the United Nations, the possibility of the implementation of similar measures in 1988-1989 should not be disregarded.
4. Pending decisions of the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly,
as well as of their relevant subsidiary bodies, on the recommendation to hold eight
additional meetings of the Committee in 1988, the Secretary-General is not in a
position to include resources required for the servicing of the additional eight
meetings of the Committee in his proposals for the programme budget for the
1988-1989 biennium.
5. The cost estimates provided being have been based on the assumption that:
(a) The Committee would require our additional working days to hold an additional eight meetings, thus the total duration of its seventh session would become 14 working days in 1988;
(b) If the Committee's seventh session is held in New York in 1988, an additional three staff members, apart from three staff already envisaged and included in the provisions for the 1988-1989 programme budget, would be required from Vienna to provide substantive services to the Committee. The Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs is no longer part of the Department of International Economic and Social Affairs at Headquarters in New York, thus no such additional staff resources required for servicing the Committee session could be drawn from that Department when the Committee meets in New York;

(c) The Committees. post-session report would consist of 65 pages instead of 50 pages. The extended seventh session would entail additional summary records, which would be issued in English and French, as in the case of the sixth session held at Vienna.
6. On the basis of the above assumptions, the estimated resources required for the recommended longer session of the Committee in 1988 are as follows:
If in If in
New York Vienna
$us
Daily subsistence allowance of 23 members for
additional six days 26 600 25 100
Travel of three additional staff from Vienna 6 700
Daily subsistence allowance:
(a) For three additional staff from Vienna ... 8 300
(b) For three staff for six additional days.. 2 500 Conference servicing coat:
In-session documentation (additional pages) ... 1 500 1 000
Post-session documentation
(additional 15 pages) 15 100 16 900
Interpretation in six official languages and
supporting meeting servicing staff cost 36 500 48 300
Summary records 41 500 46 500
General service requirements
(recording, security guards, etc.) 4 200 4 200
Grand total 142 900 142 000
7. Should the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly approve the recommendation of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women to hold eight additional meetings in 1988 in New York, the estimated resources required would amount to approximately $143,000. That amount would be reduced to $142,000 if the Committee should meet at Vienna.
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