UN Human Rights Treaties

Report of the
Committee on the Elimination
of Discrimination against Women
Eleventh session
General Assembly
Official Records • Forty-seventh Session
Supplement No. 38 (A/47/38)
United Nations • New York, 1993

A/47/38

NOTE
Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters combined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document.
ISSN 0255-0970

CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL v
I. MATTERS BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF STATES PARTIES 1
General recommendations and suggestions 1
II. ORGANIZATIONAL AND OTHER MATTERS 1-24 9
A. States parties to the Convention 1-2 9
B. Opening of the session 3 -7 9
C. Membership and attendance 8 9
D. Solemn declaration 9 10
E. Election of officers of the Committee 10 10
F. Adoption of the agenda 11 10
G. Report of the pre-session working group 12-14 10
H. Organization of work 15 11
I. Composition of working groups 16-24 11
III. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER ARTICLE 18 OF THE CONVENTION 25 - 437 15
A. Introduction 25-26 15
B. Consideration of reports 27 - 437 15
1. Initial reports 27 - 143 15
Barbados 27-64 15
Ghana 65 - 105 23
Honduras 106 - 143 32
2. Second periodic reports 144 - 437 41
China , 145 - 218 41
Czechoslovakia 219 - 267 53
El Salvador 268 - 302 61
Spain 303 - 364 68

CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
Sri Lanka 365-404 79
Venezuela 405 - 437 87
IV. WAYS AND MEANS OF EXPEDITING THE WORK OF THE
COMMITTEE 438 -450 96
Action taken by the Committee on the report of
Working Group I 442 - 450 96
V. WAYS AND MEANS OF IMPLEMENTING ARTICLE 21 OF THE
CONVENTION 451 - 458 99
Action taken by the Committee on the report of
Working Group II 451 - 458 99
VI. CONTRIBUTION OF THE COMMITTEE TO INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCES 459 - 464 101
A. World Conference on Human Rights 459 - 461 101
B. International Year of the Family 462 101
C. World Conference on Women , 463 - 464 101
VII. PROVISIONAL AGENDA FOR THE TWELFTH SESSION OF THE
COMMITTEE . 465 102
VIII. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT 466 104
I. States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination against Women as at 1 February 1992 105
II. Membership of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women , 109
III. List of documents 110
IV. Status of submission and consideration of reports by States
parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women as at 1 February 1992 . . Ill
V. Programme budget implications of the request of the Committee on
the Elimination of Discrimination against Women 125

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
1 February 1992
Sir,
I have the honour to refer to article 21 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 eleventh session from 20 to 30 January 1992 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. It adopted the report of that session at its 205th meeting, held on 30 January 1992. The report is herewith submitted to you for transmission to the General Assembly at its forty-seventh session.
Accept, Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.
(Signed) Mervat TALLAWY Chairperson Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
His Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali Secretary-General of the United Nations New York

I. MATTERS BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF STATES PARTIES
General recommendations and suggestions
General recommendation 19 (eleventh session); Violence
against women*
Background
1. Gender-based violence is a form of discrimination that seriously inhibits women's ability to enjoy rights and freedoms on a basis of equality with men.
2. In 1989, the Committee recommended that States should include in their reports information on violence and on measures introduced to deal with it (General recommendation 12, eighth session).
3. At its tenth session in 1991, it was decided to allocate part of the eleventh session to a discussion and study on article 6 and other articles of the Convention relating to violence towards women and the sexual harassment and exploitation of women. That subject was chosen in anticipation of the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights, convened by the General Assembly
by its resolution 45/155 of 18 December 1990.
4. The Committee concluded that not all the reports of States parties adequately reflected the close connection between discrimination against women, gender-based violence and violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms. The full implementation of the Convention required States to take positive measures to eliminate all forms of violence against women.
5. The Committee suggested to States parties that in reviewing their laws and policies, and in reporting under the Convention, they should have regard to the following comments of the Committee concerning gender-based violence.
General comments
6. The Convention in article 1 defines discrimination against women. The definition of discrimination includes gender-based violence, that is, violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately. It includes acts that inflict physical, mental or sexual harm or suffering, threats of such acts, coercion and other deprivations of liberty. Gender-based violence may breach specific provisions of the Convention, regardless of whether those provisions expressly mention violence.
7. Gender-based violence, which impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of human rights and fundamental freedoms under general international law or under human rights conventions, is discrimination within the meaning of article 1 of the Convention. These rights and freedoms include:
(a) The right to life;
For the discussion, see chap. V.

(b) The right not to be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
(c) The right to equal protection according to humanitarian norms in time of international or internal armed conflict;
(d) The right to liberty and security of person;
(e) The right to equal protection under the law;
(f) The right to equality in the family;
(g) The right to the highest, standard attainable of physical and mental health;
(h) The right to just and favourable conditions of work.
8. The Convention applies to violence perpetrated by public authorities. Such acts of violence may breach that State' s obligations under general international human rights law and under other conventions, in addition to breaching this Convention.
9. It is emphasized, however, that discrimination under the Convention is not restricted to action by or on behalf of Governments (see articles 2 (e),
2 (f) and 5). For example, under article 2 (e) the Convention calls on States parties to take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women by any person, organization or enterprise. Under general international law and specific human rights covenants, States may also be responsible for private acts if they fail to act with due diligence to prevent violations of rights or to investigate and punish acts of violence, and for providing compensation.
Comments on specific articles of the Convention
Articles 2 and 3
10. Articles 2 and 3 establish a comprehensive obligation to eliminate
discrimination in all its forms in addition to the specific obligations under
articles 5 to 16.
Articles 2 (f), 5 and 10 (c)
11. Traditional attitudes by which women are regarded as subordinate to men
or as having stereotyped roles perpetuate widespread practices involving
violence or coercion, such as family violence and abuse, forced marriage,
dowry deaths, acid attacks and female circumcision. Such prejudices and
practices may justify gender-based violence as a form of protection or
control of women. The effect of such violence on the physical and mental
integrity of women is to deprive them of the equal enjoyment, exercise and
knowledge of human rights and fundamental freedoms. While this comment
addresses mainly actual or threatened violence the underlying consequences
of these forms of gender-based violence help to maintain women in subordinate roles and contribute to their low level of political participation and to their lower level of education, skills and work opportunities.

12. These attitudes also contribute to the propagation of pornography and the
depiction and other commercial exploitation of women as sexual objects, rather
than as individuals. This in turn contributes to gender-based violence.
Article 6
13. States parties are required by article 6 to take measures to suppress all forms of traffic in women and exploitation of the prostitution of women.
14. Poverty and unemployment increase opportunities for trafficking in women. In addition to established forms of trafficking there are new forms of sexual exploitation, such as sex tourism the recruitment of domestic labour from developing countries to work in developed countries and organized marriages between women from developing countries and foreign nationals. These practices are incompatible with the equal enjoyment of rights by women and with respect for their rights and dignity. They put women at special risk of violence and abuse.
15. Poverty and unemployment force many women, including young girls, into prostitution. Prostitutes are especially vulnerable to violence because their status, which may be unlawful, tends to marginalize them. They need the equal protection of laws against rape and other forms of violence.
16. Wars, armed conflicts and the occupation of territories often lead to increased prostitution, trafficking in women and sexual assault of women, which require specific protective and punitive measures.
Article 11
17. Equality in employment can be seriously impaired when women are subjected to gender-specific violence, such as sexual harassment in the workplace.
18. Sexual harassment includes such unwelcome sexually determined behaviour as physical contact and advances, sexually coloured remarks, showing pornography and sexual demands, whether by words or actions. Such conduct can be humiliating and may constitute a health and safety problem; it is discriminatory when the woman has reasonable grounds to believe that her objection would disadvantage her in connection with her employment, including recruitment or promotion, or when it creates a hostile working environment.
Article 12
19. States parties are required by article 12 to take measures to ensure equal access to health care. Violence against women puts their health and lives at risk.
20. In some States there are traditional practices perpetuated by culture and tradition that are harmful to the health of women and children. These practices include dietary restrictions for pregnant women, preference for male children and female circumcision or genital mutilation.

Article 14
21. Rural women are at risk of gender-based violence because traditional
attitudes regarding the subordinate role of women persist in many rural
communities. Girls from rural communities are at special risk of violence and
sexual exploitation when they leave the rural community to seek employment in
towns.
Article 16 (and article 5)
22. Compulsory sterilization or abortion adversely affects women's physical and mental health, and infringes the right of women to decide on the number and spacing of their children.
23. Family violence is one of the most insidious forms of violence against women. It is prevalent in all societies. Within family relationships women of all ages are subjected to violence of all kinds, including battering, rape, other forms of sexual assault, mental and other forms of violence, which are perpetuated by traditional attitudes. Lack of economic independence forces many women to stay in violent relationships. The abrogation of their family responsibilities by men can be a form of violence and coercion. These forms of violence put women's health at risk and impair their ability to participate in family life and public life on a basis of equality.
Specific recommendation
24. In light of these comments, the Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination against Women recommends that
(a) States parties should take appropriate and effective measures to overcome all forms of gender-based violence, whether by public or private act;
(b) States parties should ensure that laws against family violence and abuse, rape, sexual assault and other gender-based violence give adequate protection to all women, and respect their integrity and dignity. Appropriate protective and support services should be provided for victims. Gender-sensitive training of judicial and law enforcement officers and other public officials is essential for the effective implementation of the Convention;
(c) States parties should encourage the compilation of statistics and research on the extent, causes and effects of violence, and on the effectiveness of measures to prevent and deal with violence;
(d) Effective measures should be, taken to ensure that the media respect and promote respect for women;
(e) States parties in their reports should identify the nature and extent of attitudes, customs and practices that perpetuate violence against women and the kinds of violence that result. They should report on the measures that they have undertaken to overcome violence and the effect of those measures;

(f) Effective measures should be taken to overcome these attitudes and practices. States should introduce education and public information programmes to help eliminate prejudices that hinder women's equality (recommendation No. 3, 1987);
(g) Specific preventive and punitive measures are necessary to overcome trafficking and sexual exploitation;
(h) States parties in their reports should describe the extent of all these problems and the measures, including penal provisions and preventive and rehabilitation measures, that have been taken to protect women engaged in prostitution or subject to trafficking and other forms of sexual exploitation. The effectiveness of these measures should also be described;
(i) Effective complaints procedures and remedies, including compensation, should be provided;
(j) States parties should include in their reports information on sexual harassment, and on measures to protect women from sexual harassment and other forms of violence or coercion in the workplace;
(k) States parties should establish or support services for victims of family violence, rape, sexual assault and other forms of gender-based violence, including refuges, specially trained health workers, rehabilitation and counselling;
(1) States parties should take measures to overcome such practices and should take account of the Committee's recommendation on female circumcision (recommendation No. 14) in reporting on health issues;
(m) States parties should ensure that measures are taken to prevent coercion in regard to fertility and reproduction, and to ensure that women are not forced to seek unsafe medical procedures such as illegal abortion because of lack of appropriate services in regard to fertility control;
(n) States parties in their reports should state the extent of these problems and should indicate the measures that have been taken and their effect;
(o) States parties should ensure that services for victims of violence are accessible to rural women and that where necessary special services are provided to isolated communities;
(p) Measures to protect them from violence should include training and employment opportunities and the monitoring of the employment conditions of domestic workers;
(q) States parties should report on the risks to rural women, the extent and nature of violence and abuse to which they are subject, their need for and access to support and other services and the effectiveness of measures to overcome violence;

(r) Measures that are necessary to overcome family violence should include:
(i) Criminal penalties where necessary and civil remedies in cases of domestic violence;
(ii) Legislation to remove the defence of honour in regard to the assault or murder of a female family member;
(iii) Services to ensure the safety and security of victims of family violence, including refuges, counselling and rehabilitation programmes;
(iv) Rehabilitation programmes for perpetrators of domestic violence;
(v) Support services for families where incest or sexual abuse has occurred;
(s) States parties should report on the extent of domestic violence and sexual abuse and on the preventive, punitive and remedial measures that have been taken;
(t) States parties should take all legal ana other measures that are necessary to provide effective protection of women against gender-based violence, including, inter alia;
(i) Effective legal measures, including penal sanctions, civil remedies and compensatory provisions to protect women against all kinds of violence, including inter alia violence and abuse in the family, sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace;
(ii) Preventive measures, including public information and education
programmes to change attitudes concerning the roles and status of men and women;
(iii) Protective measures, including refuges, counselling, rehabilitation and support services for women who are the victims of violence or who are at risk of violence;
(u) States parties should report on all forms of gender-based violence, and such reports should include all available data on the incidence of each form of violence and on the effects of such violence on the women who are victims;
(v) The reports of States parties should include information on the legal, preventive and protective measures that have been taken to overcome violence against women and on the effectiveness of such measures.

General recommendation 20 (eleventh session): Reservations
to. the Convention*
1. The Committee recalled the decision of the fourth meeting of States parties on reservations to the Convention with regard to article 2 8.2, which was welcomed in general recommendation 4 of the Committee.
2. The Committee recommended that, in connection with preparations for the World Conference on Human Rights in 1993, States parties should:

(a) Raise the question of the validity and the legal effect of reservations to the Convention in the context of reservations to other human rights treaties;
(b) Reconsider such reservations with a view to strengthening the implementation of all human rights treaties;
(c) Consider introducing a procedure on reservations to the Convention comparable with that of other human rights treaties.
Suggestion 3. World Conference on Human Rights {1993)**
1. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women requests that the issue of the equal enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms by women should be fully reflected in the agenda of the World Conference on Human Rights, in particular, the close relationship between the rights guaranteed by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and those guaranteed under other international human rights instruments.
2. Such a theme would emphasize that equality is a significant human rights issue and, to this end, attention should be given to the extent to which this issue has been addressed effectively by the implementation methods and mechanisms under human rights covenants and conventions.
3. The Committee requests the Secretary-General to ensure that, as far as possible, documentation prepared for the World Conference on Human Rights, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 46/116, should include a gender perspective.
4. The Committee suggests that the Manual on Human Rights Reporting prepared by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research and the Centre for Human Rights should be translated into all official United Nations languages as soon as possible and distributed to all States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
* For the discussion, see chap. V. ** For discussion, see chap. VI.

5. The Committee suggests that the Secretary-General should prepare a publication on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the work of the Committee similar to the Fact Sheets for other human rights instruments and bodies.

II. ORGANIZATIONAL AND OTHER MATTERS
A. States parties to the Convention
1. By 30 January 1992, the closing date of the eleventh session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, there were 110 States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, 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.
2. A list of States parties to the Convention is contained in annex I to the present report.
B. Opening of the session
3. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women held its eleventh session from 20 to 30 January 1992 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The Committee held 17 (189th to 205th) meetings, and its standing working groups I and II each held four closed meetings.
4. The eleventh session was opened by the Chairperson of the Committee, Mervat Tallawy (Egypt), who had been elected at the tenth session.
5. In her opening statement on behalf of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Director of the Division for the Advancement of Women of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations Office at Vienna, highlighted some areas where the work of the Committee and the Commission on the Status of Women converged.
6. At the 197th meeting, on 27 January 1992, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna addressed the Committee.
7. Members of the Committee expressed appreciation for the increased support provided by the Secretariat for the Committee's work, but pointed out that resources were still limited. The Committee faced an increasing backlog of reports and had to prepare its contribution to the World Conference on Human Rights, the Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development and Peace and the International Year of the Family. Members expressed their hope for adequate support in those endeavours. In response, the Director-General noted the constraints under which the Secretariat had to operate and expressed the hope that the matter could be drawn to the attention of the appropriate intergovernmental bodies.
C. Membership and attendance
8. All members of the Committee attended the eleventh session except
Ms. Kongit Sinegiorgis. The membership of the Committee is given in annex II to the present report.

D. Solemn declaration
9. At the opening of the eleventh session, before assuming her functions,
Ms. Shangzhen Lin (China), who was elected at the fifth meeting of States
parties to the Convention, made the solemn declaration as required under
rule 10 of the rules of procedure of the Committee.
E. Election of officers of the Committee
10. The officers elected by the Committee at its tenth session continued to
hold office at the eleventh session in accordance with article 19 of the
Convention. They were: Mervat Tallawy (Egypt), Chairperson; Ryoko Akamatsu
(Japan), Ana Maria Alfonsin de Fasan (Argentina) and Zagorka Ilic (Yugoslavia),
Vice-Chairpersons; and Chryssanthi Laiou-Antoniou (Greece), Rapporteur.
F. Adoption of the agenda
11. The Committee adopted the agenda at its 189th meeting, on 20 January 1992,
as follows:
1. Adoption of the agenda and organization of work
2. Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
3. Ways and means of implementing article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
4. Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
5. Contributions of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women to international conferences
6. Provisional agenda for the twelfth session
7. Adoption of the report.
G. Report of the pre-session working group
12. In accordance with the decision of the Committee at its eighth session, 1/ the Committee agreed that a pre-session working group should be convened before each regular session. Accordingly, the pre-session working group met in New York from 13 to 17 January 1992. The group consisted of five members as follows: Elizabeth Evatt (Chairperson), Emna Aouij, Ana Maria Alfonsin de Fasan, Zagorka Ilic and Teresita Quintos-Deles.

13. At its 189th meeting, on 20 January 1992, the Chairperson of the pre-session working group introduced the report of that working group.
14. She said that the pre-session working group had been required to prepare lists of issues and questions relating to the second periodic reports of
six countries: China, Czechoslovakia, £1 Salvador, Spain, Sri Lanka and Venezuela. The working group had been greatly assisted by the preparations and work of the Secretariat and by the contributions of non-governmental organizations. In preparing the lists, the pre-session working group had placed emphasis on the complex issues of equality and had considered that members of the Committee might wish to pose other relevant questions to the representatives of the States parties at the session. She pointed out that the pre-session working group, as requested by the Committee, had reduced the number of questions and focused on more analytical and qualitative aspects, and had underlined the achievements and remaining obstacles. She stated that the working group had organized its comments and questions under each of the articles of the Convention, and decided to put issues relating to violence against women under a separate heading (under article 5), with a reference also to articles 2, 11, 12 and 16, in accordance with the Committee's General recommendation 12 (eighth session, 1989).
H. Organization of work
15. The Committee considered the organization of work at its 189th and
203rd meetings on 20 and 29 January 1992. The Committee had before it the
following documents (see annex III):
(a) Organization of work, prepared by the Secretariat in consultation with the Chairperson of the Committee;
(b) Report of the Committee on its tenth session; 2/
(c) General guidelines regarding the form and content of reports to be submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention;
(d) Economic and Social Council resolution 1991/25 entitled "Elimination of discrimination against women in accordance with the aims of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women";
(e) Economic and Social Council resolution 1991/18 entitled "Violence against women in all its forms";
(f) Report of the pre-session working group.
I. Composition of working groups
16. At its 189th meeting, on 20 January 1992, the Committee agreed on the
composition of its two standing working groups: Working Group I to consider
and suggest ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee and Working
Group II to consider ways and means of implementing article 21 of the
Convention.

17. Working Group I was composed of the following members of the Committee:
Desiree P. Bernard, Norma Forde, Zagorka Ilic, Shangzhen Lin,
Tatiana Nikolaeva, Mervat Tallawy and Rose N. Ukeje.
18. Working Group II was composed of the following members: Charlotte Abaka,
Ryoko Akamatsu, Ana Maria Alfonsin de Fasan, Emna Aouij,
Dora Gladys Nancy Bravo Nunez de Ramsey, Carlota Bustelo Garcia del Real,
Ivanka Corti, Elizabeth Evatt, Grethe Fenger-Moller, Shangzhen Lin,
Aida Gonzalez Martinez, Chryssanthi Laiou-Antoniou, Edith Oeser,
Teresita Quintos-Deles, Hanna Beate Schopp-Schilling and Kissem Walla-Tchangai.
Working Group I
19. The Committee had before it the following proposed draft programme of work
for Working Group I, as proposed by the Secretariat on the basis of the
deliberations of the Committee at its tenth session:
(a) Issues arising from the report of the pre-session working group;
(b) Reports to be considered at the twelfth session of the Committee;
(c) Duration of the twelfth session;
(d) Contribution of the Committee to the World Conference on Human Rights, 1993;
(e) Contribution of the Committee to the Fourth World Conference on Women, 1995;
(f) Contribution of the Committee to the International Year of the Family, 1994;
(g) Issues for the 4th meeting of persons chairing the human rights treaty bodies;
(h) Amendment of the Committee's General Guidelines on the form and content of reports;
(i) General observations, summary conclusions or recommendations following the presentations by individual States parties;
(j) Programme of work for the next session;
(k) Draft provisional agenda for the twelfth session.
Working Group II
20. The Committee had before it the following draft programme of work for Working Group II, as proposed by the Secretariat on the basis of the deliberations of the Committee at its tenth session:

(a) Draft general recommendations on which action was pending: development aid and women's role in development; teacher training on equality issues; and women workers in enterprises. The Committee agreed to give priority also to the broad theme of women in the informal sector;
(b) Article 6 of the Convention (and other articles related to violence towards women and the sexual harassment and exploitation of women).

21. The Committee discussed in plenary the programme of work of the two working groups. It was suggested adding to the programme of Working Group I an item on pre-session documentation prepared by the Secretariat for the current session of the Committee; and to Working Group II, an item on reservations to the Convention. It was stressed that in the light of the forthcoming world conferences on human rights and on women, the Committee would have to work on timely contributions to those conferences.
22. In conjunction with the Committee's anticipated discussion of article 6 of the Convention, members proceeded to a preliminary consideration of the report of the Secretary-General on violence against women in all its forms (E/CN.6/1992/4), which contained the report of the Expert Group Meeting on Violence against Women, held at Vienna, from 11 to 15 November 1991.
23. One expert expressed her concern that all members of the Committee had not been informed in time about the Expert Group Meeting, particularly in view of Economic and Social Council resolution 1991/18, which stressed the need to coordinate that Expert Group with the Committee as well as the Commission on the Status of Women. It was said that the report of the Expert Group, although interesting, presented the Committee with a fait accompli, and she wondered what the Committee's task was with regard to the report. She wanted to know if the report was going to be the basis for the deliberations of Working Group II. Experts voiced their concern at the risk of duplication of efforts on the issue. It was stated that it was the role of the Secretariat
to coordinate and to avoid duplication. The crucial point was to strengthen the implementation of the Convention. Another expert said that it was important that the Committee should give its opinion on the various options presented in the report of the Expert Group. She suggested that the Committee should make a recommendation to strengthen general recommendation 12 (eighth session, 1989). She further asked if it was perhaps necessary to have two separate recommendations: one on violence and one on article 6. She recalled that the attendance of Committee representatives had been requested in Economic and Social Council resolution 1991/18, which had called for the Expert Group. Experts stated that the Committee should give its view on whether or not a new instrument should be developed, or whether a different approach should be taken in addressing the problem of violence. The question was which approach would most benefit women. Members underlined the need to look into the substantive aspects of the issue of violence, and how the Committee could best contribute to the eradication of violence. It was stressed that the Committee had been invited to submit its comments to the Commission.

24. The Committee decided that the working groups should meet in closed meetings, in accordance with past practice. Both working groups were open to all members of the Committee. Specialized agencies and other bodies that could make a substantive contribution to the items under consideration by the working group could be invited by the working group to contribute to its deliberations.

III. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 18 OF THE CONVENTION
A. Introduction
25. At its eleventh session, the Committee considered the reports submitted by nine States parties under article 18 of the Convention: one initial report, six second periodic reports, one combined initial and second periodic report, and one initial, second and third periodic report. For the status of submission of reports by States parties see annex IV to the present report.
26. The Committee considered the reports on a country-by-country basis, followed below. The reports contained a summary of the introductory presentation by the representatives of the States parties, of observations made and questions asked by the members of the Committee, as well as of the replies given by the representatives of the States parties present at the meetings. The summary records gave more detailed information on the reports submitted by States parties.
B. Consideration of reports 1. Initial reports Barbados
27. The Committee considered the initial report of Barbados (CEDAW/C/5/Add.64) at its 190th and 194th meetings, on 20 and 23 January 1992.
28. In introducing the report, the representative of Barbados stated that the commitment of the Government to the elimination of discrimination against women had been manifested by the unanimous adoption of a parliamentary resolution on the improvement of the status of women, the provision of a Charter for Women and the National Development Plan, the establishment of the National Commission on the Status of Women and the Bureau of Women's Affairs in 1976, the acceptance by Parliament of the National Commission's report, the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and Convention No. 100 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) concerning Equal Remuneration of Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value. Difficulties with regard to the preparation of the country report were related to obtaining statistical information disaggregated by sex and to the very few staff of the Women's Bureau.
29. The representative said that significant progress in regard to eliminating areas of recognized and recorded discrimination against women had been achieved by the systematic implementation of the national programme of action. In its effort to report on the status of women in the country, the National Commission on the Status of Women had presented 212 recommendations aimed at eliminating discrimination against women in all areas, of which 190 had been implemented within the period of the report. Following parliamentary acceptance of the National Commission's report, the Bureau of Women's Affairs

had disseminated the recommendations to the ministries and agencies and had held a national conference with governmental and non-governmental organizations and with private sector agencies to facilitate their implementation.
30. The representative pointed out that a non-militant approach to the elimination of discrimination had been the hallmark of the country's progress in that area. In implementing the National Plan of Action, it was necessary to recognize the social and cultural reality of Barbadian women. Many women welcomed the changes and breaking down of the social barriers to their development and contribution, others feared the consequences on family and working relationships. Women themselves and also men were already more comfortable with the social strides made by Barbadian women. The process of integration was facilitated by the active involvement of 44 women's organizations. The Bureau of Women's Affairs was holding leadership training seminars on political participation and consciousness raising. While outlining briefly the main points of the report, the representative mentioned additional action on violence against women since the reporting period. She concluded by enumerating the areas requiring ongoing action and support, such as strengthening of the Bureau, adjustment of some areas of legislation, improvement of the participation of women in the political and civil decision-making process, more support of women in the self-employment/ entrepreneurial areas, strengthening of the data resource bases and amendments to the Constitution.
31. In general comments, members of the Committee expressed appreciation for the frank, concise, informative and well-structured report that adhered closely to the general guidelines as well as for the excellent presentation. It documented well the strong commitment of the Government and of non-governmental organizations to the advancement of women. The annexes to the report showed the Government's initiatives in informing women of their rights. Members were impressed by the implementation of the large number of recommendations by the National Commission on the Status of Women although there was still a lot that had to be done for the advancement of Barbadian women. For example, many experts observed that despite the high percentage of women voters, women were hardly represented in the Parliament or other higher political office. It would be difficult for women to promote themselves if they could not participate in the planning and development of the country. Some experts asked for the reasons for the high percentage of women heads of households and about their professions. They inquired about the relationship between tourism and prostitution and asked whether the big role that tourism played in the country was only a way of giving more women minor jobs or whether it also brought more women into management positions. The wish was expressed that future reports should contain more statistical data disaggregated by sex. They expressed concern that the reporting period was limited to the years 1982 to 1987 and felt that it should have contained more information on the current situation, especially on the topics on which the Government was currently focusing its attention.
32. With regard to articles 2 and 3, members requested more information on the recommendations that had been adopted by the National Commission on the Status of Women, on the exceptions that were anticipated by the Constitution and on the budget of the National Commission. They also inquired about the budget allocations for the Bureau of Women's Affairs and the relationship

between the Bureau and the Ombudsman. They wanted to know whether cases dealt with by the Ombudsman had been publicized. They asked about the results of the inquiry that was conducted by the Commission into the one-parent family, with special reference to women's roles therein. Other questions asked were whether the Convention could be referred to directly by the courts, whether the National Commission could propose draft laws, whether each woman could have access to the Legal Aid Scheme and whether that Scheme was free of charge.
33. On article 4, members asked whether the Bureau of Women's Affairs had discussed any possible affirmative action’s and temporary special measures such as a quota system.
34. Under article 5, members requested further information on programmes for suppressing violence against women; on the types of violence that occurred and whether they included domestic violence; on the services that existed to help women victims of violence; and on related statistics. They wanted to know whether domestic violence constituted a criminal offence, and if so, what the sanctions were. They asked whether the programmes that had been introduced to modify social and cultural patterns of conduct had shown any result: and whether analyses had been carried out on the reasons for the preponderance of women in certain professions. Another question asked was whether the Government was giving any assistance to women's organizations.
35. On article 6, members inquired about the extent of the problem of prostitution, they asked whether there was a discernible link between unemployment and prostitution, and felt that women between 15 and 24 years of age might not be drawn into prostitution if a functional programme existed for them. They asked whether prostitution constituted an offence or whether the conviction of the culprit was left to the arbitrary decision of a magistrate, whether only the prostitute was prosecuted or also the client and the pimp. They inquired whether prostitutes were protected by any special legal measures or whether rape and violence in connection with prostitution were covered by general legal provisions. Members wanted to know what type of preventive measures related to prostitution had been taken, what their results were and whether rehabilitation programmes existed. They asked whether the promotion of tourism had resulted in an increase in prostitution, and further information was requested about the connection between prostitution and the human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS).
36. Regarding article 7, concern was expressed at the low number of women in politics despite the Government's commitment to the advancement of women, despite a high,percentage of women being literate and educated and despite a high percentage of women voters. Other questions asked were whether women did not want to get into leadership positions, why there were so many women's organizations, whether women's organizations were trying to make women aware of their political responsibility, whether political parties had sought to increase the number of women members and whether women themselves would not join efforts to present their candidacies and promote other women candidates. Members inquired about the reasons for the fluctuating voting pattern of women between 1966 and 1986, and asked whether the members of the Senate were elected or appointed. If appointed, why had the Government not appointed more women.

37. On article 8, members commented on the low representation of women in the diplomatic service. They asked whether any programmes were being carried out to encourage women to enter it and to reach the upper echelons.
38. Regarding article 9, members welcomed the Government's intention to revise the discriminatory nationality law.
39. Regarding article 10/ members were impressed by the low rate of illiteracy. They requested statistics on the percentage of enrolment in secondary and tertiary education broken down by sex. They asked which percentage of public schools followed a coeducational system, why the percentage of girls who studied commerce was so high and whether there were plans to include sex education and family planning in school curricula.
40. On article 11, questions were asked about the economic situation of the many female-headed households and the availability of government welfare programmes. Members inquired whether there was a legal provision regarding equal pay for work of equal value. They wanted more information on the Legal Aid Scheme. It was not clear whether it corresponded to the institution of ombudsman or to availability of legal assistance. Appreciation was expressed at the inclusion of agricultural work into the gross domestic product. Members asked whether there was a set annual rate of contribution to the pension scheme, and what share was paid by the employers and what share by the employees. In case of dismissal on the grounds of pregnancy, the question was asked whether women who were given redress could take up their former occupation or whether they received only financial compensation. Also, they asked whether laws prohibited employment discrimination against pregnant applicants for jobs. Members inquired whether the maternity leave of 12 weeks was granted at full pay. One member welcomed the frank assessment in the report that it was difficult to provide for nursing facilities for breast-feeding mothers at the workplace. Several members commented on the over-protective character of measures regarding the safety and health of women at the workplace and asked whether night-work for women was forbidden. They also wanted to know whether there were plans to offer a tax discount to single women heads-of-households.
41. On article 12, clarification was sought about the legality of abortion and as to whether the problem of clandestine abortion had been eliminated. The question was asked whether information on family-planning services and contraceptives was available to teenagers and adolescents, whether they were free of charge and whether women had access to family-planning advice without the husband's consent. Questions were asked about the female mortality rate and the reasons for mortality.
42. On article 13, members expressed concern at the provision according to which normally only the husband had access to children's allowances.
43. Concerning article 14, clarification was sought as to whether rural or urban women were involved in agriculture and whether there was any distinction regarding school education for rural women.

44. Under article 16, questions were asked on whether specific legislation empowered the courts with respect to property rights in common-law relationships, why so many couples lived in common-law relationships, whether a man could simultaneously enter into a legal marital union and a common-law union, thus having two wives, through which procedure could a child born out of wedlock be legitimized, which family name children born out of wedlock were given and what the situation was regarding family names of the spouses and the children within a legal marital union. Members inquired whether the dowry system existed. They questioned whether it was realistic that the law foresaw only one ground for divorce, whether there were female judges and whether judges tried to reconcile the parties in a divorce. Other questions concerned the definition of the breaking down of a marriage, whether it had to be on moral, economic or emotional grounds, and whether the judge could decide on the continuation of maintenance of children beyond the age of 18 years.
45. In replying to the questions raised, the representative of the Government mentioned that some of the misunderstanding of the situation in the country stemmed from cultural, historical and political differences. It was also stated, in response to specific questions, that Barbados had a bicameral system. The members of the House of Assembly were elected, while the members of the Senate were appointed. The representative stated that many women, as much as men, avoided participation in active politics. Regarding subsequent questions under article 16 concerning the high percentage of women-headed households, the representative said that that percentage was related partly to common-law relationships and partly to divorce cases. Theoretically it was possible for a man to have a wife married to him and a common-law spouse. But the smallness of the country and the active "quakevine" tended to preclude such a practice. Previously, children born out of wedlock had to assume their mother's name; currently they could also take their father's name. Professional women sometimes kept their maiden name.
46. The representative of Barbados, having noted the concern expressed by members of the Committee over the protective legislation in favour of women, said that so far there had been no complaints in that area. She noted that although men might wish to have both a wife and a common-law relationship, bigamy was a criminal offence. For the section on tourism, she explained that almost an equal proportion of men and women were employed in the tourist industry; women were actively involved in the service, accommodation and promotional areas; the director of the Board of Tourism was a woman; and women were also managers of a large proportion of hotels and guest houses.
47. Turning to questions raised under articles 2 and 3, the representative said that attempts were being made to change the provision of section 23 of the Constitution, which dealt with protection from discrimination, however without specifying sex. Referring to other questions, she said that the Convention was not considered to be directly part of national law and could, therefore, not be directly referred to by the courts. The office of the Ombudsman had been set up to deal with complaints surrounding the public service, which were referred to it through recognized procedures, and it published an annual report on its work. Women could make use of the courts whenever their rights were infringed. The National Commission, which had been established in 1976, had completed its task in 1978 and had been replaced by the National Advisory Council of Women. She circulated to the members of the

Committee a document containing the 212 recommendations of the National Commission, which had been prepared for the Bureau of Women's Affairs for the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace, held at Nairobi in 1985. Those recommendations had all been accepted and acted upon by the Government, and they constituted the basis for the National Plan of Action. Since 1970, there had been a Ministry for Women's Affairs, of which the Bureau of Women's Affairs formed a part. The Bureau, and several women's organizations as well, provided legal aid for women.
48. In replying to questions raised in connection with the large number of households headed by single women, she explained that they might be the result of a divorce, of a visiting relationship where the father bore the responsibility for the maintenance of the children or of a union in which the father had abdicated his family responsibilities. She also said that historically the legacy of slavery had discouraged permanent family unions and marriage. In cases of divorce, reciprocal maintenance obligations existed for the spouse and the children, whereas in the case of visiting relationships women were mostly working outside the home and were assisted by the father and, if not, support could be enforced through the courts or obtained from the Welfare Services.
49. Regarding the issue of violence against women, as referred to in questions under article 5, she said that there was domestic violence and violence related to several offences committed against women and children of either sex. Any kind of violence was a criminal offence and the perpetrator was put under criminal law sanctions. Also, the assaulted victim could sue the perpetrator in a civil lawsuit. The proposed legislation dealing with domestic violence, harassment and sexual offences had been recommended by the National Commission and was currently in the final stages of debate in Parliament. It allowed for counselling of the victim, the perpetrator and family members, and for protective measures. She mentioned shelters for battered women, a telephone hotline crisis service and a mass-media programme, and said that efforts were being made to collect gender-based statistics on violence.
50. On article 6, neither the Board of Tourism nor a university study of the phenomenon had concluded that there was a linkage between tourism and prostitution. Although she admitted that prostitution existed in Barbados, she said that it had not reached the proportions of "sex tourism". The Government and several agencies provided skills training for young women, thus providing employment prospects for them in order to prevent them from being drawn into prostitution. The conviction of a person under the Vagrancy Act was not left to the arbitrary decision of a magistrate, it was done following normal court procedures based on evidence as any other court case. Trafficking in women was not currently evident in the country, and the immigration department closely controlled any entries. Seminars were being held for preventing drug abuse by young people, and rehabilitation for drug offenders was available through the hospital services.
51. Turning to article 7, the representative said that women were indeed actively involved in politics and decision-making. They used their force and were politically very much aware; they canvassed and campaigned. The two main

reasons for the low representation of women in Parliament were women's fear of the disruption of family life by holding public office and the rigorous nature of political campaigning. For those reasons, women hesitated to offer themselves as candidates for elections, and a quota system would not make any changes in the short term. She said that the Committee's pertinent observations on the low number of women in public office would be brought to the attention of the appropriate authorities. She added, however, that the head of State was a woman. Regarding the query concerning the high number of women's organizations, women chose the organizations to which they wanted to be affiliated. They identified issues of national concern and often initiated action. The Government provided subventions to women's organizations, which promoted the cause of women, and supported a programme for furthering young women's careers. The umbrella body was the National Organization of Women, through which policy matters could be channelled for the attention of the Government.
52. On article 9, the representative reported that women's organizations and the Government were currently reviewing the law concerning citizenship.
53. Referring to article 10, she said that all schools, with the exception of three public secondary schools, were coeducational. Students selected the subjects they wished to pursue, and family life education was a regular feature in secondary schools and youth organizations.
54. On article 11, it was reported that by law there was equal pay for work of equal value; however, in practice that law was not strictly observed, as
in other countries. She explained the four different pension schemes and said that the court decision in case of unfair dismissal on grounds of pregnancy might result in compensation or in reinstatement. She was unaware of complaints from pregnant applicants for jobs. During the 12-weeks maternity leave the employee received a full salary. The legislation concerning protective measures regarding safety and health at the workplace applied equally to women and men. All women in case of need could resort to the Legal Aid Scheme, which had been established by the Government and was supplemented by a legal aid project for women funded by the Inter-American Commission of Women of the Organization of American States. Legal aid was free of charge for applicants unable to meet the cost.
55. Referring to article 12, she stated that termination of pregnancy was permitted by law in special circumstances prior to, and up to a duration of, 12 weeks. Seminars were being held to educate young people, and contraceptive information and facilities were readily available. She also said that the HIV/AIDS scare and public information seemed to have led to a reduction in teenage pregnancies. Figures on the female mortality rate, which was very low, would be provided in subsequent reports.
56. Turning to article 13, it was reported that low-income persons were exempted from income tax. The provision according to which only the husband had access to children's allowances referred only to the filing of income tax returns and not to actual maintenance.

57. Under article 14, the representative stated that both rural and urban women were involved in agriculture; women could also own and operate their own farms and agricultural enterprises, Rural and urban children had equal access to school education.
58. On article 16, it was reported that the Family Law Act of 1981 recognized a common-law relationship to the extent that, on separation, the parties had an enforceable right to maintenance and property distribution. Children born out of wedlock were regarded as the children of both parents and had the same rights as children born within a marital union. The dowry system had never existed in Barbados. Divorce was based on an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage evidenced by a 12 months' separation. The Government provided counselling and reconciliation services. Support for children was normally offered up to the age of 18, but might continue depending on specific circumstances.
59. Members expressed their gratitude to the representative for having answered the questions. However, considering that Barbadian women scarcely participated in political life and there was no quota system to provide incentives, some members observed that women were generally utilized in political campaigns and that something had to be done to remedy that situation. The representative commented that the participation of women in political life was a recent phenomenon. As women were hesitant to go into active politics, it would take some time to see significant changes in that respect. However, the strategies adopted by the Bureau of Women's Affairs and the consciousness-raising seminars were showing positive results, which would be reflected in the subsequent periodic report.
60. Regarding a comment made on whether development aid reached women and women's organizations, the representative explained that women could have direct access to such aid through their organizations, provided that their project proposals were in harmony with the national development aid programme.
61. With respect to a comment made with regard to battering and rape, she said that not only the female victim could claim protection, but also a third party on behalf of the victim.
62. Members had asked for more information on the situation of female-headed households, but she said that it was certainly difficult for outsiders to understand that situation in the Caribbean. For centuries women had had to handle that burden as a legacy of slavery, and they did it very well. The extended family was an essential family-support mechanism. As, owing to current developments, that support was fading away, the Government was trying to ensure regular day-care facilities, which should correspond to a set standard. She emphasized that the single female heads-of-household were not disadvantaged. For instance, recent information showed that about 60 per cent of all mortgages were granted to women. She also mentioned a certain magazine that highlighted on a continual basis the different roles played by women in society.
63. Referring to a request for clarifying the steps to be taken and the fields in which efforts should be concentrated to further improve the status

of women in Barbados, the representative enumerated a number of areas in which assistance would be needed. The first one was to try to absorb the shock of the current structural adjustment situation, which would have negative effects, especially on female-headed households. Others were the problem of violence against women; the additional resources needed for carrying on the leadership-training programmes for facilitating entry into political life for women; and the strengthening of the Bureau of Women's Affairs, which had scarce financial and human resources. The Bureau also needed assistance for collecting and reorganizing statistical data and for doing research, especially as it was currently drawing on the university's support in that respect. Furthermore, help was requested from women's organizations to guide women and to motivate them to take strong action and to get more involved in political activities.
64. In concluding observations, the Committee expressed its appreciation for
the content, the structure and the frankness of the report and its
illustrative annexes. It demonstrated clearly the Government's political will
to eliminate the obstacles to the advancement of women. The activities of
non-governmental organizations to further the status of women had been noted.
Considering the high percentage of women voters and the low participation of
women in political life, members were satisfied to see that the Government was
conscious of the problems. All the points raised had been clarified by the
representative and the steps taken by the Bureau of Women's Affairs were
specially welcomed. Members noted that the government offices were of the
view that prostitution in Barbados did not lead to sex tourism. They also
noted that the high percentage of female single heads-of-household was due to
historical reasons, but that none the less the Government was going to assist
those women, especially in relation to economic adjustment problems. They
pointed out that the main fields of work of the Bureau required international
assistance and hoped that' foreign agencies and international organizations
would help Barbadian women to overcome the economic crisis and assist the
country in research on the effect of structural adjustment on women's lives.
It would be gratifying if the international community could thus benefit from
the findings. Special praise was given to the Head of State.
Ghana
65. The Committee considered the combined initial and second periodic report
of Ghana (CEDAW/C/GHA/1-3) at its 191st and 194th meetings on 21 and
23 January 1992.
66. The representative of Ghana, in introducing the report, emphasized that societal and cultural attitudes remained major obstacles to the achievement of full de facto equality between men and women. After giving an overview of the demographic and economic situation in the country and its political and legal system, the representative outlined the measures taken by Ghana to implement the Convention in the light of the situation of women in the country and of the specific culture and values.
67. Despite the progress made in de jure equality, women continued to be discriminated against because of their arduous economic and domestic duties in a society characterized by high fertility rates, lower standards of education

and health and a concentration of the female labour force in the informal sector. The traditional inferior status of women was reinforced by the predominance of marriages under some form of customary law that limited women's rights. Discrimination manifested itself also at the level of decision-making, from which women were largely absent.
68. There had been encouraging achievements however in the legal and constitutional fields, as well as through policies, programmes and projects. The new draft Constitution of Ghana currently under consideration included extensive proposals to raise the status of women. In particular, it contained provisions guaranteeing the property rights of women in marriage and less discriminatory conditions for the acquisition of citizenship through marriage. The Ghanaian national machinery for the advancement of women, the National Council of Women and Development, had been closely associated with developing those constitutional proposals. The work of the National Council of Women in Development, which was moving from a project approach to the integration of women's concerns into the policies, plans and programmes of key sectoral ministries, was complemented by the activities of different non-governmental organizations.
69. In commenting on the various articles, the representative of Ghana drew the attention of members of the Committee to several governmental or non-governmental programmes and projects, such as affirmative action in the field of education, the primary health-care programme targeting women and children and a range of income-generating projects, particularly in rural areas. The representative also described new legislation introduced in the field of intestate succession and the registration of customary marriage and divorce. Such programmes had improved women's rights but were not adequately known and taken advantage of by women.
70. In its general comments, the Committee expressed its appreciation of the fact that Ghana had ratified the Convention without reservation, and its frank and comprehensive report giving a clear picture of the real situation of women in Ghana as well as obstacles to the improvement of their status. The efforts made by Ghana to overcome discrimination and the priority given to health, education and changing attitudes were praised, especially in the light of the difficult economic conditions faced by Ghana. Members underlined the active role of the National Council of Women in Development and welcomed its new orientation towards integrating women's concerns into macro-level policies and programmes. More information was requested on the law under which Ghana had been ruled since the suspension of the 1979 Constitution.
71. Members expressed their concern about the persistence of polygamy, discriminatory inheritance systems, high female illiteracy and maternal mortality. They also noted the lack of recognition and value placed on women's work in rural areas, and the new threat of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Members would have welcomed more statistics on changes in the de facto situation of women, and asked why the number of female-headed households was increasing.

72. Members acknowledged that the report had to be viewed against a background of specific cultural attitudes, which had a bearing on the situation of women in Ghana and the coexistence of different systems of laws.
73. Noting the importance of the tasks facing Ghana, members stated that the National Council of Women in Development and non-governmental organizations had an important role to play in complementing government action. They expressed concern however that the link between those organizations and the National Council of Women in Development should remain flexible and that coordination between non-governmental organizations should take into account their respective mandates. Members hoped that the Fourth World Conference on Women would serve as a target and an impetus for achieving results, and wished to be kept informed. With regard to international aid, members asked whether women had the opportunity of participating in decisions on the allocation of development aid.
74. Referring to article 2, members inquired whether it would be possible to reduce customary laws that discriminated against women and to move towards only one legal system.
75. Turning to article 3, they asked whether the Government had provided incentives such as training or other measures for women to work outside the home. With regard to Ghana's national machinery for the advancement of women, members suggested that it be given more power and money in a process of decentralization and inquired about its organization and budget.
76. On article 4, members welcomed the reference in Ghana's oral presentation to the introduction, on a temporary basis, of special measures to accelerate equality between men and women. They noted the ongoing re-examination of all civil codes in order to repeal provisions discriminating against women, and inquired about the timetable for the exercise and the likelihood that any proposed changes would be accepted. Pointing out that such measures were permanent and thus did not fall under article 4, members sought the understanding of the Government of Ghana of that article.
77. Under article 5, Committee members expressed concern about the persistence of cruel widowhood rites. They sought more information on such rites, their impact on women and the frequency of their occurrence. They inquired about programmes to eliminate those rights, and asked whether they targeted men also. Members asked about the existence of other rites involving violence against women and asked about customary divorce, customary funeral rites and polygamous marriages. They inquired whether the Government had a medium-term plan to eradicate at least the most harmful customary practices for women, and asked whether political leaders had spoken out against such practices.
78. In their additional questions, members inquired about programmes to change stereotyping of women's role and behaviour, and about the success of such programmes. The Committee asked whether non-governmental organizations and women themselves in Ghana struggled against stereotyping, and whether the Convention had been invoked in steps to abolish it. Members expressed the wish to learn more about the Government's future plans for law reform and education programmes to promote societal changes of women's rights and status. They

also wondered if there was a way to reconcile de jure rights with the actual social situation of women. Members asked how it was possible that, even in the societal communities where matriarchal principles prevailed, the situation of women was so precarious.
79. Turning to article 6, the Committee asked about research on the root causes of prostitution in Ghana. A query was raised about the number of women practising prostitution, about the existence of legislative protective provisions on that matter and whether women prostitutes had access to prophylactic methods and information. Members of the Committee also asked whether new actions had been taken since the 1980 national consultation on prostitution and inquired in particular about programmes for the economic reintegration of prostitutes. In relation to general recommendation 15, members asked if Ghana had implemented programmes to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS among prostitutes and to assist those who were HIV/AIDS infected. They asked about any practical measure taken to deal with young women sent into prostitution to foreign countries, and sought information on the legislation against trafficking of young women and its effectiveness.
80. In relation to article 7, members asked if there were any plans for or discussions on affirmative action to increase the representation of women in politics. They also asked whether there was any governmental activity aiming, through educational programmes, to promote changes in attitudes to encourage women's participation in economic and social planning. Members asked if non-governmental organizations played a role in promoting and educating women and in giving political support for women's participation in politics. They inquired whether the percentage of women judges and magistrates had increased since 1984.
81. Concerning article 9, members sought clarification on laws determining the nationality of children.
82. With regard to article 10, they queried the reasons for the little use of family planning by Ghanaian women and the respective roles of cultural patterns, economic necessity and low coverage of family-planning services and education. Members asked what efforts had been made in the area of school and community education on family planning.
83. Stressing the importance of literacy, members inquired about programmes carried out by the National Council of Women in Development to overcome shortages of books. A query was raised about the increase in the absolute number of females aged 6 and above who had never attended school. Members expressed the desire to know whether education was free at all levels. They wished to have more recent statistics on the number of child-care centres, as well as on their financial costs and asked whether the Government had considered lower-cost alternative arrangements for child care,
84. Turning to article 11, members asked in which activities self-employed women were engaged. While the number of female employees in the public sector of the economy was low, they felt that a law guaranteeing equal opportunity at work for placement, promotion, retirement and working conditions would be useful. They also asked whether Ghanaian legislation for equal pay referred

to "equal pay for work of equal value" or to "equal pay for equal work". With reference to general recommendation 17, they asked whether or not the Government had collected data on unremunerated domestic activities.
85. In relation to article 12, members inquired about information campaigns on the spread of HIV/AIDS, sexual education at schools, promotion of preventive measures, such as safe sex, programmes to train traditional midwives and family-planning education targeting men. Female genital mutilation was discussed and members asked whether there had been information programmes on the particular danger for women, as well as programmes to combat or at least reduce female genital mutilation. They also wanted to know what the implications of reduced access to the health system in the context of economic difficulties had been for women and children. A query was made about the percentage of female doctors.
86. In commenting on article 16, members asked about the number of single women and expressed the desire to know whether or not those women could find a job to support an independent life. Noting the coexistence of different types of laws, they requested more information on the number of women living under the different systems of legislation and on the implication of traditional laws for the status of women. A query was made about the possibilities of moving from one type of marriage to another and the right of women to choose which type of marriage they wished. Members also asked how the Government intended to deal with customary law in the long run, whether that could be done within one generation and whether the Government intended to give priority to education. They also wondered whether changes in the status of women and children under customary law would be welcome. The initiative of Ghana to pass a law dealing with certain problems of women under customary marriage, in particular intestate succession and widowhood practices, was welcomed. Some members asked whether legislation had been passed to deal with wife-beating, and questions were asked relating to problems of maintenance and property rights of children under customary law.
87. In relation to the enjoyment and disposition of property in article 16, members referred to succession patterns, and noted that new intestate succession laws did not seem to be observed. They wondered if all women, especially the younger generations, accepted customary limitations on a wife's right to her husband's property. They also asked for clarification of the reference made to "maternal inheritance to stool" in paragraph 57 of the report.
88. In replying to questions raised by members* the representative of Ghana stated that the lack of available data had made it difficult for the delegation to provide statistics on a number of issues.
89. Responding to general questions raised by members, she gave some clarification of the fundamental law governing Ghana since the suspension of the 1979 Constitution. Most of the general provisions of the 1979 Constitution had been re-enacted by the Provisional National Defence Council Law 42, which had suspended the Constitution. Answering a question on the increasing number of female-headed households, she said it was caused mainly by male emigration, male irresponsibility and the breakdown of marriages due to economic and other factors. An additional factor was that many educated and economically independent women desired to have children out of wedlock.

90. Turning to article 2 and the question of the possibility of moving towards a unified system of law, she stated that there had been an ongoing effort to minimize the conflicts between State and traditional law. When such conflicts occurred, State law prevailed.
91. On article 3, in reply to a question on measures to encourage women to work outside their homes, she noted that Ghanaian women had always been economically active both inside and outside the home, until beyond the official retirement age of 60, because of the concentration of the labour force in agriculture and the informal sector.
92. Answering additional questions under article 3, she provided the Committee with information on the Ghanaian national machinery for the advancement of women. The National Council on Women and Development was an autonomous government agency that reported to the Government. Its budget in 1992 was about $US 400,000. A 15-member Council supervised the work programme of the organization. The Council included both male and female members and representatives of key sectoral ministries and was chaired by the Ghanaian expert currently serving on the Committee. Current activities were carried out by a national secretariat, of which she was the head. The national secretariat has 10 departments in charge of plans and policy analysis, human resource development, aid and project coordination, research, statistics and management information, finance and administration. There were regional and district offices. The National Council on Women and Development was increasingly working with and through non-governmental organizations and coordinated their efforts. Its major concerns included awareness-raising for women and for society as a whole, increased visibility of women in public and political life, increased government support to the private sector and maximization of funds available to women's groups engaged in gender-specific activities.
93. Regarding article 4, she said that the Government had no stated position, but was willing to institute temporary measures when necessary. She gave examples, such as the allocation of seats to women and women's groups in the Consultative Assembly, which was drafting a new Constitution for the country. In reply to a question on the time-frame for a revision of legislation discriminating against women, she noted that there was no stated time-frame but the interest of the Law Reform Commission and other bodies gave hope that action would be taken on the matter as early as possible. Subsequent revisions could be expected given the goodwill of the Government, illustrated by its acceptance of the proposals of the National Council on Women and Development for the new draft Constitution. Discrimination was however embedded in the society, and not only in its laws.
94. Regarding article 5 and questions asked by the Committee on widowhood rites, she informed the Committee that those varied from one ethnic group to another. She gave examples of such rites, which included physical offences, shaving the heads of widows and insults by the family-in-law. There had been cases of women successfully contesting such offences in court. Answering questions on action taken to combat such rites, she said that there were vigorous campaigns by the Government, the National Council on Women and Development and non-governmental organizations for ethnic groups to abandon

such practices. Educational campaigns on that matter were directed at both men and women. Several male traditional rulers had accepted the legislation on widowhood rites and subsequently issued edicts. In reply to a question on the statistical frequency of violence against women, she stated that, while the incidence of such rites was acknowledged in Ghana, it was currently difficult to obtain reliable data on it due to sociocultural and economic constraints. On whether the Government had a plan to eradicate traditional practices harmful to women, she mentioned the National Council on Women and Development's medium- and long-term plan to strengthen measures to change such practices. Turning to stereotyping and a question on governmental support to campaigns by non-governmental organizations against it, she mentioned that the Government had over the years supported such organizations through the allocation of subventions. No statistics were available on the amounts involved. In reply to a question on the success of campaigns to change the moral values of society, she recognized that the programmes had been moderately successful and that efforts were being pursued throughout the country. She also noted that the ideas and realities about women's traditional dependence on men were slowly changing as a result of women's increasing role in the economic maintenance of the household. Turning to a question on women's perception of their situation under traditional law in general, she mentioned that studies being undertaken by the Government, the national machinery and universities on that issue revealed women's displeasure with several of the traditional practices. In response to the Committee's queries on the situation of women in matriarchal communities, the representative stated for the record that any reference to "matriarchal and patriarchal" in the report should read "matrilineal and patrilineal". Matrilineal inheritance occurred in Ghana essentially under the "patriarchal system of control", which actually limited the rights of women. Around 40 per cent of the population was under the matrilineal system and 60 per cent under the patrilineal.
95. With regard to prostitution under article 6, she informed the Committee that research had been carried out on its causes. It was often economic necessity that pushed many women into prostitution. Longer-term measures to reduce prostitution had included programmes to encourage unemployed women to attend training courses and school programmes to increase future economic independence. On the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS among prostitutes, she mentioned educational programmes carried out in particular by the Ministry of Health, the National Council on Women and Development, non-governmental organizations and church groups. There was also a national programme to provide prostitutes with contraceptives.
96. She answered the Committee's question on the efficiency of legislation against trafficking in young women by indicating that, due to the nature of the problem, it was difficult to ensure the effectiveness of legislation in that respect. However, the law did not spare culprits. On a question on programmes addressing trafficking in young women, she pointed out that Ghanaian consulates provided such services as legal aid and repatriation to women victims of prostitution or trafficking. Such services were however provided only for cases brought to the attention of the consulates, which represented limited numbers, owing to the fear of repatriation or the preference for avoiding official interference in personal matters.

97. On article 7, she answered a query about practical measures to increase women's participation in public and political life, stressing that educational activities and awareness programmes had been carried out by the National Council on Women and Development and non-governmental organizations to pursue that goal. In reply to a question on the allocation of development aid, she stressed that aid coordination in Ghana was undertaken by the International Economic Relations Division of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, where a number of women served in very high decision-making positions. The National Council on Women and Development was also represented on a national body coordinating decisions on the allocation of aid, and had a unit especially in charge of ensuring that women benefited from donor-assisted projects.
98. Regarding article 8 and the clarification asked about the nationality of the child, the representative referred to the Provisional National Defence Council Law 42, which had suspended the Constitution. It stipulated that a person born in Ghana would become a citizen of Ghana if either of his parents or grandparents was or had been a citizen of Ghana. A person born outside Ghana would be a citizen of Ghana if either of his parents was a citizen of Ghana. A child below 16 years of age could obtain Ghanaian nationality through adoption by a citizen of Ghana.
99. Turning to article 10 and the question of the limited use of family planning, she explained that the low use of family planning was due to the high premium placed on child-bearing and the fact that many rural families needed large families for economic activities. Family-planning education was readily available and programmes had been implemented by a number of national and international agencies to sensitize society to the advantages of spacing births and of smaller families. On education and literacy, she confirmed that tuition was free at all levels. Answering a question on the increased number of girls aged 6 and above who had never attended school, she pointed out that the proportion of uneducated girls had been decreasing, while the absolute numbers increased. She also indicated that the economic difficulties had forced many parents to withdraw their children from school and introduce them to small trading on local markets. In answer to a question on action to provide reading materials to the Ghanaians, she pointed out that such material in English and major local languages had been designed and produced as part of the efforts to eradicate illiteracy. A newsletter by the National Council on Women and Development, textbooks and other reading materials for basic or other types of education were also available. In reply to a question on child care, she pointed out that creches sponsored by individuals or groups of individuals complemented those sponsored by the Government and non-governmental organizations. The latter tended to be cheaper than the former, since they received subsidies. Extended families continued to play an important role in child care.
100. On article 11 and a question on self-employment, she mentioned small-scale industries, such as food-processing and crafts, agriculture and petty trading, as some of the main activities involved. Referring to the members' views that a law guaranteeing the rights of women at work was necessary, she said that the Labour Decree and Industrial Relations Act, among others, provided for maternity leave and job security during pregnancy. The

ILO Convention (No. 45) concerning the Employment of Women in Underground Work in Mines of all Kinds had also been ratified. Answering a query on equal pay for work of equal value, she informed the Committee that the legislation of Ghana referred to "equal pay for equal work". On the issue of measurement of unremunerated housework, she said that the Ghanaian Statistical Service was working to improve its statistics on the gross national product (GNP) and particularly on household income.
101. In relation to article 12, she answered questions on programmes for the prevention of AIDS. Such programmes were being implemented by the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health and religious organizations. Turning to the Committee's concern to combat female circumcision, she stated that considerable efforts and resources were being employed by the Government and the National Council on Women and Development. They included educational programmes, seminars and discussions on the harmful effects of female circumcision. Non-governmental organizations were also active in the field, and she gave the example of the Association for Women's Welfare, which had it as one of its main priorities.
102. Answering questions under article 16, she gave clarifications on the situation of single women. Their number was difficult to estimate but it was clearly increasing. With regard to their ability to earn an independent living, she noted that they were free to engage in any remunerative activities.
103. Turning to questions on the coexistence of different systems of law related to marriage, she added much information. Women were largely free to opt for the marriage of their choice. Answering a query about legislation on wife-battering, she said that, while it was generally condoned in traditional society, it was an offence punishable under the Criminal Code.
104. She answered a question on action to increase awareness of the intestate succession law. There were a number of educational programmes being carried out by the National Council on Women and Development throughout the country. For example, posters had been distributed to encourage women to make a will. In addition, legal literacy programmes were conducted by non-governmental and international organisations. In response to the Committee's request, she clarified the concept of "maternal inheritance to stool". When a chief died in a matrilineal society, she explained, the throne (stool) was given to his sister's son, or if he did not have a sister, to a maternal cousin's son.
105. In concluding, the Chairperson expressed the appreciation of the Committee for the frankness of the report on Ghana. The Committee praised the efforts made to organize the report and to present numerous aspects of the situation of women. That was especially laudable because Ghana was a developing country. The report and the discussions had showed that problems being faced by women in Ghana were related to tradition and customary practices. The Committee noted with great appreciation the efforts made to review the codes. Illiteracy remained one of the problems faced by women and was linked to social, cultural and historical situations. The Committee noted the lack of statistics and the attempts made by the Government of Ghana to provide more statistics on different aspects of the situation of women. The Committee praised the programme of the National Council on Women and

Development to overcome discrimination against women, and particularly the efforts to increase the number of women in decision-making positions and to raise awareness. It stressed the importance of the Government's support for that programme and noted that there was awareness of the problems faced by-women by those in charge of their fate.
Honduras
106. The Committee considered the initial, second and third periodic reports of Honduras (CEDAW/C/Add.44, CEDAW/C/13/Add.9 and Amend.1 and CEDAW/C/HON/3) at its 193rd and 196th meetings, on 22 and 24 January 1992 (see CEDAW/C/SR.193 and 190).
107. In introducing the report, the representative of Honduras stated that recently many reforms had been carried out. As they had not been reflected in the third periodic report, she was concentrating in her presentation on the developments that had taken place since the date of that report. She said that 60 per cent of her country lived in rural areas and that, since 1979, the country had been suffering from economic difficulties. Many women from rural areas were currently working for very low wages in the urban informal sector. Most rural women carried out unpaid domestic activities. Lack of firewood caused by deforestation and shortage in water supplies because of erosion and other factors had a direct impact on the status of women, although the Government was making great efforts through the social compensation system to integrate more women in remunerative activities or to encourage them to take advantage of educational and training programmes.
108. The representative stated further that her country had been the hardest hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Central America. The highest percentage of HIV/AIDS cases were to be found among women and men in the age bracket of
16 to 35 years, which is the reproductive age. The Government was trying to educate public health officials through seminars and workshops. It was carrying out general educational campaigns and provided training to women teachers regarding sex education and sexually transmitted diseases. The national AIDS control programme directed many medical and psychological support programmes specifically for women. In addition, there were national programmes regarding sex education and basic health needs specifically for rural women, including information on sexually transmitted diseases.
109. According to the representative, rural training activities were carried
out with a view to integrating rural women into the productive process. She
mentioned that for the acquisition of land the only requirement was to be a
Honduran citizen, male or female, over the age of 16 if unmarried; of any age
if married, in a de facto union or without family dependants. A Social
Development Office (GADES), created in 1986 by the Government to lend
assistance to the social sectors, had decided to include among its specific
objectives the integration of women into programmes for the grant and
ownership of rural and urban lands. The representative also referred to the
possibility of introducing legal reforms, such as amendments to the
Labour Code and the Penal Code, pointing out that the Social Security Laws and the Law on Agrarian Reform had recently been amended. The representative also said that efforts were being made to establish cooperatives with the aim of

supplying basic commodities at acceptable prices. As an example she referred to the cooperatives set up to use the vouchers for female heads-of-household introduced for the benefit of children and mothers living in extreme poverty. The representative also mentioned a social compensation programme for women in the informal sector and for marginalized women in rural and urban areas. Rural women were also beginning to get involved in environmental protection. Reforms of school textbooks were being carried out with the assistance of international agencies in order to eliminate stereotyping.
110. Members of the Committee expressed their thanks to the representative of Honduras for being present and for introducing the report in such a sincere and informative way and for the additional information provided. They congratulated the Government on having presented a much-improved third periodic report and expressed appreciation for the efforts undertaken by the Government despite the prevailing difficult political and economic situation, and for the positive developments that had been taking place since the ratification of the Convention. It was evident that the Convention had had a visible impact on the Government's policy to enhance the status of women and had led to the amendment of a number of laws in their favour. The members also appreciated the measures undertaken by the Government to improve the lives of rural women, who had been involved in conducting agrarian reforms and were currently heading rural projects. However, members asked about the existence of a national machinery or similar body to promote the advancement of women, the dissemination of the Convention and its implementation. They were concerned at the magnitude of the problem of HIV/AIDS. Another point raised by the Committee referred to the distribution of foreign aid that was often done by men's committees and, consequently, did not cater to the needs of women. The question was asked whether and how women would be able to take part in the distribution of foreign aid funds.
111. Regarding article 2, members asked whether the assertion in the report that in connection with rape "the physical and organic damage and the moral trauma engendered in a 'male victim may be more serious than in a woman" was the result of a study or a prejudicial concept. They also inquired whether there were plans to reform the Penal Code with regard to the sanctions for the murder of a spouse for adultery, which amounted to only 4-6 years. The government representative was asked to provide the text of the law that gave women a preferential right over the salary, wages or income of their husbands.
112. On article 3, members observed that a change in legislation was not sufficient for combating discrimination against women. It was important to implement the related laws by concrete measures. Although the third periodic report referred to a set of measures, there did not seem to be a plan of action behind them or a national machinery to carry them out. They also pointed out that the discrepancies in wages for men and women persisted and asked which programmes had been undertaken to eliminate that inequality.
113. Under article 4, members asked why so far no temporary special measures had been undertaken to ensure de facto equality between women and men. Further clarification was sought regarding maternity benefits, and the question was asked why maternity benefits were mentioned under article 4 of the Convention although that constituted a basic right.

114. On article 5, more information was requested on legislation to protect women against violence of various forms or other violations of human rights. Members asked whether support services, information and training programmes to face violence existed, and they requested statistics on the frequency of various forms of violence. Other questions asked were whether there were attempts to coordinate activities with women's groups and non-governmental organizations, what was being done to protect migrant women and whether there were special programmes for refugee women. More information was sought on legislation with regard to the punishment of sexual harassment and its application.
115. Under article 6, more information was requested on the prostitution of minors, on the effectiveness of any related measures and the number of cases taken to court. Questions asked were how many and what kind of women engaged in prostitution and whether any plans existed to establish contact with non-governmental organizations to protect women from violence and abuse. It was noted that the report made no reference to AIDS programmes directed at prostitutes. Some members wanted to know whether female prostitutes received the same protection by law against violence and rape as other women.
116. On article 7, questions asked were what the citizenship status of Hondurans under the age of 18 was and whether the interdiction for active service personnel in the armed forces to exercise their right to vote did not constitute a discrimination of a certain section of the population.
117. Under article 9, information on the nationality rights of children was requested.
118. Regarding article 10, statistics were requested on the number of girls attending middle schools and universities.
119. On article 11, clarification was sought on the long duration of maternity leave and its compulsory character, and the question was asked whether the provisions contained in the Labour Code implied that women were considered intellectually and morally the weaker sex. Information was requested on any laws that guaranteed equality of women and men at the workplace, and on equality with regard to job assignment, salaries and career prospects. Members inquired about the number of women who attended professional training courses, about any actions undertaken by labour unions for guaranteeing equal employment opportunities for women and about the percentage of women in the labour force broken down by sector. A question was asked concerning the degree to which women participated in the production process and to which way they were protected against dismissal on the grounds of pregnancy. Questions were asked as to whether article 124 of the Labour Code referring to the prohibition of the termination of a pregnant woman's work contract did not, in practice, work against women, especially if women did not have the resources to resort to the courts.
120. On article 12, questions were raised about obstetric conditions of women, maternal and child health, family planning and contraception, about the results of any related health programmes, about statistics on clandestine abortions and about the number of deaths as a result of unlawful clandestine abortions. Another question asked was whether women were free to practise family planning and whether women were reluctant to refer to health counselling.

121. Regarding article 14, clarification was requested on the thrust of the Government's programme for rural women. The question was asked whether they were treated as equal to men or simply as helpmates. Members inquired about the state of health of, and the health protection for, rural women and about education in family planning. They asked whether there were programmes to encourage the establishment of agricultural cooperatives, which would be a way for women to become economically independent.
122. On article 15, the question was asked as to whether the new Family Code abolished the husband's right to decide on the conjugal residence or whether it did away with the husband being head of household. Experts also inquired whether there was a campaign in Honduras for the repeal of the provision regarding homicide in case of adultery.
123. On article 16, clarification was requested on the order of the legitimate guardianship of minors, on the administration of the family patrimony within marriage and the reasons for a higher marriageable age for boys than for girls. Members asked whether the legal provisions governing marital unions applied also to de facto unions and whether it was not counter-productive to imprison men for non-payment of alimony since that might further reduce the support to the family.
124. In replying to questions raised, the representative of Honduras said that, despite great efforts made by the Government to implement the Convention, many of the measures would show their effects only gradually in the course of time. She gave a summary of the country's draft forestry strategy, in which it was apparent that the Government wanted to promote the equitable integration of rural women into development. The strategy was aimed, among other things, at improving the living conditions of rural women, at facilitating the participation of women in management, conservation, protection and multiple use of forests, at promoting social and family projects to eliminate stereotypes, at seeking alternatives for fuel and water to liberate women from the task of forest protection and at introducing legal reforms. Some of the recommended actions included coordination with non-governmental organizations, training programmes, access to credit, child-care facilities and legal reforms. Under the draft strategy, the specific interests of women figured weakly in the development of national programmes because of the characteristic lack of importance attached to women. It was said that, to date, women's concerns had not been taken into account in the elaboration of national programmes. Women were not considered important by society and their concerns were not taken into account in development projects.
125. Turning to article 2, she explained that, under the Family Code, women had a preferential right over the salary and income of the husband in the quantities required for providing food for themselves and their minor children. The husband had a similar right if the wife had to contribute to the family income. Both spouses had the same duties to maintain, educate and instruct their children; in case of divorce the innocent spouse and the children were entitled to alimony. The assertion in the report that the damage and trauma engendered on a male victim of rape were more serious than on a woman was the result of the prevailing criteria for the legislators, but a reform of that concept was under consideration.

126. Referring to questions raised under article 3, she said that the Group of Parliamentarian Women within the National Congress was more and more interested in reforming the laws that curtailed women's rights. That Group organized research activities and seminars that had a decisive influence on the achievement of school reforms. Recently, representatives of non-governmental organizations and women's groups had started attending those seminars. Currently, with the participation of all groups involved in women's problems, a nationwide meeting was being held to work out a plan of action to carry out the project called ''women's policies". More persons were currently being designated in different ministries to deal with women's problems. Regarding questions raised with respect to discrepancies in wages for men and women, she said that, under the provisions of the Constitution, all persons had the right to work under equal and satisfactory conditions with equal salary. However, in practice, the principle of equal pay was not always respected. Discrimination did not so much refer to the salary as to the level of post. Many women were found in minor jobs; but the general economic deterioration had forced them to seek higher education and better work.
127. Referring to article 4, she said that the lack of mechanisms and services that would directly support women was to be explained by the scarce financial resources and the other reasons stated earlier. Temporary measures, support and control services required strong enforcement mechanisms and, while the cause of women was starting to gain importance in the country, training would have to be backed up. Consciousness-raising to eradicate remaining discrimination would be very difficult in practice. However, at the summit meeting of the heads of Central American States a new framework for action in the social field had become visible.
128. On article 5, she stated that the National Congress, the Rural Development Department and the Ministry of Health, in cooperation with some non-governmental organizations, had conducted various seminars and training workshops directed to women at the grass-roots level. Information on HIV/AIDS was being provided in the farthest reaches of the country. She said that women's organizations were trying to coordinate efforts in order to solve common problems. No special regulations existed for migrant women, but those women could refer to normal legal procedures in case of violations of their rights. Similarly, there were no special programmes for refugee women. On lingering discriminatory socio-cultural attitudes, the Ministry of Education had drafted new textbooks and prepared new training material. Although the subject of sexual harassment had not been covered by law, the Parliamentary Commission dealing with women's issues had presented a draft law to the National Congress, according to which acts involving lascivious attitudes and indecent sexual approaches between persons of different sexes committed without consent were considered an offence and put under penal sanction, If such acts were committed by persons exercising authority over others, they were treated in the same way.
129. Regarding domestic violence, she explained that none of the rights based on marriage, such as the duty of fidelity, mutual succour and the duty to follow the spouse, pursuant to the Civil Code of 1906, could be enforced by police or public authorities. Police, penal legislation and society at large did not protect women from domestic violence, unless it involved homicide or serious injury, since such acts of maltreatment were considered to be mere

misdemeanours. Under the Family Code, the only remedy in case of violence in the family was divorce or separation. Other reasons for divorce or separation were: conduct aimed at perverting the spouse or children, the refusal to assist with education and food and the abandonment of a spouse for more than two years. The representative mentioned the length of sentences established under the Penal Code for offences against life and integrity. The Penal Code put under sanction of brief imprisonment offences against the life and physical integrity of the legal or the common-union spouse, physical violence against a pregnant woman, non-compliance with the duty of financial assistance to the family and fraudulous evasion of the duty of maintenance. The denunciation of the offence in the case of rape had to be made by the victim and, in the case of minors, by the legal representative and, if the perpetrator was the father or tutor, by the public prosecutor, trustee or district judge of first instance. Bodily harm had to be proved.
130. Regarding the legal provisions defining sexual violence, including rape, she said that they reflected patriarchal concepts and showed a disregard for women as human beings. In the case of rape, the woman's age, honesty and good reputation were paramount and the sentences were short prison terms. The procedures were often emotionally counter-productive for the victims not only because of the type of evidence required, but also because of the subjective manner in which the authorities involved often proceeded, to which in some cases could be added lack of technical training, lack of security and supervisory services, and the behaviour of certain authorities. The magnitude of violence against women was not generally recognized, and statistics existed only in the major cities, reflecting only the cases that had gone to court or were reported on by the media. For reasons of cultural stereotypes, those offences were mainly kept secret.
131. Replying to questions under article 6, she said that the National Board of Social Weil-Being was attempting to coordinate action in favour of child prostitutes by programmes of reorientation and rehabilitation for street children. Control over female prostitutes exercised up to then had been for reasons of health control, but because of economic constraints no further statistics had been established. With regard to the exploitation of prostitution, persons who promoted or facilitated prostitution or the corruption of adults of either sex were liable to imprisonment of 10 to 15 years and, if the victim was a minor, of 20 years. The same penalties applied to whomever promoted or facilitated the entry of a person into the country for the purposes of prostitution. The laws punishing violence were equally applicable to prostitutes, although in practice prostitutes themselves seemed to detract from the value of that fact by surrendering their rights and regarding violence as an integral part of their profession.
132. Turning to questions under article 7, she said that service personnel were not allowed to vote because the Honduran Army was a permanent, mainly professional, apolitical, obedient and non-deliberating national institution. Regarding nationality, she said that Honduran citizenship was acquired through birth or naturalization. Neither marriage nor its dissolution affected the nationality of the spouses or the children.
133. On article 10, the representative said that economic constraints reflected on the quality and level of school education. Regarding illiteracy, she explained that one third of urban illiterates were women. Many children

in rural areas had no more than three years of schooling and most drop-outs from school occurred after the age of 10, when both boys and girls were needed for domestic tasks.
134. Turning to article 11, she admitted that the long duration of maternity leave was a point to be discussed, but said that, because of the poor economic situation, women had not understood that it could be a reason for discrimination in the workplace. Currently, no statistics were available on the degree of participation of women in the production process; however, efforts would be made to provide data in the subsequent report. She mentioned figures for 1987 only, when 80 per cent of the working population were men and 20 per cent women. Turning to another question, discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy, the representative said that employers did indeed often ascertain, prior to contracting a woman, whether or not she was pregnant. The fact that employers gave preference to men over women in the hiring process would hopefully change over time.. The provisions in the Labour Code concerning the work of women and minors were currently being revised.
135. On article 12, she stated that no information was available on the number of clandestine abortions. Consciousness-raising in matters of family planning was gradually having positive results as evidenced by the recent decline in birth rates. Births took place in hospitals or in health centres in rural areas. Midwives received special training through the Ministry of Health, particularly with regard to sex education, the transmission of sexual diseases and prenatal and postnatal care. The activities also of the Division for Maternal and Child Health were being further developed.
136. Answering questions raised under article 14, she explained that men were generally reluctant to allow their spouses entry into cooperatives. She mentioned, however, a seminar on women and cooperatives sponsored by the International Cooperative Alliance, held in 1991, which had worked out strategies for incorporating women into the development process, for quantifying domestic work, for allowing cooperative members to take part in juvenile training programmes and for including more women in the decisionmaking process. Emphasis was 'also laid on the importance of family planning and child-care facilities. The legislative amendments of the Agrarian Law included the wife as direct beneficiary in the adjudication of land in urban and rural areas, and also granted to the wife land rights in the absence or death of the husband and extended the property rights.
137. Turning to article 15, she said that previously the husband had decided on the conjugal residence; however, the current Family Code stipulated that the domicile of the spouses was the place, wherever either of the spouses normally had their residence, and the domicile of the children was that of the spouse with whom they normally lived.
138. Turning to article 16, she said that the order of legitimate guardianship of minors was a result of stereotyped criteria. The sanction of imprisonment of men in cases of non-payment of alimony had not had any negative effects and, provided the necessary resources were available, the consciousness of men should be raised. It might be useful to find other useful sanctions by some research on the matter. Regarding the economic administration of the family household, under the Family Code, the community regime and the separation of

property were possible, without excluding the formation of family patrimony. Future spouses could decide on the type of administration of matrimonial property before celebrating their marriage. Regarding the distinct legal marriageable ages for girls and boys, she said that the provision was a heritage of sexist stereotypes from the past and was now under review.
139. Members thanked the representative for the efforts made at providing such
detailed and frank explanations. They recognized that certain sectors required
much further action by the Government and that significant legal changes were
needed to bring legislation in Honduras into line with the stipulations of the
Convention, particularly as the cultural patterns were so deeply rooted that
it was difficult to change them. The consciousness of both men and women needed to be raised. Without any change in thinking, legislative amendments could never have a long-lasting effect. It was to be hoped that subsequent reports would show that men were taking part in the efforts to advance women. It was also obvious that Honduras had to move forward with its economic and cultural progress. They underlined that the implementation of the Convention would contribute to the economic and social development of the country and that all energies, including the energies of women, must be put to use.
140. Special congratulations were expressed to the Government for having included information on the environmental concerns at a time when eco-feminism was emerging around the world and women's values seemed to coincide with the values of those seeking to protect the environment. Women had a different approach to the environment, and the concept of "development" was being replaced by "sustainable development". In that evolution, women had an important role to play.
141. Concern was expressed by some members over the provision of the Honduras regulation that persons in active service were precluded from voting and that for belonging to an. apolitical body a person should be deprived of one of the most fundamental rights. It was asked whether that regulation applied also to police officers and prison guards, and the Government was invited to reconsider the related provisions in the Constitution. Other members, however, showed understanding for that provision, stating that many Latin American countries had endured frequent coups d'etat, and the army had to bow to the regime of the country. Military and paramilitary organizations were supposed to protect the elections and the nation, and not to be involved in politics.
142. An expert asked whether the Government was aware of the important principle of equal pay for work of equal value and the Honduran legislators were invited to take it into account in the preparation of future legal reforms.
143. In concluding observations, the Committee expressed its appreciation for the Government's efforts in implementing the Convention and in improving the status of women, while taking note of the political situation that prevailed in Honduras and also of the background of Latin American countries in general. It emphasized the interlinkage of development and social progress and pointed out that the Convention was one of the few international instruments that addressed the various aspects of human activity. In spite of

the conditions prevailing in the country, it was noted that the Convention had had a positive impact on the status of Honduran women. Since the time of ratification, many positive reforms had been undertaken, especially referring to the family, and the penal and agrarian codes. The Committee noted that the introduction of a new system to evaluate agrarian reforms merited closer examination and evaluation and its results should be included in subsequent reports. Some uncertainty as to whether the Penal Code discriminated against women and whether the principle of equal pay for work of equal value was respected preoccupied the Committee. The Committee felt also that the issue of violence against women required closd monitoring. It was hoped that the Government would take strong measures to eliminate old stereotypes curtailing the role of women and address consciousness-raising campaigns to both women and men to allow women to contribute effectively to society.

2. Second periodic reports
144. For the consideration of second periodic reports, the Committee followed
the procedure it had initiated at its ninth, session, i.e. that a pre-session
working group would prepare lists of questions relating to the second periodic
reports that would be considered at the session. Accordingly, the pre-session
working group for the eleventh session of the Committee prepared such lists
for six countries: China, Czechoslovakia, El Salvador, Spain, Sri Lanka and
Venezuela. They were transmitted in writing to the government representatives
to invite them to prepare their replies before the meetings. The lists
reflected the ideas and views of the members of the pre-session working group
as well as those of various members of the Committee, who had submitted
contributions to the working group. The Committee agreed at its
196th meeting, on 23 January 1992, that the questions prepared by the working group would be included in the report of the Committee.
China
145. The Committee considered the second periodic report of China (CEDAW/C/13/Add.26) at its 195th meeting, on 23 January 1992.
146. The representative of China stated that since the report before the Committee had been submitted by his Government in 1989, covering developments from 1983 to 19 89, and since further changes had occurred since then, he would like, first, to introduce supplementary information. He stated that the eighth five-year plan for national economy and social development had started in 1991. The overall situation in China had created favourable conditions for the smooth implementation of the Convention and he pointed to the following new laws and regulations: a law on the protection of the rights and interests of women had been drafted and it would be before the fifth, plenary of the Seventh National People's Congress later in 1992 for approval. A regulation by the Ministry of Labour and Personnel on the postponement of the retirement age of senior women experts enabled them to retire at the age of 60. Firm measures were being taken against various criminal acts infringing upon the rights and interests of women. The Government had also formulated a decision on the strict prohibition of prostitution and whoring and a decision on the severe punishment of criminals who abduct and traffic in or kidnap women or children, both having legal effect. Articles on the protection of women were contained in two new laws that had taken effect in May 1991 and January 1992 respectively, namely, the law for the protection of disabled persons and the law for the protection of the under-aged.
147. He said that the stipulations covered women's rights of participation in politics, in employment, education, marriage and the family, and of the person, thus making the protection of the rights and interests of women more systematic and comprehensive. The action of the central Government had received positive support at the local level, and some 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions had formulated local regulations. The Chinese Government had also launched new activities for legal education.
148. Concerning women's participation in politics, vigorous efforts undertaken by the Government together with the All China Women's Federation (ACWF) had proved to be very effective. In elections of deputies to the people's

congresses at county and township levels in 1990, the average percentage of elected women had reached 21 per cent, with a peak of 25 per cent.
149. With regard to women in rural areas, the representative pointed out that
80 per cent of Chinese women lived in rural areas, and women accounted for
50 per cent of the total rural labour force. A campaign, with the participation of some 10 ministries and other bodies, had been launched in 1989 for rural women to help them improve their qualifications and skills to fight poverty. Activities included emulation drives of various professional skills, teaching women one or two professional skills and eradicating illiteracy. Some 120 million women had participated, and the overwhelming majority had mastered one or two practical skills; 2.8 million women had overcome illiteracy; and 240,000 rural women had become agricultural technicians through educational courses.
150. In connection with the campaign "Health for all by the year 2000" of the World Health Organization (WHO), he said that China had put women's health care into the plan for primary health care with an emphasis on rural areas. One of the targets was to reduce the mortality rate of pregnant women and post-partem mothers by 50 per cent. The network of maternal and child health would be strengthened, and health care for rural women would be improved. Special attention would be paid to the training of rural medical workers in basic preventive skills.
151. The representative then replied to the comments and questions prepared by the pre-session working group.
152. The question was raised by the Committee as to what percentage of its GNP China had allocated to social development and human resources. It was noted that the structural reform of the Chinese economy had generated a spectacular increase in national productivity, enabling the GNP to attain an average annual growth rate of 11 per cent. That economic development would engender considerable social development. The Human Development Report 1991, issued by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), emphasized the reconsideration of priorities and maintained that funds allocated to key sectors, such as basic education, primary health care, supply of potable water to rural areas, family planning, food subsidies and social security, genuinely promote sustained and equitable human development.
153. The representative replied that China's GNP in 1990 amounted to 1,768.61 billion yuan renminbi. The national financial revenue was

Y 331.26 billion. Social development and human resources expenditures were as follows: Y 22.18 billion on agricultural production assistance;
Y 61.73 billion on education, culture, science and public health; and
Y 5.5 billion on pensions and social relief.
154. The question was asked as to what extent women were informed of new
provisions and to what extent they had access to courts or to other remedies
to enforce them. The Committee had noted some progress in the adoption of
laws and regulations intended to strengthen democracy, improve the existing
legal system by promoting greater equity and establish new relationships
between family members based on equality, the sharing of responsibilities and
human dignity, especially that of women.

155. Also, it was noted that the laws on succession and marriage conferred the same rights and duties on men and women, without discrimination. For a woman to be able to conduct her family life in a responsible way and in an equal partnership, however, she must first have been entitled to an education, which was a prerequisite for all equality and all development, and to work that would reflect its specificity.
156. The Committee further noted that the Chinese Government had provided its regions with laws to reform the educational system. Education was compulsory and free of charge for all children. Laws also guaranteed women employment.
157. The representative said that China was engaged in its second five-year programme to disseminate legal knowledge and legal education. The focus was on 10 laws, including the Constitution, the marriage law, criminal law and civil law. Some 300 million women had participated in relevant activities in the first five-year period.
158. Despite the efforts and positive measures to promote equality, some difficulties subsisted; those were due primarily to the cultural bias shown by Chinese society towards women.
159. The Committee noted that the Act concerning public enterprises, 1988, stated that male workers (it did not refer to female workers) had the right to participate in the democratic management of their enterprise. It was asked whether women workers participated to the same extent as men.
160. The representative stated that the Act concerning public enterprises referred to workers, meaning both men and women, and that the potential of young workers should be given full play.
161. Paragraph 11 of the same Act stated that enterprises must fully exploit the potential of young male and female workers. What was meant by the word "exploit"? Did it perhaps mean "use".
162. With regard to local laws and regulations, specific information was requested on the equality of women with men in promotion, remuneration and the allocation and construction of housing in rural areas.
163. Examples provided on the local laws of Beijing, Tianjin and other towns illustrated equality in, inter alia, promotion and remuneration. Also, an Act of Liaoning Province stated that women and men workers enjoyed the same rights in the allocation of houses, thus changing the past practice whereby only men were entitled to houses.
164. The representative was asked what measures were taken to protect widows and to ensure their economic independence.
165. He replied that women, including widows, enjoyed rights in terms of economic independence, and violators would be punished in accordance with the law.
166. The Committee asked what the composition was of the special group established to study and elaborate laws protecting the rights and interests of

women, and how its members were elected. Of the 13 members, only 2 were women selected from the All China Women's Federation (ACWF).
167. The representative answered that the Working Group on Women and Children
was mostly composed of women from Judicial circles and those in charge of
women's and children's work.
Article 5
168. The Committee asked whether there were education and media programmes to project positive images of women rather than reinforce stereotypes.
169. The representative answered that in recent years, China had witnessed an increase in the use of women's images in advertising. A recent seminar had focused on the role of the mass media in enhancing a positive and new image of women who enjoyed self-respect, self-confidence, independence and
self-improvement.
Violence (articles 2, 5, 11, 12 and 16)
170. The Committee requested information on the level of violence against women in China and asked what measures had been introduced to protect women from violence, abuse and exploitation.
171. The representative answered that violence against women had not been a serious social problem in China. Respect for women's dignity was stressed by the Government. Forms of violence were rape, beating and maltreatment of wives by their husbands, forced prostitution, kidnapping and abduction of women. Criminal and other relevant laws dealt with the matter. Rape was punished by imprisonment or death, depending on the circumstances; maltreatment either by imprisonment or public surveillance; and abduction by imprisonment, confiscation of property or death, depending on the severity of the offence.
Article 6
172. It was noted that prostitution existed even though it was prohibited, and the question was raised whether women who prostituted themselves were punished and what the radical measures, referred to in the report as designed to terminate prostitution, were.
173. It was answered that Chinese law explicitly prohibited prostitution, and forms of punishment included detention, warning, written confession, education through physical labour or fines. If misdeeds were crimes, criminal law applied. The punishments for those who lured women into prostitution or profited from operating brothels were prison terms, detention for labour or surveillance. Pimps might be sentenced to 10 years or life imprisonment. Prostitutes and their customers might be rounded up and provided with legal and moral education. They might be required to engage in productive labour. Treatment for venereal disease was compulsory. Steps taken to eradicate prostitution included economic development, ideological education and strengthening of legislation and law enforcement.

Article 7
174. Many questions were asked on the participation of women in parliament, which was 15 per cent higher than average. It was asked whether women parliamentarians were able to act effectively with respect to parliamentary bills, whether they could modify them, whether they form a group in Parliament, whether they had proposed a parliamentary bill concerning women, and if so, which bill it was.
175. Questions were asked on how many women had seats in the people's assemblies, whether some regions were more willing than others to vote for women, in view of the fact that the number of candidates exceeded the number of seats at the time of the election, and how many women members there were in the Communist Party Central Committee, in the Central Advisory Commission and in the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. In addition, it was asked what steps had been taken to ensure equal representation.
176. The Committee noted that key economic, legal and political posts were being filled by men; only three such posts, or 1.4 per cent, were filled by women. Obviously, women could only influence and change matters if they reached the decision-making level. Questions were asked on what ACWF was doing about that and whether ACWF was consulted about women's appointments or promotions to important posts; whether ACWF played a role in the deliberations and decisions concerning problems that affected the future of the country in economic, political, cultural and social matters; to what extent other groups or individuals were consulted on those matters; and how a person became a member of ACWF.
177. The representative provided information on the percentage of women in governing bodies: 634 deputies (21.3 per cent) in the National People's Congress; 16 members (11.6 per cent) in the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress; 2 vice-chairpersons (10 per cent) in the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress; 10 members (6 per cent) and 12 alternate members (11 per cent) in the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China; and 1 woman member (0.5 per cent) in the Advisory Commission of the CPC Central Committee. Efforts to increase women's participation included training and education for women to enhance their capabilities, and of society at large to eradicate traditional thinking and behaviour. One of the main tasks of ACWF was to promote the participation of women at all levels and in all spheres of public life. There were currently three women ministers in China (7.3 per cent of the total) and 11 vice-ministers. The representative stated that the percentage was still far from satisfying. The Chinese Supreme Court had one woman vice-president. In recent years ACWF had been recommending women for high-level posts. He explained that ACWF was a membership organization composed not of individual members but of organizations. All adult women were potential associates of the Federation. Membership could be obtained through the filing of an application and by accepting the Federation's constitution.

Article 8
178. In answering a question, the representative said that China currently had
1,314 women diplomats or 26.9 per cent.
Article 10
179. Questions were raised on illiteracy rates and the enrolment of girls in primary, secondary and tertiary education, which continued to be low. The Committee asked whether there existed such measures as reprimanding or fining parents who did not comply with the law on compulsory education to ensure that girls complete their education; whether there were differing entrance requirements for women into tertiary institutions; whether girls and women had equal access to sports and physical education in both urban and rural schools; and whether educational reform had affected school textbooks and, if so, had women's image been enhanced.
180. At the request of the Committee, the representative first clarified some numbers. China currently had a total of 180 million illiterate persons, of whom 70 per cent were women. In 1989, attendance by females in primary, secondary and tertiary schools was 46, 41.4 and 33.7 per cent of the respective total numbers; 97 per cent of school-age children attended school, and the attendance rate for girls was 95 per cent. Measures to eradicate illiteracy included long-term anti-illiteracy campaigns, increased funding and the creation of better conditions for schooling girls. The same recruitment standards for universities applied to males and females. Physical education was compulsory in China. Textbooks had always been based on principles of sexual equality and women's positive images.
Article 11
181. The questions were asked whether the principle of equal pay for work of equal value applied in all areas of economic activity and whether China had encountered any difficulties in applying it. It was noted that the employment of women rose from 67 per cent in 1970 to 70 per cent in 1990, while, during the same period, the employment of men fell from 90 per cent to 87 per cent. The 3 percentage points lost by men were gained by women. The Committee asked the reason for that. It also asked whether self-employed female workers had difficulty in becoming integrated into the system, and what ACHF was doing to help them. The Committee noted that women headed enterprises in the rural areas as well as more than one third of the specialized enterprises. It asked in which segment of economic production those activities were undertaken.
182. Questions were asked on the action taken by women in the case of wrongful dismissal and whether they were protected by the trade unions. Similarly, the complaint and enforcement procedures instituted by the State in order to combat discrimination were enquired into. Could women have recourse to courts or other institutions if they were discriminated against?
183. The Committee stated that piecework, which was generally done at home, and flexible working hours were sought by women. It asked what prompted women to choose that kind of work and in what numbers.

184. In order to guarantee women employment, the public authorities had endeavoured to give women proper vocational training before and during their employment, so that they might be more competitive in the labour market. The question was raised as to what incentives were offered by the Government to encourage heads of businesses and factories to enrol more women in training courses. Compared with men, what percentage of women benefited from such incentives?
185. Article 11 of the regulations on security of employment stated that services employing a large number of women should gradually establish an infirmary, a room for rest, a room for nursing infants, a creche and even a kindergarten. That was a step forward, but the representative was asked how it was perceived by the employers; how many were required to implement that reform; and whether it would not discourage the employment of adequate numbers of women in the enterprises?
186. The representative stated that the principle of equal pay for equal work was applied in China. He said that the increase of the percentage of female employment did not mean that women had taken the jobs of men. Women's federations assisted self-employed female workers mainly by legal advice. Some rural households owned by women in traditional farming were specialized in the breeding of animals, poultry and fish, processing, handicrafts, trading and services. Trade unions and the labour department could hear complaints concerning wrongful dismissal. Discrimination cases might be brought before the courts or to administrative departments. In China, all employed workers were requested to receive occupational training. Under a plan that ended in 1990, 37.4 per cent of the trainees were women. Various measures were in force to ensure basic living needs of the staff of bankrupt enterprises, including unemployment subsidies of up to a total of 24 months, and retraining of workers. Women from trade unions and women's organizations participated in the formulation of the new labour code. Sexual harassment was not a major problem in Chi***, and judicial and administrative organs were called upon to solve cases or a case-by-case basis.
Article 12
187. The Committee noted that the integration of family-planning services into basic maternal and child health services would mean that the problem could be tackled as a whole. The receipt of material and technical assistance from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) had enabled China to identify the risks of reducing the mortality and morbidity rates for infants and mothers and to introduce in China the production of more effective modern contraceptives that met more reliable control and quality standards. It had also enabled Chinese researchers to carry out studies to diminish the adverse effects of certain products on women's health.
188. The Tianjun Listang pharmaceuticals factory manufactured approximately 3.5 million Norplant subdermal contraceptive implants. The representative was asked if there were any studies to monitor the effect of Norplant, which some studies had indicated endangered the health of women.

189. The representative informed the Committee that the project referred to in the question had not been executed. Some (Norplant subdermal contraceptive) implants had been bought for trial use and monitoring. China was developing its own similar product.
190. He was asked what the status was of the UNFPA-assisted project that advocated the information, education and communication (IEC) method and who was responsible for implementing the programme: women's organizations, family planning services or public health services.
191. A public information and education campaign on population issues had been implemented since 1979 with UNFPA, the State Commission on Birth Control, the State Education Commission and the Ministry of Health.
192. It was known that in a number of developing countries the decision to use any particular contraceptive method was taken by the man. He decided for the woman but did not feel concerned.
193. Birth control was the duty and obligation of both husband and wife.
194. It was asked if there were programmes for men, and what methods were being used to sensitize men to the usefulness of becoming more involved in family planning and using reliable methods such as vasectomy or condoms when the health of the wife did not permit her to use contraception. Article 2 of the Marriage Act made no distinction, since it stated that the spouses were obliged to practise family planning.
195. The population policy of China would cause considerable changes in Chinese society; 10 per cent of the population would be over 60 from the present until the year 2000 (ratio of 109 women/100 men), which would give rise to problems of subsidies and care. It was asked (a) whether there were roles for Chinese women; and (b) whether the policy of the single child, and the preference for boys, would cause the number of women to diminish gradually and therefore create an imbalance.
196. Given the attention allocated by the Chinese Government to the health care of women and children, great progress had been made over the last four decades, and infant mortality rates had been greatly reduced.
197. The elderly were revered in China. The Government had adopted various measures, including social insurance and welfare, free medicare and health care, for the elderly. There were schools and recreational centres oriented to the elderly. The policy of encouraging couples to have only one child, in effect since 1979, had led to an increase in one-child families. In 1988, 52.22 per cent of families had one child, 32.41 per cent had two and
15.37 per cent had three or more (in 1970, the numbers were 22.73, 17.06 and 62.21 per cent, respectively). The gender ratio in 1988 was 106.8 males to 100 females (in 1970 the ratio was 105.5 to 100). The representative stated that that showed that the one-child family policy had not resulted in a sex imbalance of the population.
198. The Committee also wanted to know what programmes there were to encourage
preventive measures to be taken in regard to AIDS.

199. Cases of AIDS had been detected in recent years in parts of China. Since
1985, over 600 patients had tested HIV positive. Although the infection rate
was still low, China had adopted specific measures to prevent and control
AIDS, including public education on the prevention of AIDS.
Article 13
200. The Committee asked which welfare organizations were concerned with the aged, the solitary and the handicapped.
201. The representative said that the elderly, the widowed and the handicapped were the concern of the whole society. The civil affairs agencies, and those in charge of labour, education and health, as well as mass organizations such as the federations of the handicapped, women and youth offered a variety of assistance and services.
Article 14
202. The Committee asked if the contractual management system enabled rural women to embark on activities other than agriculture to develop the communal economy; what products were produced for export by Chinese women and how they were advised in that work; why the level of pension of retired women in rural areas varied according to the level of development of the region in which they lived; and whether women had equal access to land use and what the requirements were.
203. The representative stated that the reform of the economic system in China's rural areas had changed the pattern of production of primarily grain into a comprehensive development of agriculture, forestry, industry, trade etc., thereby also creating favourable conditions for women to engage in a variety of new tasks. Women had become workers in local enterprises that had partially introduced the contract labour system, which closely linked the quality of work with remuneration, thereby also improving efficiency and providing incentives for workers. Rural women had made tremendous contributions to the revitalization of China's rural economy. Women's export products included foodstuffs, farm produce, fruits, garments, toys and electronic appliances, which were generally ordered and therefore had a solid market. Pensions for China's peasantry were not provided by the State. Whether there was a pension fund to provide pensions and other social benefits for its peasants depended on the development level of the collective economy in each place and adequate collective savings of the rural collective. Rural collectives allocated land to peasants on the basis of the size of the family with no prejudice to their sex.
204. The Committee noted that commendable efforts were being made to provide potable water, together with sanitation and electricity, to all the inhabitants of rural areas. But some areas remained without those basic necessities, and women suffered more than anyone else because of that situation. It asked what percentage of the population lacked those necessities and if additional resources were being allocated to improve the situation.
205. Various ministries were involved in the effort to provide tap water. No numbers were currently available to the representative on the matter.

Article 15
206. It was asked how laws had been promoting the family and women and examples of the interpretation of those laws were requested. It was also asked whether women judges contributed to a favourable interpretation of legislative texts.
207. The representative replied that the Constitution stipulated that marriage and the family were protected by the State. The marriage law, containing freedom of marriage, monogamy and equality between men and women, had been promulgated twice. The law also enabled women's equal participation in social development. On the second question, he stated that it happened, but not necessarily.
Article 16
208. The Committee noted that the divorce rate had gone up, and 80 per cent of the applications for divorce were submitted by women on the legal ground of lack of affection. The report attributed that situation to the social progress that had followed the opening up of China's economy. It was asked what measures ensured that men and women were aware of their joint responsibility vis-a-vis the family and society; what dangers threatened children owing to the very high divorce rate; and what provisions were available for counselling and conciliation.
209. The representative replied that family ties in China had always been stable. Although on the increase, the rate of divorce was a mere 5 to
7 per cent. The fact that women did initiate divorces was a demonstration of the breaking of the bondage of feudalistic ideas, he said. The focus, however, was on harmonious relationships, and efforts were made to assist couples in difficulties by advice and mediation. In handling divorces, the Government and society as a whole attached importance to the protection of the legitimate rights of women and children.
210. Members of the Committee thanked the representative for the detailed answers provided to the numerous questions. The Chinese Government and ACWF were congratulated for the effort and the progress achieved in implementing the Convention.
211. Additional clarification was sought on a number of points, including the following: on the political participation of women, it had been stated that training was used to enable more women to participate in the political process. The experts wondered whether that was not an old-fashioned, macho approach of the "undertraining" of women, since men did not have to go through such special training. One expert also wondered why it was necessary to have new local rules protecting women who gave birth to girls. Concerning the efforts to combat illiteracy, one expert pointed to the existence of mobile schools in autonomous regions. She asked which language was being taught in Tibet. It was also asked if the measures described under article 12 had been freely accepted by the population, or if the Government had taken stronger measures. On the subject of social security, it was pointed out that the differences that existed between various regions' development levels were not in line with

the aspired-to egalitarianism. One expert noted that things were moving very slowly and that political will alone was not enough to reach equality. The social infrastructure and the economic situation of the country should develop also, otherwise there was not the right framework for a solution to the equality issues. It was also noted that stereotyped social patterns prevailed in China, and clarification was sought on the issue of equal pay for work of equal value. Another expert asked whether the representative agreed that women's tertiary education was essential for the larger participation of women. It was asked whether women's participation was a priority of the movement for democracy. Referring to the representative's statement that sexual harassment was not a problem in China, one expert asked if that statement had less to do with the absence of harassment than with the lack of adequate structures to point it out. Another expert asked to what extent the Government was satisfied with the changes in women's lives, and what approach was used to assess the status of women. Another question related to ACWF funding.
212. In further discussion, some experts asked whether it was possible that the third periodic report could be broken down by regions, because of the vastness of the country, to give a better picture and to make it easier for members to understand the issues involved. It was also asked whether women were prominent in the dissident movement, whether gender was an issue and whether women were still detained or restricted in their freedom to travel. Concerning the low numbers of women in high political bodies (the Council)/ one expert pointed to structural problems rather than to the lack of education of women, and she asked whether the Government had set quotas for women.
213. In response to a number of follow-up and additional questions, the representative of China said that in accordance with the saying that women held up half the sky, women played very important roles in family and society. Due to cultural constraints, the current situation was not fully satisfactory, and tremendous efforts on a long-term basis were required to eradicate the remnants of inequality. To that end, the Government had embarked on clear-cut policies and directions. He reiterated that the one-child family policy had been quite successful, and it was in line with the common interest of the population. Implementation was more successful in urban areas and among the better educated groups of society. There were distinctions in the enforcement of the policy, in particular with regard to minorities and areas with lower population density. Regulations stipulating the protection of women with girls existed, but only in some areas where feudal influences i.e., the preference for boys, persisted. He stated that the Government had mainly carried out education and training for prostitutes. Concerning the use of language in Tibet, he stated that as stipulated by the Government of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, the people of the region had the freedom to develop and use their own language. A 1978 regulation adopted by the TNC stipulated the equal importance of both languages, with Tibetan being the principal one. Tibetan was the main language being taught in schools and universities in the region.
214. The representative went on to elaborate that objective reality had forced both spouses to participate in household chores, but that the traditional division of labour persisted in rural areas, although the situation was changing. On the issue of whether equal pay for work of equal value should be applied, he replied in the affirmative. He further said that the Chinese

Government respected dissidents having different political and religious opinions. It did not discriminate against such persons. He pointed to the example of a woman journalist who had written many articles critical of the Chinese Government in the People's Daily, and who had recently been granted an opportunity of going to the United States of America to study. Concerning the so-called "model daughter-in-law award", he said that his Government promoted good family relations for social progress. The emphasis was on respect for the old, love for the young and respect between spouses, and on equality. He agreed with the importance of international cultural exchanges between women, and education for girls. ACWF received its funding mainly from the Government and partly through donations.
215. He also stated that his Government would carefully study the point raised by some members, namely, to have the third periodic report provide information broken down by region. As the members had stated, China was a vast country, and it would be interesting and useful for the members to receive information by region. It had been indicated by the members that that might also be of assistance to the Government in assessing the situation and in obtaining a more detailed picture of the situation of women in China.
216. In her concluding remarks on behalf of the Committee, the Chairperson thanked the representative and his delegation for their presence and the answers to the many questions, which proved the importance the Government of China placed on women's issues, and showed that they heeded the Convention and the Committee. She also expressed her appreciation for the fact that China had not entered any reservations to the Convention, except on article 29, which, however, did not deal with discrimination. China was a large country, she went on, and the responsibility for facing up to issues such as traditions was huge.
217. She pointed to two new positive steps taken by the Government, namely, the adoption of new laws for women and structural adjustment in the economy, which had led to an increased GNP. A percentage of that increase would go towards programmes that were social or economic in nature, and women would benefit from it. Since structural adjustment programmes often caused women to become victims, owing to the removal of social programmes from the budget, she expressed her hope that the next report would provide the Committee with an evaluation and assessment of those programmes, which could become an example to be followed by others. She stated that illiteracy was a problem, with
70 per cent of the 180 million illiterates being women. Extensive treatment was required, she continued, since illiteracy was a huge problem in the advancement of women. She found the 26 per cent women in the diplomatic corps to be a sizeable number, but eight women ambassadors was perhaps not such a large number, and she hoped that that would increase. Concerning population matters, and the question whether by tradition preference was given to men, she said that the numbers provided by the representative had removed fears on the males female ratio. She hoped that the Government would continue to pay attention to the balance between males and females.
218. Concerning the next report, she expressed her hope that the Committee
would receive more details on the percentages of women and on procedures to
overcome old habits. She pointed to the linkage between the political history
of a country and its socio-economic situation, which in China found its

expression in the feudal system and the fact that men were considered to be superior to women. If the next report could stress those points, it would help the Government to overcome those problems.
Czechoslovakia
219. The Committee considered the second periodic report of Czechoslovakia (CEDAW/C/13/Add.25) at its 199th meeting, on 27 January 1992. The report contained detailed answers to the questions put by the Committee on the initial report, which was useful. But the report did not clearly reflect the changes that had occurred under specific headings and articles. To that extent, it did not comply with the guidelines of the Committee.
220. According to the report, it was uncertain how the new constitutional changes would affect the status of women in areas such as work, family responsibility, etc. Women currently had a lower level of political participation than previously.
221. There were reports that the system of child care funding had changed, and that that might mean fewer places and higher costs.
222. Women's earnings remained much lower than those of men, and the workforce continued to be segregated, so that there were few women in technical vocations. Studies on time use showed that women continued to bear the greatest burden of domestic work.
223. There had been changes in the abortion law, but it was uncertain whether adequate provision had been made for access to information and services on contraception.
224. In her introductory statement, the Government representative stated that since the submission of the report currently before the Committee, in
July 1989, revolutionary political and social changes had taken place in her country. A pluralistic democracy, based on the freedom of each individual and the realistic implementation of his or her rights, had replaced the old regime after its collapse in November 1989. Free elections had been held in June 1990 and the economy was being transformed into a free-market economy. She would therefore present the Committee with the assessment of her Government concerning the second periodic report and describe developments that had taken place since the November 1989 revolution. Also, she would inform the Committee of the policy of the Government regarding the solution of problems of equal rights for women.
225. She stated that the report before the Committee did not reflect the
current situation in her country, but was based on the concept of centrally
directed management in all spheres of society, including the issue of equal
rights for women. That concept had led to optimistic programmes, such as the
full employment of women. For ideological reasons, however, in practice,
women's problems had not been dealt with systematically by the old regime,
except in certain areas, such as the right to work, social security and quotas
on women's participation in political life. She stated that that had also led
to the detrimentally excessive feminization of some fields, such as education.

She went on to say that the data that had been provided in the report did not reflect the optimistic spirit of the text, and a more complex and objective view of the situation of women in Czechoslovakia would be presented to the Committee in the third periodic report, to be submitted by the end of the year.
226. The representative said that the new developments that had taken place in 1990 and 1991 had occurred with regard to equal human rights for all citizens; to legislation oriented towards equality, abandoning a paternalistic approach to women and families; to the social and economic spheres; and to institutional guarantees. The Federal Ministry of Control had been entrusted with initiating, conceptualizing and coordinating a new approach for dealing with problems concerning the equal status of women. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies, both of which were little known by Government officials or the public, would serve as cornerstones in that regard. Another element was the understanding of the new Government and non-governmental organizations that the true equality of women must go hand-in-hand with the creation of political, social, health, cultural, educational and ecological conditions for comprehensive social development. She added that it was generally accepted by her Government that the social shocks of transition were affecting women much more than men.
227. She went on to state that the transformation of the economy and patterns of social behaviour were giving rise to social uncertainties and to a temporary real decline in the standard of living, leading to expected or existing crisis situations. The permanent attention of governmental and representative bodies would be required to integrate questions of women's equality into that complicated situation.
228. In order to address those issues, the Government had adopted in
February 1991 a document entitled "Principles of the policy of the Government
of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic in the sphere of implementation of
the rights of women" (resolution No. 120/91). That resolution contained the
basic principles which constituted the right framework for facing the needs of
women in her country. The principles had been drawn from the experience of
other countries, from the work of the Commission on the Status of Women, from
international events, as well as from the constitutional law on the
International Bill of Human Rights 3/ and the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, 4/ which had been ratified by her Government. The adoption of those
principles had been preceded by a broad discussion, and several ministries and
institutions had participated, both at the level of the Federation and of the
two Republics. Initiatives by women's organizations set up after the
dissolution of the former "Czechoslovak Union of Women" had also been taken
into account. The principles defined the policy of the Governments of the
Federation and of the two Republics on legislation, in the socio-economic
field, on safety at work, on health insurance, on the participation of women
in the management of society, on education (including research work) and with
regard to institutions. The representatives said that the principles did not
embody, in a concrete form, necessary national (republic) mechanisms, as
recommended by the Commission on the Status of Women. She explained that the
principles were to be translated into concrete measures in 1992 and 1993 on

the basis of a document already submitted for debate by the Government. That document addressed the issue of competence at the federal and republic levels. It dealt with activities in conjunction with the International Year of the Family, and with a preparatory meeting, which her Government was interested in hosting, for the Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development and Peace. She stated that the complex of measures remained however an open question that would be widely discussed with political parties and non-governmental organizations and would be updated accordingly. She said that matters of equal status of men and women were expected to be reflected in the upcoming pre-election period and the election in June 1992, in particular since women's representation in political bodies was extremely low.
229. The representative then proceeded to provide answers to the questions
raised by the Committee.
Articles 1 to 4
230. The Committee noted that the new Constitution was said to guarantee equality and to provide equal access to the courts. It requested information on whether there were specific anti-discrimination laws under which women could have recourse to courts in case of alleged violation of rights, to complain of discrimination.
231. What remedies and enforcement mechanisms were available, and what kind of decisions had been made. The question was asked how the constitutional changes of the previous two years had affected women in politics and in other areas, such as work and family responsibility.
232. The representative informed the Committee that no specific anti-discrimination laws had been introduced in the legal system, nor did the draft of the new Constitution contain such a law. She said that no discriminatory laws existed in the legal system, but that did not mean there was no discrimination de facto. She pointed to two major constitutional changes, the first being the abolition of the leading role of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, which implied the loss of power of affiliated organizations, such as the Czechoslovak Union of Women. Since no new women's organizations had been formed prior to the 1989 election, there was no organizational support for women. The second major constitutional change was the adoption of the Charter of Basic Human Rights and Freedoms as an integral part of the Constitution, which guaranteed women an equal position in society.
233. The representative stated that up to September 1990 activities regarding women's rights had been coordinated by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. That was now entrusted to the Deputy Prime Minister. Co-responsibility was assigned to the Minister of Control for working out the policy of the Government in the field of implementation of women's rights, and for the preparation of concrete measures. The Minister, a woman, was the coordinator of all future aims relating to State policy towards women.
234. The representative said that resolution No. 120/91 on the "Principles of the policy of the Government of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic in the sphere of implementation of the rights of women", referred to above, implied that a federal committee responsible for the issues of women and families was

not going to be established for the time being. She gave as the reason that at the federal level there was competence only in the field of human rights. However, the establishment of such an institution was under consideration. She said that no concrete responsibility had so far been set up in the Czech Republic, but that the Slovak Republic had set up a Governmental Committee on the Woman and the Child. Its activities were only just beginning, so no details were available. It functioned as a coordinating body of the Government and of non-governmental organizations on the basis of honorary membership. The establishment of relevant commissions was under way in the Federal Assembly, the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic. The representative then referred to a list of tasks within the competence of federal bodies. Since the report before the Committee had been prepared by the old regime, no information on procedures and participation concerning its preparation were available. The representative informed the Committee that 14 women's organizations were registered in Czechoslovakia with varying membership.
235. It was asked to what extent women had been involved in drafting the new Constitution and which organizations were active in supporting the new Constitution.
236. The representative said that women members of Parliament were participating in that drafting. The coordination of women's questions in that process would be the responsibility of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Control.
237. Information was requested on the roles of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and of the Government Committee on Women in implementing the Convention; and what their sizes and budget were.
238. The Committee wanted to know which organization was responsible for preparing the current report and for disseminating information on the Convention and the work of CEDAW.
239. The representative was asked what effect the work of the Governmental Committee on Women had had on improving the situation of women; what national machinery for the advancement of women had been established as a result of constitutional change; and what governmental departments or agencies were responsible for implementing programmes related to the status and equality of women.
240. She was asked whether reference had been made to the recommendations of the Committee in preparing the report, and which women's organizations had been consulted in that regard. It was also asked how many organizations there were and what their membership was.
Article 5
241. The Committee asked what the new family policy was; what measures there
were to combat stereotyped images and stereotyped roles of men and women; what
measures were being taken to ensure that fathers took part in child rearing
and that domestic work was shared on an equal basis; and which agency was
responsible for taking those measures.

242. The representative first referred to the above-mentioned Principles. As
to whether the new family policy encouraged women to return to traditional
family roles, she stated that it was supposed to have exactly, the opposite
effect, but that the market economy system might have such an influence
because of unemployment. Statistics showed that more than 50 per cent of the
unemployed were women. She said that the number of single-income households
in the traditional pattern would grow. Currently, that might be the image of
success and so might become fashionable. No data referring to the matter were
available. She stated that both sexes received the same education, but since
the "imperative role" of the State regarding education was gone, girls schools
or family schools were emerging. They seemed to be a success and, according
to the representative, proved that 40 years of egalitarian education had not
changed fully the stereotyped images of men and women. Parental leave and
allowance were accorded under the same rules to both parents, but it seemed
that specific education was needed in order that fathers also would be willing
to use parental leave.
Violence against women (articles 2, 5, 11, 12 and 16)
243. Violence against women was not identified as an issue needing special attention. It was treated as an offence under the general criminal law.
244. In answer to whether it was planned to introduce special laws and protective measures for women, the representative stated that unfortunately it was not.
Articles 7 and 8
245. The Committee noted that the number of women in Parliament and in the
ministries appeared to have been reduced from 10 per cent in 1987 to
6 per cent in 1990, and that there were no women in ministerial positions. It asked what measures were being taken to encourage greater participation e.g. temporary special measures.
246. The representative answered that approximately 10 per cent of the members in the three parliaments were women, and that the speaker of the Czech Parliament was a woman. Each of the three Governments had one woman minister. She said that it was currently not possible to use temporary special measures, as they had been used by the previous regime and were thus currently very unpopular.
247. In answer to queries on women's organizations, she mentioned the Zonta Organization and the Organization of Women Entrepreneurs, and said that the old Czechoslovak Union of Women was being restructured. Currently, 14 women's organizations were registered. No details on their work were so far available.
248. Information on women's activities in political parties, trade unions and other political organizations would be provided in the third periodic report. She added that currently there were 6 women ambassadors out of a total of 65 (9.2 per cent). They served in such important posts as Australia, Austria and the United States of America. The diplomatic corps had 19 women members out of 400 (about 5 per cent). Women in the three parliaments accounted for between 8 and 12 per cent, and women heads of departments accounted for between 10 and 60 per cent. In the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, for example, five directors of departments were women (16.7 per cent). In the Czech

Ministry of Privatization, 60 per cent of the leading positions were held by women.
Article 10
249. The Committee noted that the initial report mentioned the high proportion of women in higher education and in the professions. It also referred to special provisions for working women and mothers to study. While women had access to higher education and to the professions, few women underwent vocational training in the technical areas. It was asked whether there were measures to change that and to ensure that women had full and equal opportunity in all fields of employment.
250. The representative explained that the old Communist regime had sent men into the production process as soon as possible, which left a higher percentage of women in higher education. That phenomenon was now disappearing. Reasons for the low numbers of women in technical areas included hard physical labour and the past under-estimation of intellectual work and higher salaries in technical fields that attracted men and made areas such as education (where feminization is 71.3 per cent), medicine, justice, science and state departments less attractive to men. Those areas were more flexible than the production sphere and thereby more attractive to women.
251. On other questions, she referred to the traditional division of family responsibilities. In some 90 per cent of all couples, the wife took maternity leave. Most women did not return to their previous posts because they could not assume the dual responsibility of full-time parenting and full-time employment. Under the socialist system, cheap and universally accessible child care had existed, but it was of low quality. The new market economy seemed to have improved the quality, but it was becoming financially inaccessible for many. As the number of single-income families was likely to increase, most likely the income would be the husband's. The general population welcomed that new development, and women saw it as the "freedom to choose", since that way of life had been inaccessible in the past. On another question the representative replied that although de jure an equal right to education existed, the gypsies received a much lower level of education. Efforts were under way to remedy that. Efforts were also under way to integrate disabled students into regular classes.
Article 11
252. It was said in the initial report that women's wages were lower
(69 per cent of men's) because they performed less skilled work. It was also recognized that women's special skills, e.g. dexterity, were not always reflected in pay, and that men's greater mobility enabled them to earn more in construction. Information was requested on what was being done to implement the Committee's recommendation on equal pay and job evaluation and on the current rate of unemployment for women: whether it was disproportionate to men's unemployment and whether any particular age groups were especially affected.
253. Other questions raised were whether many women were discouraged from
entering the employment market, because of lack of skills training and child
care; what plans there were to end segregation in the labour market and to

eliminate distinctions, which precluded women from certain sectors; and what the current position was on funding nurseries for working parents. It was asked whether all women who needed to do so could have access to such nurseries.
254. The second periodic report had identified lack of leisure for women as a problem. It was asked what further action was planned to overcome that.
255. The representative answered that no concrete measures had been adopted. Legislative measures guaranteed the right to equal wages, but problems arose in its implementation. Of the total number of unemployed, from 55 to
65 per cent were women, with the highest proportion in Prague. Unemployment affected mainly graduates, and tax measures sought to stimulate their employment. More than 80 per cent of the women in their productive years were employed. The transition to a market economy was changing that percentage. An evaluation of measures taken in that regard would be presented in the third periodic report. Remuneration was based on a wage scale which was unfavourable to women. The criteria that defined the exacting character of the labour and established that hard physical labour was better paid held true in State enterprises. No data on private enterprises were available. Parental leave had been extended to fathers in 1987, but fathers using it were still the exception as society considered it unusual, strange and even humiliating for men. A new law was currently in effect concerning maternity allowance, establishing that both parents were entitled to it for the first three years of the child's life. Currently, the allowance amounted to 900 Koruny per month. That was in line with the new family policy, but the social climate needed to be changed in order to provide both partners with the same opportunities to choose. Many nurseries had had to close down, and the situation was in flux. Data might become available later in the year.
256. The report stated that International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 89 on night-work and other provisions prohibiting certain work for women were to be reviewed in 1988.
257. Several questions on this issue were answered by the representative. The Government was ready to submit ILO Convention No. 8 9 to Parliament for ratification. The new Labour Code, which should be in force by
1 January 1993, should satisfy the provisions of that Convention. Nothing had changed with regard to social benefits. Women were treated as individuals with certain exceptions (soldiers' wives could benefit from a special allowance). Unemployed women were treated in the same way as men. Concerning the informal sector, she stated that it had not existed in the socialist economy, except for the black market. Services provided by women had included cleaning, babysitting, sewing, gardening and the selling of products. The private sector had appeared only two years ago. It was currently very difficult even to classify the informal sector.
Article 12
258. The representative was asked how unemployed women would be affected by
changes in the funding of health care, of which employers were to bear a
portion of the cost. It was stated that cases of AIDS had been reported and
she was asked what preventive and educational measures were being taken that
were directed to women.

259. She stated that the participation of clients in the costs of health-care services was not being considered for the next year. Complete coverage was still provided by the State. More details would be provided in the third periodic report. Information on AIDS should be provided in schools. An AIDS prevention information campaign had also recently been started by the Ministry of Health Care. No measures specifically addressed to women had been taken. As of November 1991, there had been 25 cases of AIDS, and 128 cases of HIV positive, among them 9 women. The national family policy referred basically to parental leave and allowances, tax policy and social security measures. More information would be presented in the third periodic report. Contraceptive means had become more accessible in terms of availability, not in terms of affordability. The fertility rate had been stable for the last five years.
260. The report mentioned a national family policy. Information was requested on that. Also, there had been moves to alter the abortion laws and to reduce the high number of abortions. The Committee asked whether adequate provisions had been made for sex education and family planning and contraception to offset the greater difficulty and cost of abortion, and whether those measures had had any effect on the fertility rate.
Article 16
261. In the initial report it was said that the property of husband and wife was shared equally on divorce, and that women's domestic contribution was given equal value. Examples of illustrative court decisions were requested. It was asked if there were any studies to evaluate the value of women's unpaid domestic work.
262. The representative stated that upon divorce, the allowance to be paid by the parent who did not take the children consisted of two parts, namely, for the upkeep and education of the children and for the care itself. Property acquired during marriage was divided equally upon divorce. No studies had been conducted to evaluate the value of unpaid domestic work.
263. Members of the Committee congratulated the representative on the candid comments and thanked her for the clear and informative answers and remarks provided. They wished her success in her future endeavours.
264. Members then asked a number of additional questions. One member asked how the Government assessed the major qualitative changes of recent years, and whether they had helped women. She inquired about the tendency of divorce rates and suggested that the Government should assess the role of women's organizations in the changing society. Many members referred to the lack of a national machinery for women. It was said that such machinery was very much needed, one reason being to avoid the danger of a backlash concerning women's role and status, which, it was feared, was emerging in areas such as part-time work or with women staying at home, and the dangers that might stem from the new family policy. It was said that national machinery for women, not for women and the family, was absolutely necessary, and the representative was wholeheartedly advised that there was a need for such machinery. One expert suggested that the women's movement could be the basis for such machinery and that it should have channels to reach the authorities and those in power, so as to have proper influence on the decision-making process. It was also noted

that women seemed to be seen as part of the family, which was considered to be a basic conceptual problem. Women were beings in their own right, it was said, and the family was only one part of their being. A choice had to be made whether to see men and women as individuals or as members of families. That choice had repercussions on tax, employment and social security policies. One expert said her country had the chance to start afresh. She suggested introducing equality officers in unemployment agencies to break through tradition and to overcome stereotyped thinking. It was further pointed out that without the establishment of quotas or numerical goals it was very difficult for women to obtain their fair share. One expert noticed a passive attitude on the part of women and the authorities in dealing with issues. She referred to the existence of 14 women's organizations and to the lack of clarity regarding their programmes, as well as to the absence of a definition of discrimination in the law.
265. With women's professional future in danger due to the changing economy, one expert wondered why they were not getting organized. It was also asked what kind of collaborative retraining efforts were under way for women who were losing their jobs in the transitional economy. The question was raised whether women were aware and able to take advantage of the emerging market economy: whether they could become businesswomen and if there was enough government support; and whether they were ready to take the initiative in the small and medium-sized enterprise sector. Concern was expressed on the closing of nurseries and the impact that had had on working women, in particular also regarding young women and their career possibilities. Clarification was sought on the informal sector. It was conceded that it was not easy to deal with a situation of transition. The fact had to be faced that transition affected women in particular. The representative was asked how the Government planned to assist women in that difficult situation.
266. Some members asked whether there had been an increase in prostitution. Members requested clarification on the legality of abortion. The question was also raised as to who prescribed contraceptives, whether they were free and how women obtained access to contraceptive means. Several experts reminded the representative of their concern on the issue of violence against women.
It was asked whether forced sterilization of gypsies occurred. Clarification was sought on the role and functions of the Ministry of Control.
267. The representative stated that women in her country did not know what
problems they were facing. There was no pressure from society to take certain
steps. Problems were many and manifold. She thanked the members for their
comments.
El Salvador
268. The Committee considered the second periodic report of El Salvador (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l2) at its 198th meeting, on 27 January 1992.
269. Although commendable efforts had been observed, the Committee noted that the second report was not very different from the first one and on the whole failed to include the statistical data requested. More information was requested detailing the impact of the internal war on the situation of women and children, who constituted the most vulnerable groups.

270. The Committee hoped that the cessation of hostilities would be followed by specific measures, duly recorded, for the advancement of women, since it had been stated that such measures were being elaborated and that it was the Government's wish to apply them. It would like to know how the Government intended to involve women in the post-war planning.
271. Before replying to questions, the representative of El Salvador reminded the Committee of the crisis that the country had undergone in the 1980s and its grave consequences, particularly for the poorest sections of society, where a high percentage of women and children could be found. But with the conclusion of the negotiations between the Government and the Frente Farabundo Marti para la Liberacion Nacional (FMLN) and the peace agreement of
16 January 1992, the country was entering a new phase of national reconciliation and reconstruction with a view to reintegrating all social groups in order to bring about economic and social recovery and equal opportunities for women and men. The Government's national reconstruction plan was currently in its first phase. During the last few years, the armed conflict had affected all sectors of the society and, as a consequence, had led to a decline in the economic and social situation. Through migration outside the country the family unit had deteriorated and violence had increased.
272. The representative gave an overview of the most important articles of the
Constitution that were currently under review in order to promote the status
of women. She mentioned articles that prohibited discrimination on the
grounds of sex in marital relationships, remuneration, education and
nationality. Under the Constitution, anyone had the right to life, physical
and moral integrity, liberty, security, work, ownership and possession of
property, and to the protection of those rights. Nobody could be obliged to
change domicile except in special emergency circumstances. She said that a
new civil code, which would protect women as essential members of the family,
was in the process of being drafted. Many of the concerns expressed by the
members in relation to socio-cultural prejudices, which seemed to emerge from
the country report and were reflected in the legal dispositions in force,
would be overcome by some of the provisions contained in that draft family
code, which would be based on a broader concept of the family. The idea was
that the new family code would not just amend, but rather abrogate, the whole
first part of the Civil Code of 1860, dealing with family rights. The most
important innovations referred to an equal marriageable age of 18 years for
women and men and to full equality of personal and property rights and duties
of both spouses. Divorce was contemplated when the spouses' life in common
became intolerable. The spouses had to deal jointly with all domestic duties
and had to contribute to the family household according to their means. For
the administration of the family property, the spouses could choose between
the separation of goods, participation in the earnings and the association of
earnings. De facto unions that had lasted for more than one year were
considered equal to matrimonial unions with regard to inheritance, and to
personal and property rights. Parental authority was shared by both parents,
and the right to choose a name was regulated by the new draft legal provisions.
273. In El Salvador, governmental institutions monitored the protection of women in society: the General Prosecutor's Office, which protected the family and gave legal assistance to persons with low income; the Attorney General,

who started legal action in cases of violations of human rights regarding women; the Office of Women; the National Secretariat for the Family within the Women's Office; the Department for Women and Minors within the Ministry of Labour and Social Security; and the Centre for Development for Rural Women within the Ministry of Agriculture. Any assistance provided by the Attorney General was free of charge. In addition to that, the General Prosecutor's Office had a programme that gave abandoned women access to credit.
274. The representative then replied to questions contained in the list that
had been transmitted to the Government.
Article 2
275. The representative answered all the questions on article 2. She explained that the special committee to review Salvadorian legislation in the light of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women had completed its work in 1991 and had proposed a preliminary draft of the family code. The code had been submitted for comments to several ministries and government agencies as well as to non-governmental organizations. The comments would be made available to the legislative assembly. Some comments referred to the use of gender-neutral language and the elimination of any reference to "good conduct" as a precondition for founding a family. Others referred to the repeal of the 300-day waiting period for women after the dissolution of a marriage before being able to remarry, to family expenditure in the sense that housework should be estimated at the same value as the contributions made by the other spouse by paid work outside the house, to the equal sharing of household duties between the two spouses and to alimony duties of the child's father during the period of pregnancy and three months thereafter.
276. The special committee had women members, and three women lawyers had participated in the drafting of the new proposed family code. As the committee had completed its task, a team with similar functions in the Ministry of Justice would resume its work.
Article 3
277. The Committee asked what measures were being undertaken by government agencies to ensure adherence to human rights by official law enforcement personnel, and what measures would be taken to preclude any arbitrary action violating human rights by non-governmental groups.
278. The representative answered that through the reform of the Constitution, the Office of the Prosecutor had been set up for the defence of human rights. It had to monitor respect for human rights and investigate either ex officio or following a denunciation.
Article 4
279. The Committee asked several questions on the Office of Women in the
Ministry of Culture and Communications. What was its size, function and
budgets? Had the Office of Women or any other body developed plans or
programmes for the advancement of women? . Did it monitor equality of
opportunity? Could the representative say how many cases it had dealt with?

Had it taken steps to collect gender disaggregated statistics? And had any steps been taken to consult women's organizations in preparing the report?
280. The representative answered that the Ministry of Culture and
Communications had ceased to exist under the present Government and had become
one of the four secretariats attached to the office of the President of the
Republic. The Office of Women had become part of the Ministry of Education
and was coordinated by the Women's Unit in the National Secretariat for the
Family. It had developed the following plans or programmes for the
advancement of women: training programmes for female shop owners and women
working in home education, a programme on women, health and development, and,
a training programme on sex education, self-esteem and women's problems for persons in several government agencies and ministries. Other projects were the revision of Salvadorian legislation in the light of the Convention, in particular of the family, labour and penal codes; monthly seminars for women from governmental organizations and non-governmental organizations on the situation of women in different fields to complement the new draft laws and to raise consciousness; and a pilot project for setting up offices for the defence of women victims of family violence, which would cooperate with the General Prosecutor's Office, the Attorney General's Office, some ministries and non-governmental organizations. Other programmes included a legal literacy programme, workshops on the integration of women into development, a workshop on rural women and communication and a regional seminar on women, health and legislation, which initiated the setting up of a commission for women and the family within the Legislative Assembly. With the financial assistance of UNFPA, a profile of Salvadorian women was to be elaborated.
Article 5
281. The Committee noted that there was a need to strengthen maternal and child health-care and family-planning services, and it asked how single and abandoned mothers were assisted and what was done to prevent early motherhood.
282. The representative mentioned that the Adolescent Unit of the Department for the Family had worked out programmes for single mothers and it gave particular attention to pregnant teenagers and teenage mothers to reduce teenage pregnancy, to give them health care and labour protection and to provide them with additional nutritional and prenatal attention. The programme had been carried out in May 1990 in several provinces. It currently included most health centres in the Republic and provided teenage mothers also with financial assistance through the communal banks. In May 1990, clinics for victims of sexual abuse had been set up in several district hospitals under the supervision of the Secretariat for the Family to provide them with medical, psychological and legal assistance.
Article 6
283. The Committee asked if there were statistics on the number of women
engaged in prostitution and measures to facilitate the distribution of condoms
to avoid AIDS. It wondered if there had been any thought of rehabilitating
those groups and what specific measures existed to detect exploiters. The
Committee wanted to know if, as a result of the examination of the criminal
law, there had been any amendment to give women greater protection, and if the
rape of a prostitute carried the same penalty as other rape.

284. The representative replied that the National Department for the Family
was currently preparing statistics on the number of women engaged in
prostitution. Furthermore, a medical assistance programme was being carried
out, which included weekly medical check-ups, tests for venereal diseases and
HIV/AIDS tests. The Department provided the prostitutes with training in
health matters and rehabilitation programmes. In the Penal Code there was a
different penalty for rape, in general, and for the rape of a prostitute;
however, the penal legislation was currently under review.
Article 7
285. The Committee asked for information on the percentage of women with legislative, executive and managerial responsibilities. It asked if any temporary measure had been devised to increase the number and what the percentage of women in diplomatic posts was.
286. The representative said that statistics would be provided in the third periodic report; there were some women in the legislative assembly and two women ministers, the Minister for Planning and the Minister for Education.
Article 10
287. The Committee stated that, according to United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) data, approximately 400,000 children were totally outside the school system. The Committee asked what specific plans there were to provide a type of education that retained the children and whether schools with dining-rooms were being considered. There was a very high rate of drop-outs and of illiteracy. It asked what the results were of the schemes for literacy by radio. Given the fact that more women than men were illiterate, how did the Government intend to overcome that gap and were there specific literacy programmes for women. If not, why not? It asked what programmes there were to give effect to the Government's intention to implement the education of women.
288. The representative explained that the Ministry of Education had prepared an adult literacy programme for women and men and that primary education had been expanded. Furthermore, the programme, entitled "a glass of milk", provided children in primary schools with nutritional support.
Article 11
289. The Committee stated that it was obvious that women's participation in the labour market had increased and asked if any thought had been given to training women to enable them to work at management levels. It asked what percentage of women in the urban and rural areas had social security; if there were any government agency that investigated violations in the provision of benefits; why the retirement ages for women and men were so far apart; if there were different conditions of work and social benefits in the public and private sectors; and why women were in such large numbers in the administrative and commercial sectors. It was asked whether it was women's real choice and whether it contributed to lower earnings levels.
290. The Committee also asked if the Government planned to undertake a review of the protection legislation.

291. The representative said that detailed answers to the questions raised
would be provided in the subsequent report. Women had access to technical and
university education without limitation. The conditions for work and social
benefits were mostly the same in the public and in the private sector. The
different retirement ages of 55 for women and 60 for men were explained by the
double burden, in the workplace and at home, often borne by women. Women were
mostly involved in the informal, commercial and service sectors. The
protection legislation was currently being reviewed.
Article 12
292. The Committee said that it was estimated that approximately 60 per cent of the population had no access to sanitary facilities. Malnutrition and anaemia together with frequent pregnancies were the most common causes of maternal mortality. It asked what measures were foreseen to reverse that situation to achieve as much success as the recently implemented vaccination scheme. It also would like to know how many women used the services of the "maternity hospitals"; to what extent children were born at home; whether all Salvadorian women were covered by the social security system; and whether they all received the so-called "maternity layette".
293. The Committee noted that there had been some improvement in reducing the high infant mortality and asked what measures had been the most productive and beneficial; and if there were plans to extend those efforts.
294. It also asked if there were preventive programmes and services to deal with the problem of AIDS.
295. Replies to questions posed under article 12 would be provided in a subsequent report.
Article 14
296. The Committee understood that only 40 per cent of the rural population
had potable water and felt that the cooperatives and self-help groups acting
jointly with the Government would be able to remedy the situation. It
enquired whether there was any plan of that kind.
Article 16
297. The Committee asked if the provision of article 182 of the Civil Code, which specified that the husband owed protection to the wife and the wife obedience to the husband, had been repealed. It also asked if the Cooperation Committee for the Inter-American Commission of Women in El Salvador had recommended a repeal of the discriminatory provisions under articles 182, 145 and 180 and if there were many cases in which the wife voluntarily abandoned the husband.
298. Before concluding, the representative said that in her country equality between men and women was still an aspiration rather than a reality. Although it could not be achieved in the immediate future, it was an ideal that
El Salvador wanted to become reality by overcoming the socio-political and economic problems and prejudices inherent in traditional patterns. The representative gave her Government's commitment to prepare the third periodic

report shortly and to give therein a full account of the situation of women in. her country and of the projects that would be carried out within the national reconstruction plan. Internal efforts would be paralleled by bilateral and multilateral help in order to spark off social development in countries like El Salvador, where development programmes had for so long been neglected.
299. Members of the Committee expressed their gratitude for the information provided and commended the competent manner in which that had been done. They showed understanding for the difficult period that the country had gone through and emphasized that if a country wanted to advance, it had to take into account the women's dimension for designing their policies and setting their objectives. The country's desire to achieve peace was praised and the hope was expressed that the international community would aid the national reconstruction effort.
300. They urged the Government, however, to include statistical data in the subsequent report. Despite its declaration to improve the status of women, the current report did not provide a detailed description nor a time-frame for an evaluation of the programmes for women. Although members were impressed by the policy to strengthen the family, they recommended to the Government that it modify discriminatory elements in the Civil Code to reflect better the Government's policies. The members noted with approval that the draft family code had been submitted to various interest groups for comments, expressed the hope that it would soon be enacted and asked if legislation had been proposed on the status of children in de facto unions. Further questions referred to the grounds for divorce and to whether distribution of property was done in an equitable manner after the dissolution of a marriage. It was asked how many women had been assisted by the communal banks, how many prostitutes had been covered by the available programmes and whether any programmes were designed to convince men that the double burden on women's shoulders was not fair.
301. In reply to the additional questions raised, the representative said that the lack of statistics was a serious problem. Some data were available on the programmes for young mothers and on sexual abuse. A detailed description of the programmes for women would be provided in the subsequent report. Regarding the Civil Code, the representative explained that what was aimed at was not a reform of the Civil Code, but a repeal of the whole part concerning the family, which should be replaced by the new draft family code.
El Salvador had ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and a Code for Minors existed, details of which would be provided in the subsequent report. The draft family code provided for dissolution of marriage in case of death or presumed death of one of the spouses and dissolution of the matrimonial bond through divorce by mutual consent, because of separation of the spouses for one or more consecutive years or that life together for the spouses was intolerable. A divorce might be requested only by the spouse not responsible for the breakdown of the marriage. Under the new code the couple was free to choose between the three types of patrimonial regime mentioned above. If no choice was made, the court imposed on the parties the system of shared earnings. Regarding prostitution, it was said that about 600 women were protected by the programmes offered.

302. In its concluding observations, the Committee showed its appreciation for
the Government's optimistic approach to the issue of the advancement of women
considering the sufferings the country had undergone. The various agencies
dealing with the status of women that had been mentioned and the access of
women to communal banks were particularly commended. The Committee strongly
asked for the inclusion of statistical data in the subsequent report and
wished the Government every success in its undertakings.
Spain
303. The Committee considered the second periodic report of Spain (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l9 and Amend.1) at its 201st meeting, on 28 January 1992.
304. The Committee thought that the first report had been very good, and noted the strong commitment of Spain to reform, modernization and the equality of women. However, the second periodic report consisted mainly of the 1988-1990 Plan for Equal Opportunities. It did not always show what changes had occurred. Some of the figures were out of date, and did not permit up-to-date comparisons. It seemed to have been written in 1988, though dated 1990. The material was organized in accordance with the following headings: legal system; family and social protection; education and culture; employment and labour relations; and internal cooperation and political organization.
305. The amendment repeated much of the material in the second periodic report, but did not state that it was a replacement.
306. Despite those observations, the report and supplement had a great deal of valuable information, and showed the continuing commitment of Spain to principles of equality.
307. The representative of Spain addressed the Committee and emphasized the importance given by her Government to United Nations conventions on human rights, and to the obligations and objectives associated with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The Government wished that the United Nations would increase its activities related to the role of women. The objectives set forth by the Convention were fully consistent with the Spanish Constitution, which had proclaimed the principle of equality of men and women before the law, and called for measures to make equality fully effective. Continuous government effort was needed to accomplish those objectives.
308. The representative said that a main change since the first periodic report had been Spain's acceptance of European norms on equality and of European programmes of affirmative action for 1980-1985 and 1985-1990, as a consequence of entry into the European Community. Another key event had been the first plan of action for equality of opportunities of women, adopted by the Council of Ministers in September 1988. The Steering Council of the Institute for Women's Affairs (IWA) had drafted the plan and had been entrusted with the initiation and follow-up of the measures contained in it. The plan was comprehensive and horizontal. It had established objectives, measures to meet those objectives and institutions responsible for those measures. The objectives were to be achieved between 1987 and 1990. One of the main objectives of the plan was to complete the normative development of the constitutional principle of equality. The plan was also to give

legitimacy to positive action in favour of women and to enhance the acceptance and implementation of such measures. It was also aimed at developing the social infrastructure for the most disadvantaged women.
309. The representative gave the example of education to illustrate the achievements of the plan. Differences between men and women in education were now of a qualitative rather than a quantitative nature. Female students indeed had a tendency to opt for certain fields of study that often had fewer job opportunities, although their representation in the technical field was increasing. Since 1987, female attendance in universities had been slightly higher than that of men. Regular vocational training remained an area where female participation was less than that of male.
310. The representative then provided the Committee with information and statistics on the plan's achievements in the field of employment and stressed that there had been a continuous increase in female activity rates between 1984 and 1991 as the actual rate was 33.3 per cent. That had been done, however, mainly through increased female participation in the service sector. The female labour force remained concentrated in professions related to education, health, textiles and personal services. Female representation in public administration had increased in recent years both in the central administration and in higher or senior-level posts. The lack of an entrepreneurial culture aware of women's capabilities was the leading cause in women's low representation in higher level employment in general, and the representative said that public administration had to take the lead in promoting new recruiting habits. Turning to the issue of women in politics, the representative noted that more women had been elected in both general and local elections. The quota system initiated by the Socialist Party helped because it was followed by other political parties that might not have established concrete quotas but might increase the participation of women in various positions. She concluded that there had been important achievements in Spain, but that a lot remained to be done. Achieving de facto equality implied more progress in the field of education, public participation and the sharing of domestic tasks.
311. The representative then replied to questions contained in the list that had been transmitted to the Government and referred to general observations made by members of the Committee.
312. She mentioned that the structure of the report was in conformity with the plan of action for equality of opportunities of women. The statistics provided were the most recent available and, where possible, were dated from the first quarter of 1991.
313. The Committee noted that IWA was the agency responsible for implementing equal opportunity for women. The plan of action for equal opportunities of women showed a strong commitment to equality, in line with past achievements. It was asked if there was an evaluation of the plan and if information on any evaluation could be provided.
314. Answering questions asked by the Committee on areas of change, the representative reported that the plan of action for equality of opportunities of women had been evaluated in December 1990. Women's associations and experts had been participating in that process together with the ministerial

departments involved in the implementation of the plan. Out of the 120 measures contained in the plan, 116 measures had been fulfilled in December 1990. All legislative changes had been implemented with the exception of those dealing with men's pre-eminence in determining the order of names for children. Important improvements had been made through the programme of positive actions, but efforts had to be sustained in the medium term.
315. The Committee noted that the Convention was domestic law and could be invoked in the courts; it overrode inconsistent laws. Laws contravening the Convention were invalid and of no effect. It asked whether women could go to the Constitutional Court and to the Court at Luxembourg, and whether there were any cases that had been decided. It was noted that affirmative action had been established as lawful when it was due to an objection and reasonable cause that justified it. The Committee asked for the text of that provision and information on laws providing for positive action.
316. On the effect of the Convention in domestic law, the representative read article 10 of the Spanish Constitution, which stated that Spanish norms on fundamental rights and liberties should be interpreted in conformity with the provisions of all international human rights treaties signed by Spain. Hence, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women could be invoked before ordinary courts as well as before the supreme court. Individuals could resort directly to the constitutional court with regard to violations of fundamental rights and liberties, including the principle of equality affirmed by the Constitution in article 14. There was a wide jurisprudence of the constitutional court on the interpretation of article 14 in conformity with international treaties. By a judgement of 1987, the constitutional court had established that positive action was not a form of discrimination as forbidden by article 14. The court had recalled that public authorities in Spain had the responsibility for promoting the conditions necessary to ensure that all individuals enjoyed freedom and equality, in conformity with article 9.2 of the Constitution. That legitimated the implementation of positive action.
317. The Committee noted that law 11/1990 was aimed at discrimination on the ground of sex. It dealt with residence, common law, inheritance, criminal law, maternal preference, etc. It was asked whether all legal discrimination had been removed, including discrimination relating to nationality.
318. The Committee noted that Spain still had a reservation under which ratification did not affect the constitutional provisions concerning succession to the Crown. Preference to men in regard to titles of nobility had been abolished. When the initial report was presented, the possibility of change in regard to succession to the Crown had been mentioned. It was asked if there had been further developments.
319. The representative replied that the Spanish reservation to the Convention did not affect the goal and purpose of the Convention, and that a constitutional reform would be necessary to withdraw it.

Articles 1 to 4
320. On questions asked under articles 1 to 4, the representative informed the Committee that Spanish women's associations were part of the Steering Committee of IWA and had participated in the evaluation of the first plan, based on which the second periodic report and the amendment had been prepared. She confirmed that Spain had taken into account the general recommendations of the Committee in preparing its report.
321. The Committee noted that it was commented in the initial report that domestic work was still done by women with little help, and men were not interested in equality issues. It said that the Institute would be undertaking a campaign to encourage men to share domestic responsibility, to encourage parents to ensure all kinds of professions were open to girls and to encourage young people to choose professions with an eye to the future. The Committee asked what the effects of that campaign had been.
Article 5
322. On article 5 and questions on traditional roles and stereotyping, the representative reported campaigns carried out by IWA to promote a better sharing of domestic responsibilities and a diversification of professional opportunities for young women. Men's attitudes towards women remained very traditional, and the impact of actions against stereotyping would be visible in the medium term only. The representative also referred to the general law of 1988 on advertising. The law had declared unlawful advertising that offended the dignity of a person and was injurious to the values and rights recognized in the Constitution, and it gave judges the right to suspend such advertising until further analysis was made. There was no jurisprudence so far.
323. The Committee asked for the full text of the provision, which could be a valuable model.
324. The Committee mentioned that IWA had put forward criteria to be used in all official advertising and asked if those criteria had been met.
325. The representative said that IWA had made a manual on using non-sexist language in administrative documents.
326. She referred also to a campaign aimed at encouraging men to behave according to the principles of equality, and she stated that although men ideologically favour those principles their behaviour was contradictory.
Violence against women (articles 2. 5. 11. 12 and 16)
327. In answer to questions on violence, the representative read the
definition of rape contained in the penal code. Since 1989, the code
established rape to be carnal access to another person by vaginal, anal or
oral means, by the use of force or intimidation or by taking advantage of the
victim's insanity, or if the victim was under the age of 12. It was
punishable by a prison term of from 12 to 20 years. There had been a change,
and currently the Supreme Court only required evidence of non-consent by the
victim. Some lower courts, however, continued to require evidence of
resistance.

328. With regard to sexual harassment, she said that that action was not defined as a crime by the penal code, but as a serious violation of the labour order, punished by a fine. The labour inspection was in charge of implementing that sanction. The representative gave examples of programmes for women victims of sexual assault. Those included the training of State security forces and the creation of services to give special assistance by women police to women at police stations.
329. On violence in the family, the representative said that rape and other sexual offences were independent crimes in which the active party could be a family member or an unrelated person. In relation to offences involving ill-treatment of one member of a family by another, rape and sexual assault in general were treated more severely. She informed the Committee that, according to the Organic Law of 1989, the sterilization of persons suffering from grave mental deficiencies was legal if approved by a judge and by the legal counsel of the incompetent person.
Article 6
330. The representative said that prostitution of others was punishable under
the penal code. Prosecuting prostitution associated with illegal immigration
at the Portuguese border had proved difficult. But the Spanish police had
programmes to punish the exploitation of prostitution of both Spanish women
and illegal immigrants. Programmes developed by the central, regional or
local governments for prostitutes included health-care services, child-care,
training for vocational opportunities, fellowships and scholarships.
Articles 7 and 8
331. It was commented in the second periodic report that there was no
significant change in political participation: 6.5 and 5.5 per cent in the
Senate. But it was noted in the Amendment that from 1989 the percentage of
women in Parliament was 14.6 per cent, owing to the increase in the Socialist
Workers Party and the United Left. Of Senators, 10 per cent were women. The
Socialist Party had approved a quota of 2 5 per cent of women in posts of
responsibility. It was asked if other parties had followed that example. The
Committee asked what goals and quotas had been set for women. It was asked
how the quota system operated and if it were for candidates or elected
representatives. How did it affect the voting patterns? The Committee noted
that the report mentioned a programme for women in higher public office. In
the amended report it was noted that there were 12.2 per cent women
directors-general in 1991. It was asked if those programmes had been
effective.
332. The representative said that the Communist Party had introduced a quota
of 3 5 per cent for the participation of women in its governing body and on its
electoral lists. Other parties had actually started to include larger numbers
of women on their lists. The quota system in the context of closed electoral
lists had led to an increase in the number of women in regional assemblies and
in the national parliament. Participation of women at higher levels of public
administration had also risen between 1987 and 1991. The programme of
affirmative action had played a key role, together with the increased
participation of women in civil service training institutes.

333. The Committee noted that under Decree Law 1/1988, women might enter all forms of military employment under the same conditions of equality as men. The Committee inquired if women had reached the highest levels of the service and if there were any distinctions that excluded them.
334. The representative replied that there was no distinct exclusion of women from the higher levels of the service, but that there had been no time for women who had joined the army to develop fully their careers.
33 5. On a question on women in the diplomatic corps, she said that their share had increased by more than 100 per cent, and that 50 per cent of the successful candidates in the last entrance competition in 1991 had been women.
Article 10
336. The Committee noted that the initial report stated that only a minority of women had chosen technical studies. Plans mentioned to the Committee had included mixed schools to be obligatory; reform of teaching material; and programmes to increase the participation of girls in technology. In the second periodic report, the figures for education were only up to 1985. In the amendment, the latest information was that women were equal in enrolments at secondary schools and higher in tertiary institutions. But while there were more females than males in universities, there were fewer in vocational training, and still fewer in technical high schools. Women chose science less often than boys. The Committee asked what vocational guidance was available to people completing secondary education; what measures there were to encourage more women to take vocational training or to study technology at university; whether they had been effective in combating gender-based job segregation; whether there were positive measures, such as special scholarships, to encourage women to take up careers in non-traditional areas; and what was being done to monitor the plan for non-sexist use of language, and teaching material.
337. In answer to several questions, the representative reported various programmes to train professors and school guidance counselors on non-discriminatory vocational guidance. She also reported programmes to enhance female participation in new technologies, including a European Community project and counselling campaigns for educators and teachers of new technology. Such programmes contributed to the promotion of women's participation in sectors of employment traditionally considered male. Other measures in the area included campaigns for the diversification of professional options through the distribution of posters, for example, or through seminars on non-sexist orientation. The representative addressed the issue of the monitoring of the plan for non-sexist use of language and reported a whole range of activities. For example, material and videos of IWA on sex equality were being broadly circulated, a prize had been established in 1988 to promote the production of non-discriminatory didactic material and the Ministry of Education had established a national competition for the preparation of curriculum material giving special attention to the equality of opportunity between men and women.

Article 11
338. It was stated by the Committee that 31.9 per cent of women were in the
active population in 1987 (compared with 27.8 per cent in 1985), representing
33.5 per cent of the total active population. In 1991, women were
35.3 per cent of the total active population. The Committee asked what the obstacles were to higher participation in the work force by women and if there were de facto obstructions to training, etc.
339. The unemployment rate of women was 27.7 per cent and for men it was 16.5 per cent. In 1991, women had an unemployment rate of 23.2 per cent against 11.9 per cent for men. The Committee asked what the education and skills were of unemployed women and if a lack of training was the reason for high unemployment.
340. In answer, the representative differentiated between three main obstacles to women's participation in the economy: entrepreneurial culture, underevaluation of their capacity by the women themselves and unshared family responsibilities. She said that there were no de facto obstacles to access to professional training. The unemployment rate for women had decreased but remained twice as high as that of men. Lack of training was not the only explanation for the higher unemployment rate for women, though poorly educated women, especially those who had left the labour market for several years for family reasons, indeed experienced higher unemployment rates. There were also corporate obstacles to women's activity.
341. The Committee noted that law 3/1989 extended maternity leave to 16 weeks; it could be shared. A parent could take three years to look after a child and retain his/her place and have the period count for seniority. It had been made an offence to discriminate in respect of wages, hours, etc., on the ground of sex; breach of rules regarding pregnancy and nursing were also offences. Decree 521/1990 reversed the burden of proof in discrimination cases, so that the defendant had to show objective and reasonable justification for the actions taken.
342. The Committee asked (a) for more information on how those laws operated and asked if there had been proceedings or prosecutions and if they were leading to changes in practice; (b) if the evaluation of the labour market and programmes for women had taken place; (c) if part-time jobs were mainly held by women, and if they were regulated by national labour agreements; (d) if part-time workers had the same terms and conditions as full-time workers; and (e) if there were special programmes to encourage the employment of disabled women.
343. Turning to questions on parental leave, the representative said that the law providing for an extended 16 weeks of leave allowed the last four weeks to be used by either the father or the mother. That choice was also given for the leave for child care. The dismissal of a woman because she was pregnant was considered null by law and the employer was forced to readmit the worker or to pay her salary. A 1990 law had recognized the reversal of the burden of proof. But it had been actually applied when a female worker alleged discrimination on the basis of sex, since a 1981 sentence of the constitutional court. The representative said that there were very few part-time workers in Spain, but that they were entitled to the same social

security schemes as full-time workers. She also reported programmes for the educational and professional training of men and women with disabilities and informed the Committee that quotas had been reserved for persons with disabilities in enterprises with more than 25 employees.
Article 12
344. The Committee requested figures for fertility and birth rates. It said that despite the fact of contraception a high proportion did not use efficient methods. It seemed more education on contraception was needed and asked if there were programmes for that. It also wanted to know the results of the study of adolescent pregnancies.
345. The representative answered that the Organic Law on the General Organization of the Educational System provided for the incorporation of health education in the educational system and that the fertility rate had declined from 1.64 per cent in 1985 to 1.36 per cent in 1989. Studies showed that the use of contraceptive methods was higher among women who had declared that they had a partner than among the female population of fertile age as a whole. The representative gave examples of programmes to increase awareness of contraception such as pilot programmes for sex education of young people. On teenage pregnancy, she said that the last survey was dated from 1985 and had counted 29,586 births among women under 20 years of age. Consequences included school drop-out and medical problems linked to attempts to conceal the pregnancy as long as possible. Answering questions on the law on assisted techniques of reproduction, the representative said that every woman could make use of those techniques as long as she gave her consent on their free and aware utilization, was more than 18 years old and fully competent. There was an express prohibition against surrogate motherhood.
346. She said that the latest data on the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) revealed that 6,840 men and 1,359 women were affected, and women represented 17 per cent of all victims. The national programme for AIDS care and prevention included specific activities for women, and IWA had published an informative bulletin on women and AIDS.
347. The representative then answered a question on breast and gynaecological cancer. There was no national programme for the prevention of those cancers. There were, however, pilot studies to evaluate the efficiency of the different tests. Primary prevention included research on possible risk factors for breast cancer such as nutritional habits, while secondary prevention included mammography and periodic testing and participation in a European programme on cancer. There had been various programmes developed by the autonomous communities and private health centres to prevent such cancer, and all autonomous communities were to elaborate plans to reduce mortality from such cancer among the female population under the age of 65 by 5 per cent by the year 2000.
348. The representative finally provided the Committee with information on drug consumption and said it had emerged as a problem in the 1970s and 1980s, and had become rather high. The number of drug users who resorted to the health system had increased between 1987 and 1990. The autonomous communities had their own plan for the prevention and cure of drug abuse. She presented the 1985 national drug prevention plan, the relative institutions that had been established, and the indicators used, as well as some of its realizations.

Article 13
349. The Committee noted that action had been taken since the initial report to remedy deficiencies in the provision of social services. A guarantee fund had been established for food and accommodation and for social security for people employed in the home; unequal treatment in pension scales for disabled and injured women had been removed. The tariff for compensation for disability was the same for women as for men since May 1988. The old age pension for those unemployed at home was equal to the general pension. It asked if the new social security measures and guarantee fund referred to the unwaged sector of the economy and if women working in family enterprises or at home got social security. Also, who paid contributions and at what age were benefits paid? What social security was available for homemakers on retirement or disability? Did they qualify independently, or as dependants?
350. The representative said that public health services were universal in Spain. The key factor for determining if a person employed at home or as a family worker would receive a pension was whether or not she had contributed to the pension scheme during a sufficient number of years. If not, she would receive financial assistance other than a pension, provided she met a number of additional conditions associated with retirement or invalidity payments. Non-contributory pensions were recognized as a right of the beneficiary that could be claimed as such and were not subject to the existence of resources or granted as a gracious concession, and they formed part of the social security system as a whole.
Article 14
351. In the initial report it was noted that Spain was mainly industrial, and the services for rural women were not so good. For example, young rural women were disadvantaged in such areas as family planning, child care for seasonal workers and access to technology. It was asked what special programmes were being planned to improve the position of rural women.
352. The representative informed the Committee that funds had been allocated in the budget for 1992 for training courses for women in rural areas. Training for work in cooperatives or in rural tourism would be provided, especially to women with children.
Article 16
353. In answer to queries, the representative said that courts had been instituted in major Spanish towns to deal with marriage, divorce and separation and other issues. Specialized personnel including social workers and psychologists provided assistance.
354. In their additional comments, members praised the Government of Spain and its representative for the comprehensive, frank and well-organized reports and answers. There was a strong governmental commitment to improve the situation of women in Spain, and significant progress had been achieved in a short time. The plan of action for equality of opportunities of women was found very ambitious and successful. The law against sexist advertising and actions against stereotyping in employment and education was considered especially successful. Members noted that the de facto changes were slow, despite big

advances made in the legal field. Areas of slow progress included the sharing of domestic tasks and child care with men., participation in studies on science, as well as economic participation. The new threats were AIDS and drugs. Members were confident, however, that progress would continue and felt that Spain could serve as a model for other countries with regard to the promotion of equality.
355. Members requested more information on the decentralization of the policy for equality to the various regions in Spain. They asked if the successful adoption of legal changes had led to a decline in the feminist movement. Members asked what the goals were for the next period of reporting and whether changes in attitudes, especially with regard to the sharing of domestic responsibilities between men and women, had been identified as an area for further progress. Had there been action to encourage men to participate more fully in those tasks? The representative was asked if a prosecutor who took note of a crime of rape could set up a procedure in court without the crime being notified by the victim. Members asked whether there was a law establishing a quota system for political elections, whether there was always the political will among those in charge of the parties to put more women on the lists and, if not, what was done about it. They noted that there were no women in the constitutional court and sought information on the number of women in the rest of the judiciary system. They asked if the increase in the share of women in the diplomatic corps reflected difficulties in finding employment on the labour market in general. Members took note of research on obstacles to equal access to education and asked what had been done to adapt research to the modern society. They expressed the wish that all graphic material on non-sexist education could be made available to the Committee. Members sought more information on incentives granted to enterprises hiring women in traditionally male fields. They asked whether the law allowed doctors to refuse to perform abortions on the ground of religious or moral reasons, whether the method was practised. They also sought information on the age of women who had an abortion, and on the health structure in which abortion was performed.
356. In answering additional questions asked by members, the representative said that regional governments and sometimes local administrations had comprehensive plans for equality of opportunity. Those included measures within their field of competence. In regions governed by the Socialist Party, there were plans on equality of opportunity. She confirmed that there had been a decline in the feminist movement as a result of the achievement of
de jure equality but said that women had increasingly participated in the associative women's movement.
3 57. The representative agreed that much work remained to be done to change attitudes in Spain and to reduce the double burden of women. Spain's four main goals for the future were to ensure compliance with laws on equality and to apply fully and effectively their goals; to continue pursuing policies for education and promotion of employment that would also place women in decision-making positions; to change attitudes and improve the public image of women; and to promote the sharing of domestic responsibilities. She hoped the Government would adopt the second plan for the development of women encompassing those measures in 1992.

358. On rape, the representative said that a modification of the law had made it a public offence, which meant that an offender could no longer be pardoned in the course of the procedure if the victim forgave him.
359. Turning to additional questions on public life and leadership, she said that there was no law establishing a quota system. The Socialist Party had set a precedent and convinced other parties to establish quotas or include more women. On the existence of political will to promote women inside political parties, she said that electoral lists were indeed established by the leaders of political parties and that quotas had been established to overcome their tendency to exclude women. She recognized that the objectives on political participation had not been reached, although there had been a favourable trend as regards women's representation in Parliament, which could and had to be accelerated. There were no women in the Supreme Court, she confirmed, but they were numerous in the judiciary. Thirty-eight per cent of the judges and 31 per cent of the prosecutors were women, and it was hoped that they would pursue their careers and occupy high-level positions in the future. Turning to the increased number of women in the diplomatic corps, she said it was not an effect of recession, since Spain had satisfactory economic growth rates. Like other fields of public administration it was rather due to a system of recruitment based on merit, which was not always the case in the private sector.
360. On education, the representative said that female representation was lower in technical and engineering schools, but that half the students studying mathematics and science were women. She said that research on education in general would be pursued.
361. The representative said that there had been 500,000 peseta subsidies to employers hiring women in non-traditional fields, and another 500,000 pesetas in tax release. The provision concerned all professions where women were under represented, which constituted a long list. The measure had not had the positive effect expected because it was still not sufficiently well known. Similar measures had worked for encouraging the employment of young people.
362. Turning to questions on abortion, the representative said that the revision of article 417 of the Spanish Penal Code had legalized abortion under certain specific conditions: when there was a risk to the life or health of the mother, when the pregnancy was the consequence of rape or when there was a presumption that the foetus would be born with serious physical or mental defects. While most abortions were performed in private clinics, 98 per cent of those with high risk were performed in public clinics. The representative stated that the Committee's concern for drug traffic was fully shared by the Government and that Spain was a port of entry for drugs. She recalled that numerous measures had been taken by public authorities in that field.
363. The representative made available to the Committee the full text of the general law on advertising and the educational material it had requested.
364. In concluding observations, the Committee expressed its appreciation of the comprehensive report and answers, which showed the Government's commitment to achieving equality and improvements in the situation of women. It noted that there were areas of progress and areas of slower changes, and said that the Government's determination was very positive. Members appealed to the

Spanish Government to direct part of its assistance to developing countries to programmes for women, and for areas of implementation of the Convention in particular. The representative took note of the appeal and said that she hoped that the Government would be able to give a satisfactory answer, and that that had been done to a certain extent in assistance to Spanish-speaking countries.
Sri Lanka
365. The Committee considered the second periodic report of Sri Lanka (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l8) at its 202nd meeting, on 28 January 1992.
366. The Committee noted that it was easily evident from a review of the situation of women in Sri Lanka (both initial and second periodic reports) that the problems of women did not lie in the sphere of the national law. Sri Lankan national law, based on the Constitution of 1973, provided for the fundamental right of equality between the sexes. A progressive Charter of Women was furthermore formulated (although reportedly not officially adopted) in 1991, and several levels of bureaucracies had been put in place with the objective of pushing for true equality.
367. The Committee said that despite a liberal constitutional framework and a tradition of progressive legislation, gender discrimination, both in its overt and covert forms, abounded in the country. The imperative need was to identify and address the factors that constituted the obstacles to de facto equality.
368. There were six areas, including one on violence, that were suggested for close investigation as constituting major sources of continuing discrimination against women.
369. The representative of Sri Lanka stated in her opening remarks that discrimination as such was not prevalent in any part of the country. The situation created by the armed conflict was considered a national problem, and special treatment of women in that situation was not possible.
The impact of the internal armed conflict
370. The representative first replied to the questions asked under the heading
"The impact of the internal armed conflict". She said that military spending
had increased from 2.3 per cent of the budget to 10 per cent. A complete
recovery with regard to development programmes had however taken place over
the last three years, facilitated by strong economic growth. Her country had
also obtained concessional assistance for development and economic
restructuring with a focus on rural marginalized subgroups. Those would
undoubtedly have the effect of benefiting women. She stressed that even the
worst of times had not seen the perpetration of discriminatory practices
against women. Issues relating to displaced persons, refugees and their
resettlement and rehabilitation were dealt with by the highest authorities.
The peak of displaced persons had been reached with 1.2 million, a number
currently reduced to 696,000 (163,500 families). No sex-disaggregated
statistics were kept in that field. Five hundred and twenty-nine welfare
centres had been established to house displaced persons and other assistance
measures had been taken as well. The measures focused on the family unit and

the assistance was given to the breadwinner, whether man or woman. The representative said that there were no women placed under military detention nor had any been forced into exile. Women arrested in conjunction with the insurrection were being treated under statutory law and were subject to established judicial tribunals. No sex-disaggregated statistics were kept concerning persons who had fled Sri Lanka. Measures for redress of grievances were available at courts of law irrespective of sex.
Effectiveness of government machinery (articles 1 to 4)
371. The Committee asked how many staff were working on women's issues in the Ministry of Women's Affairs and Teaching Hospitals (MWATH) compared to the staff of the Women's Bureau; who worked in the Women's Bureau as director, deputies and officers; whether it was women only or also men; and if they had separate budgets, and of what size.
372. It asked what the relationship was between MWATH and the Commission for the Elimination of Discrimination and the Monitoring of Fundamental Human Rights (CEDMFR).
373. The Committee requested further information on the objectives of the Women's Bureau, and the exact meaning of the phrase: "ensuring the preservation of Sri Lankan culture and traditions by fostering moral and ethical values so far as they affect the role of women in the process of modernization".
374. It asked how many and which recommendations had been made concerning the equality of women before the law, what legislative proposals the Women's Bureau had put forward to the Government, and which had been accepted.
375. It wanted to know the number of complaints of sex discrimination, and in what areas, filed with CEDMFR since 1986. It asked how many had been handled by the Commission, and with what results.
376. The Committee also asked why no sex discrimination complaint had been brought to the Supreme Court, and what the relationship was between the Supreme Court and the Commission in such matters. Did complaints have to be filed by individuals or could women's organizations file them. It was asked why the Government did not use the instrument of temporary special measures to overcome obstacles to the equality of women, and whether it had any plans to extend to women the special measures it had developed to advance the status of other disadvantaged groups. It asked what the status was of the Charter of Women; whether it had been formally adopted as legal or executive action; and if not, why not. It asked if the idea of a Charter had been scrapped, and if so, why.
377. The Committee asked if the national commission on women proposed in the Charter of Women had been established, what its relationship was to the other bodies concerned with women's rights, and what its programme of action was in pursuit of the stated objectives. If it has not been set up, the Committee asked if the Government had plans along these lines.

378. The Committee noted that more than many other countries, Sri Lanka had established a firm legal and justiciable basis for gender equality and had established a number of governmental bodies to be responsible for government action on the issue. However, many observers had noted that, while the mandates of those agencies were comprehensive, actual achievements in advancing women's rights had been scarce.
379. The representative replied that the national machinery had the following structures at the top was the Ministry of Health and Women's Affairs (MHWA), headed by a woman cabinet minister. Within its infrastructure operated the State Ministry of Women's Affairs (headed by a woman State Minister), which had been assigned specific responsibilities in relation solely to women's affairs. The Women's Bureau was the implementing organ in relation to projects. Staff assigned to women's issues were as follows: three persons in the State Ministry (of which two were women, namely, the State Secretary and the Senior Minister); 17 in the Women's Bureau (of which 13 were women, including the Director, the two Deputy Directors and two of the three Assistant Directors); and 98 in the districts (field offices). The State Ministry and the Women's Bureau had their independent budgetary allocations. Development programmes were funded through foreign aid. As to the question relating to the links between MHWA and the Commission CEDMFR, which had been established in Sri Lanka in 1986, she replied that there were no special organizational links. The Ministry was involved in policy formulation and implementation, and the Commission had its strict guidelines. The purpose of CEDMFR was to receive complaints on discrimination on a broader spectrum. A total of 39 complaints of sex discrimination had been filed with CEDMFR. The Commission looked at all grounds of discrimination, sex being one of them. Of the complaints, 22 were by women and 17 from men. In 11 of the 22 cases, no discrimination had been found, 6 applications had been settled or withdrawn and 5 cases were pending. The majority of cases alleged discrimination on more grounds than sex. CEDMFR used a conciliatory and mediatory process. No legal representation was required. Applications before the Supreme Court must be argued by Counsel and could be a costly exercise. The absence of sex discrimination complaints before the Supreme Court might perhaps also have to do with the inability to actually prove discrimination in a court of law. The Supreme Court was the highest court, and CEDMFR was empowered to attempt settlement by conciliation of any matter that might be referred to it by the Supreme Court. Only the aggrieved party could file a complaint with the Supreme Court. Complaints to CEDMFR could be made by women's organizations.
380. To date, the use of temporary special measures had not been resorted to. No plans had been formulated for the purpose so far. The Charter for Women was available in draft form and was awaiting governmental approval. The Ministry of Women's Affairs was considering and would formulate the mechanism to monitor implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. That might include the appointment of a National Commission on Women. As to the objects and functions of the Women's Bureau, the representative said that they were reviewed as necessary to set desired priorities. Recently, the Bureau had been focusing on the promotion of economic activities among women, and no recommendations concerning equality of women before the law had been made. The Bureau had not dealt with the area of legislative reform. The representative also said that Sri Lankan women, in their quest for advancement and equality, must not shed the positive features of moral and ethical standards.

Discrimination due to personal laws (articles. 2, 3f 5 and 16)
381. The Committee said that from the initial report of Sri Lanka, the most
disturbing feature that had emerged was the existence or application of
several systems of "personal laws", based on differing social and cultural
practices of ethnic or religious groups that denied women equal status with
men before the law. The Government has given the information that a proposal
to eradicate personal laws had been resisted by the parties concerned. Beyond
identifying the specific issues raised by the existence of conflicting laws,
the attempt needed to be made to draw up a legal framework that will adhere to
the constitutional principle of gender equality within the context of a
multicultural and pluralistic society.
382. It was asked whether the State made a move to identify and codify all the personal laws that were discriminatory towards women. Those included laws that provide for preference for males in intestate succession (Muslim law); no obligation for the father to maintain an illegitimate child (Muslim); women's consent not being a prerequisite for a valid marriage (Muslim); and inability to dispose of immovable property without the husband's consent, etc.
383. Since Sri Lanka made no reservations when it ratified the Convention, the question was raised of how the Government intended to resolve the contradiction between the constitutional provision and the teaching of human rights and the continued existence of discriminatory laws for women.
384. The Committee asked why personal status law was the only area in which religious and ethnic laws remained intact, while all other legal fields (e.g., criminal, contractual, civil) were governed by a single general law. It asked whether there was any system of redress for women covered by personal laws; if women had been effectively consulted on their feelings and proposals regarding the disposition of personal laws; if temporary special measures had a role in beginning to dislodge the application of personal laws; and what other legal avenues were open to redress the situation.
385. The representative stated that it was indeed a difficult matter. An awareness of differences in personal law concerning men and women did exist. The attempted introduction of one national personal law had been met with resistance. A. Muslim Law Reform Committee composed of women had been established to recommend reforms, where necessary. Areas that appeared to discriminate against women and that were being looked into by the Reform Committee included the preference for males to intestate succession. The justification used was that the husband had a duty to support the wife. Also, upon marriage, a Muslim was required to give Mehr (a kind of dowry) to the wife that she could claim at any time during marriage or she had a first charge on his estate. Another area of apparent discrimination was the lack of obligation by the father to maintain an illegitimate child. It was hoped that the Reform Committee would consider a change in attitude. Concerning the fact that the woman's consent was not a prerequisite for a valid marriage, it had to be said that the woman's consent was in fact a requirement but was largely breached. It was hoped that a firm proposal would be made by the Reform Committee to ensure compliance with the right to consent. Concerning the husband's right to practise polygamy, she said that a proposal was before the Reform Committee that would enable the wife to divorce the husband by unilateral decision if he entered into a second marriage. Customary law had

been left in place by the colonial rulers as far as possible. Muslims had recourse to the Quazi courts in Muslim marriage and divorce matters; otherwise access to normal courts was available. Women seemed to be more concerned with the improvement of economic conditions and skills rather than with the reform of personal laws.
Socialization to traditional gender roles (articles 5, 10 and 11)
386. The second periodic report ascribed the continued subordination and marginalization of women in many spheres of life, e.g. public life, as being primarily self-imposed owing to their own internalized concept of women's appropriate role and responsibility in society.
387. The Committee asked a series of questions on that topic: What had been the results of the Women's Bureau's survey on the changing attitudes and perspectives of women? Had men been studied too? Did the Government see progress on the basis of that study in bringing about more equal roles and tasks in all areas of life? What measures were there to ensure that women completed that education, for example, had consideration been given to raising the age for marriage? What has been the role of education in perpetuating as well as eliminating gender stereotypes? What kind of curriculum and programme changes has the Government initiated since the Life Skills Project? Did young men and women study mathematics and science the same number of hours in secondary school? Were development efforts being undertaken, in either the public or the private sector, to provide for more vocational alternatives for women? What special measures has the Government introduced to motivate employers to place women in positions of skill or responsibility in both the private and public sectors? And, since the Government recognized that family duties constrained women's work in public life, what did the Government plan to do to alleviate those constraints (e.g., child care and flexible working time)?
388. The representative said that a survey planned by the Women's Bureau on changing the attitudes of women had not been completed. As to the average age of marriage of women, she said that it was 26 years, in particular because more and more women were pursuing education and careers. Women were very conscious of getting an education. The need to incorporate a more realistic marriage age into the statute had been identified. The revision of school textbooks and teaching materials to eliminate gender stereotypes had begun. Elementary school students, irrespective of gender, were exposed to the same skills. No difference in the number of study hours for mathematics and science existed for males and females. A. gradual diversification process in vocational skills was being introduced. The State had not been able to provide facilities for child care, flexible work hours, etc.
Violence against women (articles 2, 5, 11, 12 and 16)
389. The Committee asked if women under personal laws suffer a greater incidence of domestic violence and sexual abuse, including rape, within the family, and if there was a higher incidence of violence against women in areas or communities where personal laws are in operation.
390. The representative replied that the fact that a woman was governed by Muslim law, Thesawalamai or Kandyan law certainly had had no effect on the use of violence.

Women in the economy (articles 6, 11 and 12)
391. The Committee noted that the economy of Sri Lanka was in critical shape, and women, in an effort to keep their families above survival thresholds, had had to take jobs in vulnerable and unprotected spheres of work. There was a need to seek remedies to the situation by both short-term and long-term measures. Questions were asked about different areas of work where women appeared to be especially vulnerable.
392. The representative, addressing these questions, stated that the majority of women workers were employed on a year-round basis on tea plantations. She said that surveys indicated plantations' compliance with equal wage laws, and that maternity allowances applied. Medical facilities were provided. Programmes directed towards female plantation workers covered adult education, health, nutrition, sanitation, family planning, etc. Infant mortality and maternal mortality rates had dropped considerably, literacy rates had increased and the quality of life had improved.
393. Regarding women in free trade zones (especially the garment industry), the Committee asked if wages and health regulations were protected by a trade union agreement and if women were allowed to associate, join trade unions, improve their working conditions and protect themselves from sexual harassment and violence.
394. The representative answered that women in free trade zones was an issue that had been identified as an area worthy of close scrutiny. It was believed that there was room for improvement in working and living conditions.
395. The Committee asked a number of questions on domestic workers employed overseas and in Sri Lanka.
396. The representative answered that the number of women domestic workers in the Middle and Far East was estimated at 250,000. A disproportionate number of Sri Lankan embassies were located in the countries of those regions. Certain mandatory conditions, such as minimum wage and return air fare, were set for employers to safeguard the interests of the women workers. An estimated 65,000 women reportedly had returned to Sri Lanka during the Gulf war. Over 30,000 of those had gone back abroad. Returnees obtained a compensation. If and when known, instances of rape, death, etc., of domestic workers overseas led to appropriate governmental action. Domestic workers in Sri Lanka were not governed by labour laws, and there were no attempts to standardize wages or working hours. There was no system of redress, except for leaving the employment.
397. Regarding prostitution, the Committee asked if there were statistics available, such as on the number of women affected, and especially young girls, and also on the number of raids carried out and of the men and women arrested. It also asked what the development had been on the proposed legal changes affecting prostitution; if there were statistics on the incidence of AIDS; and what was being done to counteract that.

398. It was asked if the Women's Bureau intended to undertake studies on the effect on women of structural adjustment policies; sex tourism; export of female labour to home-based or entertainment-related overseas work; and free trade zones.
399. In answer to questions on prostitution, the representative said that she did not have statistics at her disposal. She said that adequate legal provisions existed, but that the focus must be on effective implementation. There were 3 9 cases of AIDS in men, and 10 in women. Information campaigns on AIDS were being carried out. A study on structural adjustment policies had been carried out by the Centre for Women's Research, a non-governmental organization. The suggestion of a study on sex tourism would be considered, and a study on women in free trade zones would be undertaken.
400. Members of the Committee thanked the representative for her answers. A number of additional questions were asked.
401. Referring to the armed conflict, members asked what the main incidences of violence against women were as a result of the conflict, and what kind of efforts the Government was making to solve the problem. Clarification was also sought on family and domestic violence. One member wondered whether it were possible to obtain an injunction against a husband in connection with violence. Further clarification and more details were sought on the issue of women in free trade zones, and in particular concerning the existence of trade unions, the right to organize, protection of young and vulnerable women, etc. One member inquired about rural women and changes occurring in their roles of production, and whether and how the Government assisted them. Reference was made to a report on missing persons, disaggregated by sex, that had been presented to the Government. The expert wondered whether any action had been taken on the basis of the report. Several members referred to the use, or non-use, of temporary special measures under article 4 of the Convention, and to affirmative action. Experts stressed the usefulness of such measures in overcoming de facto discrimination and obtaining a step-by-step improvement of women's situation. They wondered why the Government did not use such measures. Concerning personal law, it was asked whether women, especially young women, accepted the application of personal law, or whether they opted for national law instead. It was also asked what happened to women after divorce, what the precise provisions were under the Ordinary Code and whether proposals for reform of divorce law existed. It was asked whether the new measures on prostitution had removed the stigma attached to it, and what had been done in terms of rehabilitation. It was asked whether it was true that physical opposition had to be shown to bring a charge of rape. Concerning the dowry practice, one expert wondered how it was compatible with the fact that the Government had ratified the Convention, and whether the Government considered eliminating the practice. It was asked whether the Government was doing anything to stop migration.
402. In referring to the third periodic report, members looked forward to details on the activities of the new National Commission on Women, in particular with regard to measures under article 4 of the Convention. Since there seemed to be a strong legal foundation, members hoped for details concerning areas where there was no clear, apparent discrimination, and in particular with regard to the following four areas: (a) assistance to displaced persons and the fact that women's situation in such circumstances

might be harder still; (b) a detailed review of complaints and redress before the Supreme Court and CEDMFR might be useful; (c) information on the availability of support for family responsibilities since the lack of such support systems often led to further disadvantages for women; and (d) the question might be addressed whether the Government, given the economic situation, had more worries for women than for men. By addressing those issues, the underlying conditions rather than apparent discrimination could be exposed.
403. In replying to additional questions, the representative stated that women in the armed conflict did not get special treatment. Concerning women working in the free trade zones, that was recognized to be a problem. The laws were there, but they were not always allowed to be implemented. The matter was being looked into. No change in the role of rural women could be observed. Women in rural areas would benefit greatly from poverty-elimination programmes under the family unit approach. They were also opting for newer and easier vocations. No negative economic effect was visible. Temporary special measures and affirmative action programmes would cause antagonistic reactions against women when they caused women to be placed in unfairly advantageous positions. The representative stated that there was so much natural progress anyway. She said that women could not opt out of their own personal law. She also said that since there was no serious agitation for reform from within, she inferred that women under Muslim law must be better off. Women argued that under that law they have a right to be treated justly. They did not feel that they were discriminated against. On the divorce question, she said that the statute provided for the payment of alimony, awarded by the judge, for the wife and children. Grounds for divorce are fault-based (desertion, adultery and impotence). A reform currently envisaged by the Government would establish the unified concept of the irretrievable breakdown. On the issue of rape, she explained that physical resistance would prove that there was no consent, but was in itself not necessary for bringing charges. The stigma on prostitution remained. The idea of using the Convention for steps against dowry was an interesting thought, the representative said. But law alone could not eliminate traditions. She agreed that there was definitely a need to amend the statute concerning the marriage age. Denying migration, she said, would be very unpopular, because it was based on economic needs. But the Government should instead look after these women before, during and after migration.
404. In closing, the Committee expressed its understanding for the difficulties faced by the Government of Sri Lanka. The efforts made to deal with the situation were appreciated. The Committee stated that some temporary special measures might be advisable and that it was up to the Government to decide which ones would be most useful examples since there were legal measures, measures in education and consciousness-raising measures. The representative was advised to look into the possibility of improving the situation and to speed up improvements. The next report should provide information. The aim of whatever measures the Government decided to take should be to bring the de jure and the de facto situation in the country into line with the provisions of the Convention, A balance must be found between what existed and the Convention. Progress should be achieved as quickly as possible without causing a backlash to the advancement of women.

Venezuela
405. The Committee considered the second periodic report of Venezuela (CEDAW/C/13/Add.21) at its 201st meeting, on 29 January 1992.
406. The report complied with the guidelines for the preparation of second and subsequent periodic reports, as it focused on the period between the consideration of the initial report and the date of the current report. It gave a summary account of the progress made by Venezuela between 1985 and 1988, with emphasis on policies and programmes developed by the governmental offices/bodies in charge of the advancement of women. Those efforts should be appreciated. The frankness of the report in describing the obstacles women faced was appreciated. However, the most important legal reforms (amendments to the Penal Code and the Labour Law) did not seem to have advanced from the initial stage, i.e., from the stage of their submission to the Congress in 1986 and 1987 respectively, in which they had to be discussed in substance by it; their approval was not expected in the near future. The report did not give any particular explanation for such a situation or plans to overcome it. The report stressed however that, although Venezuela had been developing, during the last few years, a series of policies aimed at guaranteeing equal opportunities for women so that they could both progress fully as human beings and participate at all levels in the country's development, there remained a series of obstacles that prevent a significant improvement in that field, the most important obstacles being the whole system of values, beliefs and models that asserted the inequality between men and women, assigning to the latter a role and status that degraded them as human beings. It further explained that those values were deeply embedded in the bulk of the population, regardless of sex and were institutionalized in the entire social, legal and economic structures of that society. Another obstacle, which was actually related to the above, was the inadequacy of the human and economic resources assigned to the development and promotion of the programmes and projects intended for the status of women.
407. Another general remark that concerned the report was that information was missing on the results of the implementation of the governmental policies and programmes for women and their evaluation, which made it difficult to understand what their real impact was. It seemed that most of the work for change was being done by women on a voluntary basis.
408. Before replying to the list of questions, the representative explained that the second periodic report had covered the progress achieved during the period from 1985 to 1988 and had been submitted in 1989. However, at the end of 1988, presidential elections had taken place in the country, and the current administration had started its work in 1989. Since the representative had taken office as Minister of State for the Promotion of Women, significant changes had taken place, which she would try to outline in her presentation. She also mentioned an additional report that she had given to the Secretariat during the session, which referred to the period from 1989 to 1991, and an annex entitled "The woman in Venezuela" containing statistical data. Both documents should be made available to all the members of the Committee.
409. She was in agreement with the general observations made by the pre-session working group and hoped that the following answers would fill some of the gaps in information in the report.

Article 2
410. The Committee asked what the Government was planning to do to speed up the process of the adoption by the Parliament of the amendments to the Penal Code, the Labour Law and any other amendments to existing laws that were discriminatory to women.
411. It asked if the Government was receiving sufficient support for its actions in favour of the advancement of women, by political parties, trade unions and the mass media, and what it was planning to do to mobilize and channel their support in favour of its policies and programmes. In particular, it asked how the Government was going to fight against stereotyping of sex roles.
412. The representative said that the National Congress had adopted a new Labour Law, which had been promulgated in 1990. Many of its provisions were favourable to the status of women. Under that law, discrimination on the grounds of sex was forbidden; however, special provisions to protect maternity and the family were not considered discriminatory. Women were entitled to receive equal pay for work of equal value and paid maternity leave of six weeks before and 12 weeks after giving birth; furthermore they received an indemnization from social security and were protected against dismissal during pregnancy and for one year after delivery. Women could also combine any unused annual leave with maternity leave. Maternity leave was also possible in the case of adoption of a baby child. In a company with more than
20 employees, the employer had to provide child-care facilities with qualified personnel. Currently the Government was trying to coordinate through a special commission the availability of child-care facilities with the national network of day-care centres. Under the new law, the employer had to allow for nursing rests for lactating mothers. The new law gave equal treatment to the spouses if they were both working outside the house and provided protection for women who were employed in domestic service. In order to protect women in the execution of all the above rights, the institution of a Prosecutor's Office or Ombudsman for Working Women was foreseen. The Penal Code had not so far been amended, but a bicameral commission for the rights of women within the Congress was trying to deal with the amendment and with a large-scale judicial reform in the near future. A draft law against family violence was on the verge of being presented to Congress through the Minister for the Promotion of Women.
413. In reply to whether the Government was receiving sufficient support for
its actions in favour of the advancement of women, she said that currently an
Advisory Commission for Women to the Presidency of the Republic under the
Ministry of State for the Advancement of Women worked out the policies for the
promotion of women. In that Commission were representatives of all political
parties and other organizations. The progress achieved in the advancement of
women was the result of actions of solidarity by several Governments, all
political parties, non-governmental organizations, women's groups, trade
unions and Venezuelan women at the grass-roots level. With regard to the
fight against the stereotyping of gender roles, she said that the Ministry of
Education was carrying out programmes to combat stereotyping in the school
system and to promote equal opportunities through new schoolbooks, which did
away with old forms of discrimination, and through the inclusion of gender
problems in the curricula and the dissemination of printed and audio-visual

material. Research on gender roles was carried out, and negotiations were held with the media managers in order to allow the Office of the Ministry of State for the Promotion of Women regular broadcasting time for programmes for combating gender stereotyping.
Articles 3 and 4
414. It was appreciated by the Committee that the Government of Venezuela had in 1974 and 1979 established important machinery in charge of the advancement of women in a Ministry of State for the Participation of Women in Development. That machinery underwent substantial changes through the years, and in 1987 the Machinery for the Family and the General Sectoral Directorate for the Promotion of Women under the Ministry and its six advisory committees (education, labour, legislation, social communication, health and political participation) were established.
415. The Committee asked what the reasons were for such transformations; what the size of the General Directorate for the Promotion of Women was and what its budget was; whether the Minister for the Family had any special rights in the legislative process or in the Cabinet in order to initiate, promote or implement rights for women even if those rights were under the responsibility of other ministers; how the Ministry for the Family cooperated with other government ministries in solving problems of women's rights and interests; whether the same form of machinery for women had been institutionalized at the level of state governments or municipalities; to what extent the various national policy plans as forwarded by the Advisory Committees had been legislated by Parliament and to what extent they had been supported by political parties; if they had not been implemented so far, what the obstacles were; if there had been pressure by women's organizations and by the mass media in that regard; if the various programmes for women had been continued and evaluated; and if women who had been trained in the leadership programmes were moving into politics, trade unions, etc.
416. Turning to questions raised under articles 3 and 4, the representative said that the changes that the machinery for the advancement of women had undergone were mainly due to the conceptual and ideological criteria of the different Governments and to two phenomena; the lack of administrative continuity and the lack of political will to create a stable and permanent mechanism that would outlive the different administrations. Already in 1974, the first Advisory Committee under the President's Office had been created. Later, a Minister of State for the Incorporation of Women into Development had been nominated. In 1989, the President of the Republic had established an Advisory Commission for Women under the State Minister for the Promotion of Women. Furthermore, the current national development plan contained a chapter that was specifically dedicated to women's problems. In 1991, the Advisory Commission had presented to the National Congress a draft law for setting up the National Council of Women as a stable and high-level body that would depend directly on the Presidency of the Republic. She emphasized that Venezuela was a new democracy and that women could be found in the first political parties
as early as 1936. The progress achieved up to the present had originated from the political force that had been exercised by women since the very beginning. While the personnel and the budget of the General Directorate for the Promotion of Women had been reduced, the Advisory Commission and the Ministry of State for the Promotion of Women had gained importance and

political power. However, as long as the Ministry for the Family was not transformed in the way hoped for, the Ministry for Social Development would be maintained in addition to the General Directorate for the Promotion of Women. Currently, the Government was intending to keep those two bodies as coordinators for social policies regarding the promotion of women in all sectors. Over the last two years, the State Minister for the Promotion of Women had created focal points in all ministries to coordinate all the programmes decided upon by the Advisory Commission. The Ministry of State and the Advisory Commission had their own offices and a budget, which allowed them to create projects and to introduce the women's dimension in all programmes on a permanent basis. It was important to decentralize the policies and to involve the mayors and governors from all regions as well as representatives of all the five political parties. Although the country had been in a different position from all other countries in the region because of its oil resources, structural adjustment policies were having a serious impact on development strategies. The Government took difficult political and economic decisions and developed far-reaching social policies to reduce the impact of the adjustment on the poorest segments of the population. The projects carried out by the Ministry of State and the Advisory Commission included a programme to fight against sexual discrimination and for equal opportunities in the school system, a programme for women and health, an expanded mother-and-child programme for poor pregnant women and nursing mothers and their children, a programme for community-level education and a programme for day-care centres. The most important programme was one for funding small business loans to benefit women and children. Although the budget of the Ministry of State for the Promotion of Women was not sufficiently large to satisfy all those demands, a firm political will was behind all those programmes.
417. The various national policy plans and programmes had, so far, only been acted upon by the Parliament and various subcommissions that had emerged from the former advisory commissions, which were making comments on draft bills under discussion in the National Congress. She admitted that delays had indeed been experienced in the adoption of the draft law for the creation of the National Council for Women and in the amendments to be made to the Penal Code, especially as the latter was being done within the reform of the entire judiciary, but she expressed the hope that the situation in that respect would improve as there was a special sub-commission called "Women and the State", and as the Minister of State herself was responsible for reforming the administrative structure of the State. In Venezuela, there was great solidarity among all women's organizations, and the women's sections in all political parties, non-governmental organizations and women's groups were constantly exercising pressure regarding the adoption of certain laws or programmes. Women's programmes had been put on a higher hierarchical level and expanded to include the most vulnerable groups, such as pregnant and nursing mothers. The political evaluation of the programmes was done through a group of five ministries - and the Minister of State for the Promotion of Women was one of them - who discussed, drew up and reformulated projects. The technical evaluation was done by the National System for Coordination and Planning and the Central Statistical Office. Besides that, research work regarding the situation of women was ongoing. Leadership training had existed for a long time in the political parties and, more recently, also in some non-governmental organizations and women's groups at the grass-roots level. Experience showed that most women in leadership positions in political parties

had received such training. However, it had not been done systematically. Therefore, the Advisory Commission and the Ministry of State had initiated and financed a training programme in self-esteem, leadership and women and power. As a result of the convening, in March 1991, of the Second National Congress of Women, which had discussed the topic "women and power" and which had been attended by about 400,000 women, a chapter on women had been introduced for the first time in the eighth national development plan.
Article 5 ;
418. The Minister of Youth, in her statement before the Committee in March 1986, said that of the 41 per cent of university graduates who are women, only 13 per cent took up employment. A systematic self-exclusion by women from professional activities could be observed, as well as resistance on the part of employers to taking on women in areas traditionally considered to be male preserves. The Committee inquired if anything had been done to change that situation and asked the representative to describe practical measures and their results.
419. The representative replied that in 1983 women constituted 48 per cent of the persons who had completed higher education: two thirds of those were graduates from universities, one quarter were in the teaching profession and over one tenth were graduates from technical universities. In 1985, women constituted the majority of university graduates. None the less, most women were found in the service sector and received low wages. As Venezuela had been a rich society, most women had been trained for careers involving competition. Almost half of the female labour force had secondary school education and 13 per cent had higher education. More than two thirds of women under 15 years of age were neither working nor seeking employment; they were mostly involved in household activities. Women with secondary education were mostly found in commerce and manufacturing, whereas women with higher education carried out jobs related to health and education services. The highest unemployment rate was found among office employees. In order to remedy the situation, the Government was trying to attract more women into the technical fields, giving higher responsibilities to women in public administration and assuring that in areas such as financial services and company management more women got involved in the public as well as in the private sector. The Government's current educational system followed the model of income societies but it was under reform. Hidden discrimination was still taking place, but the Government was trying to give women higher posts in public administration. There was definitely a strong political will behind those actions, which was documented by the fact that there were five women ministers, three top posts in public administration were held by women, one woman had a senior post in an oil enterprise and two out of five senior posts in the steel- and aluminium-producing company were occupied by women.
420. In the initial report of Venezuela, it was mentioned that a study was being made of stereotyping and its effects in order to promote changes in the texts of schoolbooks, teaching materials and the messages conveyed in the media. The Committee asked what the results of such a study had been, its evaluation and implementation of eventual conclusions and recommendations. As the stereotyping of sex roles continued to play a very important role, it was asked what the plans were to deal with it in the future. Also, it was asked whether the programme for family education had been implemented, to what extent and what its effects had been.

421. Two studies had been carried out on sexual stereotypes in school
textbooks for pre-school and primary school education and in television
programmes. The results showed that there was a clear discrepancy between the
role models presented in the textbooks and the social reality of the country.
The textbooks reinforced the sexual stereotypes of the former social framework
and constituted one of the most serious obstacles to the complete integration
of women in development. Similarly, television programmes strengthened
prevailing sexual stereotypes and denied much of the progress achieved by
Venezuelan women. Several ministries, in collaboration with the Advisory
Commission and non-governmental organizations, were developing programmes and
carrying out projects to combat sex stereotyping. In addition to that, the
Office of the Minister of State managed to broadcast a weekly programme on
State television in order to educate the public. The programme for family
education had been extremely successful.
Violence (articles 2. 5. 11. 12 and 16)
422. Regarding domestic violence, the Committee asked what the present legal situation was, how protection and assistance could be obtained, and whether in courts or other institutions. It asked if there were any statistics on incidences of violence or its victims; whether the members of a family, and women in particular, were informed of their rights; what the size and scope was of the programme for the protection of the family against ill-treatment and what power it had, if any, to enforce the protection, prosecution or education of the family members.
423. The representative explained that the biggest problem was the Penal Code, which continued in force. Currently, neither the appropriate legislation nor administrative or service structures were available to deal with the problem. Recently, a draft law had been introduced, which was specifically directed against domestic violence and provided for training of officials who dealt with victims of violence. Currently, there were no clear legal criteria for the offence of domestic violence. Victims could resort to tribunals, the public prosecutor, police stations, hospitals and health units, but often cultural values prevented women from resorting to the authorities. She mentioned the Venezuelan Association for Alternative Sex Education as a non-governmental organization that was very active in that area and was trying to raise women's awareness of the problem. Currently, no reliable statistics were available on the incidence of domestic violence. The most important programmes in that area were carried out by the Ministry of Education and the Family Ministry in collaboration with several other bodies. The media and non-governmental organizations were also launching campaigns.

424. The Committee asked the representative to explain how prostitution resulted from migration, and if the proposed reform of the Penal Code had been implemented to remove the difference in penalty for raping a woman of ill-repute.
425. She said that the country did not have reliable statistics relating to prostitution. Police statistics on detention of prostitutes indicated that a high proportion were migrant women from neighbouring countries. During 1992, the Government would be carrying out its first investigation on the subject.

Article 7
426. The Committee enquired as to the percentage of women elected in the 1989 elections or in any recent local elections and the significance such results had for women's participation in the political life of the country. It asked if the programmes established by government offices to that effect had had any results, and which, if any, political parties had adopted a quota system suggested by women's groups.
427. The representative answered that the percentage of women in the National Congress had been 4.8 per cent in 1984 and had risen to 9.3 per cent after the elections in 1989; in the Legislative Assemblies it had been 7.5 per cent in 1984 and had increased to 11.8 per cent in 1989. In the municipal councils, the percentage of women had dropped from 21.4 per cent in 1984 to
12.8 per cent in 1989 because at the last elections the electoral system had changed. The country now had an open ballot system, which favoured the support of male candidates by the political parties, and in addition to that only a few female candidates had presented themselves. So far, two political parties had established quotas of 20 and 25 per cent for women, and a draft law was under discussion that would make it mandatory for all political parties to introduce a quota system.
428. For the remaining replies, the representative referred the members of the Committee to the written text,' which was distributed at the meeting.
429. Referring to article 9, it was stated in the replies that had been provided in writing that the foreign husband of a Venezuelan woman did not acquire Venezuelan nationality. An amendment to that discriminatory provision in the Constitution was currently under review.
430. On article 10, the replies provided indicated that a change in the choice of professions of young women and men was noticeable, and slowly but continuously women were moving into professions that had previously been reserved for men. Currently, the Minister of State was carrying out a pilot project in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and the International Labour Organisation to stimulate more women into better paid and technically oriented professions.
431. On article 11, the text said that the principle of equal pay for work of equal value had been implemented. At present, 29.8 per cent of the population of 15 years and more were incorporated into the labour process, 80 per cent of the female population declared "inactive" could be found in household occupations and 16 per cent among students. Women job-seekers could not be compelled to undergo a pregnancy test, and in case of violations of their rights, they could resort to the Public Prosecutor or the Ministry of Labour. No legal provision forbade the free choice of profession. Theoretically, women could apply for any government post and currently occupied about
17 per cent of the high-level posts in the judiciary and in public administration. The total presence of women in public administration was on the order of 30.5 per cent. In the private sector, only 7.7 per cent of women held managerial positions. Violations of the Labour Law were generally reported through trade unions and were sanctioned under the legal provisions. In the public sector, women as employers could be found in all sectors, whereas in the private sector they were mostly in finance departments. Women

were better paid in the public than in the private sector. The possibility of small-scale enterprises applying for loans had opened new perspectives for women with low incomes. However, currently more men than women were applying for such loans, and the Family Ministry was organizing training programmes in order to involve more women in the management and administration of small-scale enterprises. It was said in the text that, thanks to various types of day-care centres and the institution of "day-care mothers", many women had the possibility of availing themselves of training and paid work outside the house.
432. On article 12, the text stated that there was no legal basis for the practice that women needed their husband's authorization for sterilization. HIV/AIDS programmes were directed to persons of both sexes. Marginalized women also had access to programmes that provided them with food, preventive health care, medical check-ups, etc. Currently the Government was trying to extend the network for school meals to reach also the groups most in need.
433. Regarding article 13, the text stated that under the Constitution women and men had equal social rights and benefits and that special programmes were available for women. The surviving spouse, irrespective of sex, received old-age pension and sickness benefits.
434. On article 16, it was stated that up to the present there were no plans to change the minimum wages for marriage. A slight increase in the number of single female-headed households could be noticed. About 44 per cent of them had only primary education and 23 per cent were illiterate. Half of the single female heads of households had no occupation. The current reform of the Penal Code dealt with an amendment of the discriminatory provisions relating to adultery and abortion, and the Civil Code introduced for both spouses adultery as a reason for divorce.
435. The members of the Committee were appreciative of the detailed replies
and the additional written information provided and commended the enthusiasm
with which the presentation had been made. Some of them said that they knew
from their own observation through visits to the country that the Government
had done a lot for the advancement of women, which had not been reflected in
the report. They were surprised that the second periodic report gave a
totally different picture and thanked the representative for throwing light on
the real situation and for having outlined the existing obstacles in a frank
manner. The experts noted that, when the country's initial report had been
considered, the oral presentation was also of a much higher level than the
report itself and urged the Government to present a third periodic report that
would contain as much substantive information as the representative's oral
presentation and concentrate on actual progress made. The Government's
political will to overcome discrimination against women, the efforts to amend
the Penal Code, the importance given by the Government to decentralization,
the financial support provided to women's organizations, the electoral system,
the efforts to protect women from domestic violence and the attempts to
influence the media in order to change discriminatory attitudes were
particularly commended. However, the experts emphasized that all those
laudable efforts needed to be matched by an effective machinery. To combine
regional initiatives with national machinery was a very positive effort. It
was asked how important attitudes towards women, as reflected in the
presentation, were in society.

436. The representative of the Government expressed her gratitude for the solidarity of the Committee members and said that women's resources in Venezuela were scarce; however the firm will to acquire them existed. The biggest problem was to make public administration officials aware of women's issues. She said that Venezuelan women were trying to influence society through the family, the media and the laws, and that the use of the radio had proved to be the most efficient media in that context. She said it would be beneficial if the United Nations could establish machinery to facilitate the dialogue between the different aid agencies that provided financial and technical support.
437. In concluding observations, the Chairperson congratulated the representative on behalf of the Committee on her frank and clear description of the situation of women in Venezuela and on the substantive and detailed replies given. However, the subsequent periodic report should paint a fairer picture of the status of women in the country. She said that the programme to change attitudes through the mass media, school textbooks and teaching programmes deserved follow-up and evaluation, the results of which should subsequently be made known to the Committee. She was impressed by Venezuelan women's efforts to participate in political life and asked for an evaluation of those initiatives. The Chairperson praised the many privileges given to women by the new Labour Law and asked for information on measures regarding violence against women. She wished Venezuelan women success in their endeavours to be given the rights that they were entitled to under the Convention.

IV. WAYS AND MEANS OF EXPEDITING THE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE
438. At its 197th meeting, on 24 January 1992, the Committee discussed certain issues and trends that had emerged from its examination of States parties' reports that were deserving of attention.
439. Members noted the increase in the number of female-headed households, a growing trend in many States parties. The family, and societies as a whole, seemed to be undergoing restructuring. There were economic causes; women were increasingly taking up economic responsibility for the household and economic independence led women to develop a sense of independence in other fields. An additional factor was seen in the increase of women's self-esteem. Members of the Committee felt that, in both developing and developed countries, women were refusing certain kinds of marriage, for example, marriage where men abstained from sharing family life, did not assume certain economic responsibilities or denied their spouse affection and respect. Another factor noted by members was the greater freedom of the family and the fact that the law increasingly recognized changes in the structure of the family.
440. The Committee thought that research was needed on the causes and the long-term effect of the development of female-headed households, on whether there would be changes in the mentality and behaviour of the generation growing up in female-headed families and on whether discrimination and stereotypes would be reduced. Research would also have to be conducted to explore the underlying hypothesis of existing fiscal rules, lower female salaries and educational systems, and their possible negative impact on families differing from the traditional model. Members noted that research on female-headed households could be a part of the analysis of article 16 to be carried out at its next session. That work could also serve as a basis for the Committee's recommendations for the International Year of the Family and the Fourth World Conference on Women.
441. As a matter of strategy, the Committee discussed the opportunity of involving more men in action for the promotion of gender equality. Action for equality implied not only consciousness-raising among women, but also changes in male attitudes and duties. More precisely, obtaining the support of men in influential decision-making positions could ensure that required changes would be adopted, for example, in national parliaments. Members of the Committee considered the possibility of having a quota of men on the Committee but agreed that such reform should not be undertaken until other treaty bodies had quotas for women.
Action taken by the Committee on the report of Working Group I
442. At its 201st and 203rd meetings, the Committee discussed the report of Working Group I.
1. Consideration of the work of the pre-session working group
443. The Committee commended the work carried out by the pre-session working group, and recommended that its present format be adopted for the next session.

444. The Committee, recalling its previous decisions to designate one member from each region to participate in the pre-session working group, nominated the members and alternates for the group for 1993 as follows:
Tatiana Nikolaeva (Russian Federation) with Zagorka Ilic (Yugoslavia) as alternate
Ivanka Corti (Italy) with Carlota Bustelo Garcia del Real (Spain) as alternate
Charlotte Abaka (Ghana) with Kissem Walla-Tchangai (Togo) as alternate
Shangzhen Lin (China) with Ryoko Akamatsu (Japan) as alternate
Dora Gladys Nancy Bravo Nunez de Ramsey (Ecuador) with Norma Monica Forde (Barbados) as alternate
2. Dates and duration of the twelfth session
445. The Committee, having taken note of the financial implications involved (see annex V), decided to request the holding of 2 two-week sessions during 1993 or an extended session of three weeks' duration in order to complete consideration of the backlog of initial and second periodic reports, which up to the end of the session were 12 and 10, respectively, in addition to 7 third periodic reports. Bearing in mind that 111 States had become parties to the Convention, a large number of reports were expected to be submitted during the year. The first session (or the extended session) would be preceded by a pre-session working group of one week to prepare the issues and questions for consideration of second and third periodic reports.
446. If approval was given for an extended session of three weeks, the Committee agreed that the dates for convening its twelfth session would be from 18 January to 5 February 1993, to be held at the United Nations Office at Vienna, and the pre-session working group would meet from 11 to
15 January 1993.
447. If approval was given for two sessions during 1993, the Committee agreed
that the dates for convening the twelfth session would be 18 to
29 January 1993, and the pre-session working group would meet from 11 to 15 January 1993. The dates for convening the resumed session would be
30 August to 10 September, or 6 September to 17 September 1993, subject to the timetable of the secretariat and availability of conference services.
3. Reports to be considered at the twelfth session
448. The Committee decided to consider during the usual two-week session a total of four initial reports, four second periodic reports and one third periodic report. It decided that reports would be selected for consideration on the basis of the date on which they had been received. In the event that a State party did not wish to present a report, the Secretariat was authorized

to select another State party from the reserve list, also in the order of the date on which the report had been received. Accordingly, the following list of initial, second and third periodic reports was retained:
Initial report Second periodic report Third periodic report
Romania Nicaragua Sweden
Yemen Yemen*
Guyana Republic of Korea
Iraq Bangladesh
Peru
Madagascar and France and United Rwanda as reserve
Kenya as reserves Kingdom as reserves
449. The Committee decided that, should a three-week session be granted for
its twelfth session in 1993, it would consider a total of six initial, six
second periodic and two third periodic reports. They were the reports listed
above with the addition of the following:
Initial report Second periodic report Third periodic report
Kenya France Rwanda
Madagascar United Kingdom
Zambia and Guatemala Senegal as reserve Norway as reserve
as reserves
450. The Committee decided that, should 2 two-week sessions be granted for
its twelfth session in 1993, a total of four initial, four second periodic
and one third periodic reports would be considered at each of the two
sessions. Reports to be considered at the second session were as follows:
Initial report Second periodic report Third periodic report
Kenya First received by the Norway
Madagascar Secretariat with one Hungary as reserve
Zambia other as reserve
Guatemala
Chile and
Saint Vincent and
the Grenadines as
reserves
* The initial and second periodic reports of Yemen would be considered together.

V. WAYS AND MEANS OF IMPLEMENTING ARTICLE 21 OF THE CONVENTION
Action taken by the Committee on the report of Working Group II
451. At its 202nd meeting, on 29 January 1992, the Committee considered item 3 of its agenda on the basis of the report of Working Group II. The Coordinator of Working Group II outlined the report of the Group. The topics that were before the Working Group included pending recommendations that had been deferred to the eleventh session of the Committee, 5,/ article 6 and other articles related to violence, a response to the report of the Expert Group Meeting on Violence against Women, 6_/ newly tabled recommendations on the participation of women in politics and on women's rights to use their own name, on the gender dimension of development projects and on reservations to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
452. As a matter of priority, the Working Group had agreed to put forward for plenary discussion by all members of the Committee a general recommendation on violence against women, as well as a decision and a general recommendation concerning reservations made by States parties upon ratification of the Convention.
453. The Coordinator reported that, in order to prepare the draft general recommendation on violence against women, including general comments, the working group had done a step-by-step analysis of the articles of the Convention in view of their relevance to issues relating to violence against women and to legal and other measures to prohibit and prevent it and to compensate for it. Comments by a representative of ILO with regard to article 11 of the Convention were included. It was pointed out that the Committee could, at a future time, compare the reservations States parties had made to the Convention and to other human rights conventions. Noting the many reservations made by a great number of States parties to the Convention, the Committee agreed at its 198th meeting to recommend to States parties that they reconsider the question of reservations, with the hope that many would be withdrawn,
454. The Committee adopted draft general recommendation 19 on violence against women, as amended, and draft decision and general recommendation 20 on reservations to the Convention.
455. Based on the suggestions made by Working Group II, the Committee decided that a general recommendation on violence against women, including general comments, could be regarded as one response to the Expert Group Meeting on Violence against Women. Concerning the Expert Group's suggestion of optional protocols to the Convention, the Committee held the view that neither a substantive nor a procedural optional protocol to the Convention was desirable for the following reasons:
(a) A substantive optional protocol regarding merely violence against women would undermine the importance of other topics of the Convention, which would then need to be addressed in further additional protocols. Most members agreed that general comments made by the Committee on the articles of the Convention would assist States parties in implementing the Convention by clarifying its scope;

(b) A procedural optional protocol, again, should not concentrate on merely one aspect of the Convention, but should cover all its aspects. Such a protocol could be considered at a future time as an instrument to strengthen the Convention;
(c) The same reasons against a substantive or a procedural optional protocol on violence against women, mentioned above, apply to a combined substantive and procedural optional protocol.
The Expert Group's suggestion concerning the strengthening of the existing procedures for communications in the Commission on the Status of Women was welcomed by some members of the Committee.
456. It was decided that all pending and newly tabled recommendations, as well as the comments of Working Group II on article 6, would be included as part of general comments on individual articles of the Convention to be prepared by members of the Committee with the assistance of the Secretariat. The drafts of those general comments should be submitted for discussion at the Committee's twelfth session. The Committee asked the Secretariat to prepare and coordinate additional material on articles of the Convention, including material from other United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations, and submit it to members of the Committee early enough to be considered by them in drafting general comments on individual articles.
457. It was agreed that priority should be given to articles relevant to the family in preparation for the International Year of the Family (1994) and that preferably two or more members should cooperate in the work on each article.
458. The following members of the Committee volunteered to prepare draft general comments for the Committee's twelfth session:
Ms. Bernard and Ms. Ukeje (article 2)
Ms. Ukeje and Ms. Schopp-Schilling (article 4)
Ms. Laiou-Antoniou (article 5)
Ms. Bustelo and Ms. Aouij (article 6)
Ms. de Ramsey and Ms. Corti (article 7)
Ms. Aouij and Ms. Ukeje (article 9)
Ms. Nikolaeva (article 11)
Ms. Abaka and Ms. Walla-Tchangai (article 12)
Ms. Bernard and Ms. Forde (article 15)
Ms. Alfonsin and Ms. Quintos-Deles, Ms. Forde and Ms. Bernard (article 16)

VI. CONTRIBUTION OF THE COMMITTEE TO INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES
A. World Conference on Human Rights
459. The Committee discussed its contribution to the World Conference on Human Rights (1993) at its 203rd meeting, on 29 January 1992, on the basis of proposals made by Working Group I, and it adopted a suggestion, which is contained in chapter I, above.
460. The Committee asked its Chairperson, when taking part in the Preparatory Committee for the World Conference on Human Rights, to place on the agenda of the World Conference the global issue of reservations to human rights conventions. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women had the highest number of reservations of all the international human rights treaties. Most of the reservations were worded so generally that it was difficult to determine what was being reserved and what impact the reservation would have on the obligations to eliminate discrimination against women assumed by the reserving countries.
461. The aim should be to bring the question of reservations to the attention of the World Conference in order to strengthen the implementation of the Convention.
B. International Year of the Family
462. The Committee agreed to use its analyses of article 16 7/ of the Convention as a contribution to the International Year of the Family.
C. World Conference on Women
463. Members of the Committee recalled a decision that the Committee had taken at its tenth session that members should make suggestions at its eleventh session for the Committee's contribution to the Fourth World Conference on Women. One member said that she had sent a proposal through the Secretariat to the Chairperson of the Committee.
464. The Committee deferred a decision on its contribution to the Fourth World Conference on Women to its twelfth session.

VII. PROVISIONAL AGENDA FOR THE TWELFTH SESSION OF THE COMMITTEE
465. At its 205th meeting, on 30 January 1992, the Committee adopted the provisional agenda for its twelfth session, as follows:
1. Opening of the session.
2. Solemn declaration by the new members of the Committee.
3. Election of officers.
4. Adoption of the agenda and organization of work.
5. Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.
Documentation
Report of the Secretary-General on the status of submission of reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention
Reports of States parties to be considered at the thirteenth session
6. Implementation of article 21 of the Convention.
Documentation
Note by the Secretary-General on reports provided by specialized agencies
Report of the Secretariat on analysis of article 16 of the Convention
Report of the Secretariat on the implications for the work of the Committee of the priority themes of the Commission on the Status of Women
7. Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee.
8. Consideration of the report of the fourth meeting of persons chairing the human rights treaty bodies and action taken by the General Assembly concerning treaty bodies.
Documentation
Report of the fourth meeting of persons chairing the human rights treaty bodies

9. Contributions of the Committee to international conferences.
10. Provisional agenda for the thirteenth session.
11. Adoption of the report of the Committee on its twelfth session.

VIII. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT
466. At its 205th meeting, on 30 January 1992, the Committee adopted the report of its eleventh session as orally amended.
Notes
1/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-fourth Session. Supplement No. 38 (A/44/38), paras. 22-25.
2/ Ibid., Forty-sixth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/46/38).
3/ General Assembly resolution 217 A (III).
4./ General Assembly resolution 44/25, annex.
5/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-fourth Session. Supplement No. 38 (A/44/38), paras. 399, 403 and 404.
6/ Ibid., paras. 39 and 40.
7/ Ibid., Forty-sixth Session. Supplement No. 38 (A/46/38), paras. 39 and 40.

ANNEX I
States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as at 1 February 1992
Date of receipt of the
instrument of Date of
States parties ratification or accession entry into force
Angola 17 September 1986 a/ 17 October 1986
Antigua and Barbuda 1 August 1989 a/ 31 August 1989
Argentina 15 July 1985 b/ 14 August 1985
Australia 28 July 1983 b/ 27 August 1983
Austria 31 March 1982 b/ 30 April 1982
Bangladesh 6 November 1984 a/ b/ 6 December 1984
Barbados 16 October 1980 3 September 1981
Belarus 4 ] February 1981 c/ 3 September 1981
Belgium 10 July 1985 b/ 9 August 1985
Belize 16 May 1990 15 June 1990
Bhutan 31 August 1981 30 September 1981
Bolivia 8 June 1990 8 July 1990
Brazil 1 February 1984 b/ 2 March 1984
Bulgaria 8 February 1982 b/ 10 March 1982
Burkina Faso 14 October 1987 a/ 13 November 1987
Burundi 9 January 1992 8 February 1992
Canada 10 December 1981 b/ 9 January 1982
Cape Verde 5 December 1980 a/ 3 September 1981
Central African Republic 21 June 1991 a/ 21 July 1991
Chile 7 December 1989 6 January 1990
China 4 November 1980 b/ 3 September 1981
Colombia 19 January 1982 18 February 1982
Congo 26 July 1982 25 August 1982
Costa Rica 4 April 1986 4 May 1986
Cuba 17 July 1980 b/ 3 September 1981
Cyprus 23 July 1985 a/ b/ 22 August 1985
Czechoslovakia 16 February 1982 b/ 18 March 1982
Denmark 21 April 1983 21 May 1983
Dominica 15 September 1980 3 September 1981

Date of receipt of the
instrument of Date of

States parties ratification: or accession entry into force
Dominican Republic 2 September 1982 2 October 1982
Ecuador 9 November 1981 9 December 1981
Egypt 18 September 1981 b/ 18 October 1981
El Salvador 19 August 1981 b/ 18 September 1981
Equatorial Guinea 23 October 1984 a/ 22 November 1984
Estonia 21 October 1991 a/ 20 November 1991
Ethiopia 10 September 1981 b/ 10 October 1981
Finland 4 September 1986 4 October 1986
France 14 December 1983 b/ c/ 13 January 1984
Gabon 21 January 1983 20 February 1983
Germany d/ 10 July 1985 b/ 9 August 1985
Ghana 2 January 1986 1 February 1986
Greece 7 June 1983 7 July 1983
Grenada 30 August 1990 29 September 1990
Guatemala 12 August 1982 11 September 1982
Guinea 9 August 1982 8 September 1982
Guinea-Bissau 23 August 1985 22 September 1985
Guyana 17 July 1980 3 September 1981
Haiti 20 July 1981 3 September 1981
Honduras 3 March 1983 2 April 1983
Hungary 22 December 1980 b/ 3 September 1981
Iceland 18 June 1985 18 July 1985
Indonesia 13 September 1984 b/ 13 October 1984
Iraq 13 August 1986 a/ b/ 12 September 1986
Ireland 23 December 1985 a/ b/ c/ 22 January 1986
Israel 3 October 1991 2 November 1991
Italy 10 June 1985 10 July 1985
Jamaica 19 October 1984 b/ 18 November 1984
Japan 25 June 1985 25 July 1985
Kenya 9 March 1984 a/ 8 April 1984
Lao People's Democratic
Republic 14 August 1981 13 September 1981
Liberia 17 July 1984 a/ 16 August 1984

Date of receipt of the
instrument of Date of
States parties ratification or accession entry into force

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Luxembourg
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Malta
Mauritius
Mexico
Mongolia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Nigeria
Norway
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Republic of Korea
Romania
Russian Federation
Rwanda
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Spain
Sri Lanka

16 May 1989 a/ b/
2 February 1989 b/
17 March 1989
12 March 1987 a/ b/
10 September 1985
8 March 1991 a/ b/
9 July 1984 a/ b/ March 1981
20 July 1981 b/
22 April 1991
23 July 1991
10 January 1985 b/ c/
27 October 1981
13 June 1985
21 May 1981
29 October 1981
6 April 1987 a/
13 September 1982
5 August 1981
30 July 1980 by
30 July 1980
27 December 1984 b/
7 January 1982 b/
23 January 1981 c/
2 March 1981 25 April 1985 a/
8 October 1982 a/
4 August 1981 a/
5 February 1985
11 November 1988
5 January 1984 b/ 5 October 1981

15 June 1989
4 March 1990
16 April 1989
11 April 1987
10 October 1985
7 April 1991
8 August 1984
3 September 1981 3 September 1981 22 May 1991 22 August 1991
9 February 1985
26 November 1981
13 July 1985
3 September 1981
28 November 1981
6 May 1987 13 October 1982
4 September 1981
3 September 1981
3 September 1981
26 January 1985
6 February 1982
3 September 1981
3 September 1981
25 May 1985
7 November 1982
3 September 1981
7 March 1985
11 December 1988
4 February 1984
4 November 1981

States parties

Date of receipt of the instrument of ratification or accession

Date of entry into force

Sweden
Thailand
Togo
Trinidad and Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland
United Republic of Tanzania
Uruguay
Venezuela
Viet Nam
Yemen e/
Yugoslavia
Zaire
Zambia
Zimbabwe

2 July 1980
9 August 1985 a/ b/ 26 September 1983 a/ 12 January 1990 b/ 20 September 1985 b/ 20 December 1985 a/ b/ 22 July 1985
12 March 1981 c/
7 April 1986 b/
20 August 1985
9 October 1981
2 May 1983 b/
17 February 1982 b/ 30 May 1984 a/ b/ 26 February 1982 17 October 1986
21 June 1985
13 May 1991 a/

3 September 1981 8 September 1985 26 October 1983 12 February 1990
20 October 1985 19 January 1986
21 August 1985
3 September 1981
7 May 1986
19 September 1985
8 November 1981
1 June 1983
19 March 1982 29 June 1984 28 March 1982 16 November 1986 21 July 1985 12 June 1991

a/ Accession.

b/

Reservation.

c/ Reservation subsequently withdrawn.
d/ With effect from 3 October 1990, the German Democratic Republic (which ratified the Convention on 9 July 1980) and the Federal Republic of Germany (which ratified on 10 July 1985) united to form one sovereign State, which acts in the United Nations under the designation of "Germany".
e/ On 22 May 1990 Democratic Yemen and Yemen merged to form a single State, which acts in the United Nations under the designation of "Yemen".

ANNEX II
Membership of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women

Name of member
Charlotte Abaka*
Ryoko Akamatsu*
Ana Maria Alfonsin de Fasan**
Emna Aouij*
Desiree P. Bernard**
Dora Gladys Nancy Bravo Nunez de Ramsey*
Carlota Bustelo Garcia del Real**
Ivanka Corti*
Elizabeth Evatt**
Grethe Fenger-Moller**
Norma Monica Forde*
Aida Gonzalez Martinez**
Zagorka Ilic*
Chryssanthi Laiou-Antoniou**
Tatiana Nikolaeva*
Edith Oeser**
Teresita Quintos-Deles*
Hanna Beate Schopp-Schilling**
Lin Shangzhen*
Kongit Sinegiorgis**
Mervat Tallawy*
Rose N. Ukeje*
Kissem Walla-Tchangai**

Country of nationality
Ghana
Japan
Argentina
Tunisia
Guyana
Ecuador
Spain
Italy
Australia
Denmark
Barbados
Mexico
Yugoslavia
Greece
Russian Federation
Germany
Philippines
Germany
China
Ethiopia
Egypt
Nigeria
Togo

* Term of office expires in 1994.
** Term of office expires in 1992.

ANNEX III
List of documents
Provisional agenda and annotations (CEDAW/C/1992/1)
Report of the Secretary-General on the status of submission of reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention (CEDAW/C/1992/2)
Note by the Secretary-General on reports provided by specialized agencies of the United Nations on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their activities (CEDAW/C/1992/3)
Report of the Secretariat on the analysis of article 6 (and other articles relating to violence towards women and the sexual harassment and exploitation of -women) (CEDAW/C/1992/4)
Report of the Secretariat on official development assistance and the role of women in development (CEDAW/C/1992/5)
Report of the Secretariat on women in the informal sector (CEDAW/C/1992/6)
Report of the Secretariat on the implications for the work of the Committee of the priority themes of the Commission on the Status of Women (CEDAW/C/1992/7)
Report of the expert group meeting on violence against women (CEDAW/C/1992/8)
Initial report of Barbados (CEDAW/C/5/Add.64)
Second periodic report of China (CEDAW/C/13/Add. 26)
Second periodic report of Czechoslovakia (CEDAW/C/13/Add.25)
Second periodic report of El Salvador (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l2)
Combined initial, second periodic and third periodic reports of Ghana (CEDAW/C/GHA/1-2)
Initial report of Honduras (CEDAW/C/5/Add.44)
Second periodic report of Honduras (CEDAW/C/13/Add.9 and Amend.1)
Third periodic report of Honduras (CEDAW/C/HON/3)
Second periodic report of Spain (CEDAW/C/13/Add.19 and Amend.1)
Second periodic report of Sri Lanka (CEDAW/C/13/Add.l8)
Second periodic report of Venezuela (CEDAW/C/13/Add.21)

ANNEX IV
Status of submission and consideration of reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as at 1 February 1992*
Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due** Date of submission year)
A. Initial reports due and submitted as at 1 February 1992
Angola 17 October 1987
Antigua and Barbuda 31 August 1990
Argentina 14 August 1986 6 October 1986 Seventh
(CKDAW/C/5/Add.39) (1988)
Australia 27 August 1984 3 October 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.40) (1988)
Austria 30 April 1983 20 October 1983 Fourth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l7) (1985)
Bangladesh 6 December 1985 12 March 1986 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.34) (1987)
Barbados 3 September 1982 11 April 1990 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.64) (1992)
Belgium 9 August 1986 20 July 1987 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.53) (1989)
Belize 15 June 1991
Bhutan 30 September 1982
* In this annex, country names and designations are those that were in use when the reports were submitted.
** One year prior to the due date, the Secretary-General invites the State party to submit its report.

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Bolivia 7 July 1991 8 July 1991
(CEDAW/C/BOL/1)
Brazil 2 March 1985
Bulgaria 10 March 1983 13 June 1983 Fourth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l5) (1985)
Burkina Faso 13 November 1988 24 May 1990 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.67) (1991)
Byelorussian Soviet Socialist
Republic 3 September 1982 4 October 1982 Second
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.5) (1983)
Canada 9 January 1983 15 July 1983 Fourth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l6) (1985)
Cape Verde 3 September 1982
Central African
Republic 20 August 1992
Chile 6 January 1991 26 August 1991
(CEDAW/C/CHI/1)
China 3 September 1982 25 May 1983 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l4) (1984)
Colombia 18 February 1983 16 January 1986 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.32) (1987)
Congo 25 August 1983
Costa Rica 4 May 1987
Cuba 3 September 1982 27 September 1982 Second
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.4) (1983)
Cyprus 22 August 1986
Czechoslovakia 18 March 1983 4 October 1984 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.26) (1986)

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Democratic Yemen 29 June 1985 23 January 1989
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.61)
Denmark 21 May 1984 30 July 1984 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.22) (1986)
Dominica 3 September 1982
Dominican Republic 2 October 1983 2 May 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.37) (1988)
Ecuador 9 December 1982 14 August 1984 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.23) (1986)
Egypt 18 October 1982 2 February 1983 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.10) (1984)
El Salvador 18 September 1982 3 November 1983 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l9) (1986)
Equatorial Guinea 22 November 1985 16 March 1987 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.50) (1989)
Ethiopia 10 October 1982
Finland 4 October 1987 16 February 1988 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.56) (1989)
France 13 January 1985 13 February 1986 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.33) (1987)
Gabon 20 February 1984 19 June 1987 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.54) (1989)
German Democratic 3 September 1982 30 August 1982 Second
Republic (CEDAW/C/5/Add.l) (1983)
Germany, Federal 9 August 1986 15 September 1988 Ninth
Republic of (CEDAW/C/5/Add.59) (1990)
Ghana 1 February 1987 29 January 1991 Eleventh
CEDAW/C/GHA/1-2) (1992)
Greece 7 July 1984 5 April 1985 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.28) (1987)

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Grenada 29 September 1991
Guatemala 11 September 1983 30 January 1991
(CEDAW/C/GUA/1-2)
Guinea 8 September 1983
Guinea-Bissau 22 September 1986
Guyana 3 September 1982 23 January 1990
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.63)
Haiti 3 September 1982
Honduras 2 April 1984 3 December 1986 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.44) (1992)
Hungary 3 September 1982 20 September 1982 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.3) (1984)
Iceland 18 July 1986
Indonesia 13 October 1985 17 March 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.36) (1988)
Iraq 12 September 1987 16 May 1990
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.66/ Rev.1)
Ireland 22 January 1987 18 February 1987 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.47) (1989)
Italy 10 July 1986 20 October 1989 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.62) (1991)
Jamaica 18 November 1985 12 September 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.3 8) (1988)
Japan 25 July 1986 13 March 1987 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.48) (1988)
Kenya 8 April 1985 4 December 1990
(CEDAW/C/KEN/1-2)
Lao People's 13 September 1982
Democratic Republic

Considered by Committee (session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Liberia 16 August 1985
Libyan Arab 15 June 1990 4 February 1991
Jamahiriya (CEDAW/C/LIB/1)
Luxembourg 4 March 1990
Madagascar 16 April 1990 21 May 1990
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.6 5/ Rev.1)
Malawi 11 April 1988 15 July 1988 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.58) (1990)
Mali 10 October 1986 13 November 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.43) (1988)
Mauritius 8 August 1985
Mexico 3 September 1982 14 September 1982 Second
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.2) (1983)
Mongolia 3 September 1982 18 November 1983 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.20) (1986)
Hew Zealand 9 February 1986 3 October 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Aad.41) (1988)
Nicaragua 26 November 1982 22 September 1987 Eighth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.55) (1989)
Nigeria 13 July 1986 1 April 1987 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5yAdd.49) (1987)
Norway 3 September 1982 18 November 1982 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.7) (1984)
Panama 28 November 1982 12 December 198 2 Fourth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.9) (1985)
Paraguay 6 May 1988
Peru 13 October 1983 14 September 1988 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.60) (1990)
Philippines 4 September 1982 22 October 1982 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.6) (1984)

Considered by Committee (session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Poland 3 September 1982 10 October 1985 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.31) (1987)
Portugal 3 September 1982 19 July 1983 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.21) (1986)
Republic of Korea 2 6 January 1986 13 March 1986 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.35) (1987)
Romania 6 February 1983 14 January 1987
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.45)
Rwanda 3 September 1982 24 May 1983 Third
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l3) (1984)
Saint Kitts and Nevis 25 May 1986
Saint Lucia 7 November 1983
Saint Vincent and 3 September 1982 27 September 1991
the Grenadines (CEDAW/C/STV/1-3)
Senegal 7 March 1986 5 November 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.42) (1988)
Sierra Leone 11 December 1989
Spain 4 February 1985 20 August 1985 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.30) (1987)
Sri Lanka 4 November 1982 7 July 1985 Sixth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.29) (1987)
Sweden 3 September 1982 22 October 1982 Second
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.8) (1983)
Thailand 8 September 1986 1 June 1987 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.51) (1990)
Togo 26 October 1984
Trinidad and Tobago 12 February 1991
Tunisia 20 October 1986

Considered by Committee (session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Turkey 19 January 1987 27 January 1987 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.46) (1990)
Uganda 21 August 1986
Ukrainian Soviet 3 September 1982 2 March 1983 Second
Socialist Republic (CEDAW/C/5/Add.11) (1983)
Union of Soviet 3 September 1983 2 March 1983 Second
Socialist Republics (CEDAW/C/5/Add.12) (1983)
United Kingdom of 7 May 1987 25 June 1987 Ninth
Great Britain and (CEDAW/C/5/Add.52) (1990)
Northern Ireland
United Republic 19 September 1986 9 March 1988 Ninth
of Tanzania (CEDAW/C/5/Add.57) (1990)
Uruguay 8 November 1982 23 November 1984 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.27) (1988)
Venezuela 1 June 1984 27 August 1984 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.24) (1986)
Viet Nam 19 March 1983 2 October 1984 Fifth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.25) (1986)
Yugoslavia 28 March 1983 3 November 1983 Fourth
(CEDAW/C/5/Add.l8) (1985)
Zaire 16 November 1987
Zambia 21 July 1986 6 March 1991
(CEDAW/C/ZAM/1)
B. Second periodic reports of States parties due and submitted as at 1 February 1992
Argentina 14 August 1990
Australia 27 August 1988
Austria 30 April 1987 18 December 198 9 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.27) (1991)

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Bangladesh 6 December 1989 23 February 1990
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.30)
Barbados 3 September 1986 4 December 1991
(CEDAW/C/BAR/2-3)
Bhutan 30 September 1986
Brazil 2 March 1989
Bulgaria 10 March 1987
Byelorussian Soviet 3 September 1986 3 March 1987 Eighth
Socialist Republic (CEDAW/C/13/Add.5) (1989)
Canada 9 January 1987 20 January 1988 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.ll) (1990)
Cape Verde 3 September 1986
China 3 September 1986 22 June 1989 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.26) (1992)
Colombia , 18 February 1987
Congo 25 August 1987
Costa Rica 3 May 1991
Cuba 3 September 1986
Cyprus 22 August 1990
Czechoslovakia 18 March 1987 16 June 1989 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.25) (1992)
Democratic Yemen 29 June 1989 8 June 1989
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.24)
Denmark 21 May 1988 2 June 1988 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l4) (1991)
Dominica 3 September 1986
Dominican Republic 2 October 1987

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Ecuador 9 December 1986 28 May 1990
(CEDAW/C/13/Add. 31)
Egypt 18 October 1986 19 December 1986 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.2) (1990)
El Salvador 18 September 1986 18 December 1987 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l2) (1992)
Equatorial Guinea 22 November 1989
Ethiopia 10 October 1986
Finland 4 October 1991
France 13 January 1989 10 December 1990
(CEDAW/C/FRA/2)
Gabon 20 February 1988
German Democratic 3 September 1986 28 January 1987 Eighth
Republic (CEDAW/C/13/Add.3) (1989)
Germany, Federal 9 August 1990 Republic of
Ghana 1 February 1991 29 January 1991 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/GHA/1-2) (1992)
Greece 7 July 1988
Guatemala 11 September 1987 30 January 1991
(CEDAW/C/GUA/1-2)
Guinea 8 September 1987
Guyana 3 September 1986
Haiti 3 September 1986
Honduras 2 April 1988 28 October 1987 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.9) (1992)
Hungary 3 September 1986 29 September 1986 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l) (1988)

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Iceland 18 July 1990
Indonesia 13 October 1989
Iraq 12 September 1991
Ireland 22 January 1991
Italy 10 July 1990
Jamaica 18 November 1989
Japan 25 July 1990
Kenya 8 April 1989 4 December 1990
(CEDAW/C/KEN/1-2)
Lao People's 13 September 1986
Democratic Republic
Liberia 16 August 1989
Mali 10 October 1990
Mauritius 8 August 1989
Mexico 3 September 1986 3 December 1987 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.lO) (1990)
Mongolia 3 September 1986 17 March 1987 Ninth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.7) (1990)
New Zealand 9 February 1990
Nicaragua 26 November 1986 16 March 1989
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.20)
Nigeria 13 July 1990
Norway 3 September 1986 23 June 1988 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l5) (1991)
Panama 28 November 1986

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Peru 13 October 1987 13 February 1990
(CEDAW/C/13/Ada.29)
Philippines 4 September 1986 12 December 1988 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Ada.l7) (1991)
Poland 3 September 1986 17 November 1988 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l6) (1991)
Portugal 3 September 1986 18 May 1989 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.22) (1991)
Republic of Korea 26 January 1990 19 December 1989
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.28)
Romania 6 February 1987
Rwanda 3 September 1986 7 March 1988 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l3) (1991)
Saint Lucia 7 November 1987
Saint Vincent and 3 September 1986 the Grenadines
Senegal 7 March 1990 23 September 1991
(CEDAW/C/SEN/2)
Spain 4 February 1989 9 February 1989 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l9) (1992)
Sri Lanka 4 November 1986 29 December 1988 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.l8) (1992)
Sweden 3 September 1986 10 March 1987 Seventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.6) (1988)
Thailand 8 September 1990
Togo 26 October 1988
Tunisia 20 October 1990
Turkey 19 January 1991
Uganda 21 August 1990

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Ukrainian Soviet 3 September 1986 13 August 1987 Ninth
Socialist Republic (CEDAW/C/13/Add.8) (1990)
United Kingdom of 7 May 1991 11 July 1991
Great Britain and (CEDAW/C/UK/2
Northern Ireland and Amend,1)
Union of Soviet 3 September 1986 10 February 1987 Eighth
Socialist Republics (CEDAW/C/13/Add.4) (1989)
Uruguay 8 November 1986
Venezuela 1 June 1988 18 April 1989 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.21) (1992)
Viet Nam 19 March 1987
Yugoslavia 28 March 1987 31 May 1989 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/13/Add.23) (1991)
Zaire 16 November 1990
C. Third periodic reports of States parties due and submitted as at 1 February 1992
Austria 30 April 1991
Barbados 3 September 1990
Bhutan 30 September 1990
Bulgaria 10 March 1991
Byelorussian Soviet 3 September 1990 Socialist Republic
Canada 9 January 1991
Cape Verde 3 September 1990
China 3 September 1990
Colombia 18 February 1991
Congo 25 August 1991

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Cuba 3 September 1990
Czechoslovakia 18 March 1991
Dominica 3 September 1990
Dominican Republic 2 October 1991
Ecuador 9 December 1990 23 December 1991
(CEDAW/C/ECU/3)
Egypt 18 October 1990
El Salvador 18 September 1990
Ethiopia 10 October 1990
Guatemala 11 September 1991
Guinea 8 September 1991
Guyana 3 September 1990
Haiti 13 September 1990
Honduras 2 April 1991 31 May 1991 Eleventh
(CEDAW/C/HON/3) (1992)
Hungary 3 September 1990 4 April 1991
(CEDAW/C/HUN/3)
Lao People's 13 September 1990
Democratic Republic
Mexico 3 September 1990
Mongolia 3 September 1990
Nicaragua 26 November 1990
Norway 3 September 1990 25 January 1991
(CEDAW/C/NOR/3)
Panama 28 November 1990
Peru 13 October 1991

Considered by
Committee
(session/
States parties Date due Date of submission year)
Philippines 4 September 1990
Poland 3 September 1990 22 November 1990 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/18/Add.2) (1991)
Portugal 3 September 1990 10 December 1990 Tenth
(CEDAW/C/18/Add.3) (1991)
Romania 6 February 1991
Rwanda 3 September 1990 18 January 1990
(CEDAW/C/EWA/3)
Saint Vincent and 3 September 1990 27 September 1991
the Grenadines (CEDAW/C/STV/1-3)
Sri Lanka 4 November 1990
Sweden 3 September 1990 3 October 1990
(CEDAW/C/18/Add.l)
Ukrainian Soviet 3 September 1990 Socialist Republic
Union of Soviet 3 September 1990
Socialist Republics
Uruguay 3 September 1990
Viet Nam 19 March 1991
Yugoslavia 28 March 1991

ANNEX V
Programme budget implications of the request of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
Statement submitted by the Secretary-General in accordance with rule No. 18 of the rules of procedure of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
A. Request contained in paragraph 445 of the report of
the Committee
1. The Committee, in chapter IV, paragraph 445, of its report decided to
request the holding of a second two-week session during 1993 or, alternatively,
an extension of its twelfth session.
B. Relationship of request to the programme of work for
the biennium 1992-1993
2. The Committee has 23 members and meets currently for 10 days annually,
alternatively in New York and Vienna. In addition, a pre-session working
group of five experts meets annually for five working days. The Committee
members are entitled to subsistence allowance and travel costs. The twelfth
session of the Committee, and its pre-session working group, is scheduled to
be held in Vienna in 1993. The programme budget does not include provision
for the additional activities specified in chapter IV of the Committee's
report.
C. Activities by which the proposals would be implemented
3. The convening of an additional two-week session in Vienna during 1993
would necessitate the payment of travel as well as subsistence for 14 days;
conference-servicing would be required for the additional 10 days. The
extension of the twelfth session in 1993 by one week would necessitate the
payment of additional subsistence for 7 days; conference servicing would be
required for an additional 5 days. No additional honoraria would be payable
to members.
D. Requirements at full cost
4. If it is decided to hold an additional two-week session, the estimates,
on a full-cost basis, are as follows:

US$
Section 21
Additional travel and subsistence for 23 members 64 400
Section 32
Additional meetings for 10 days
Meeting servicing (20 meetings, A, C, E, F, R, S) 148 800
OGS requirements 3 600
General operating expenses 2 000
154 400
5. If it is decided to extend the twelfth session of the Committee by one
week, the estimates, on a full-cost basis are as follows:
US$
Section 21
Additional travel and subsistence for 23 members 39 900
Section 32
Additional meetings for five days
Meeting servicing (10 meetings, A, C, E, F, R, S) 74 400
OGS requirements 1 800
General operating expenses 1 000
77 200
E. Potential for absorption Conference-servicing costs
6. The estimates of conference-servicing costs indicated in paragraphs 4 and
5 above, are based on the theoretical assumption that no part of the
conference-servicing cost requirements would be met from within the permanent
conference-servicing capacity under section 32 of the programme budget, and
that additional resources would be required for temporary assistance for
meetings. The extent to which the Organization's permanent capacity needs to
be supplemented by temporary assistance resources can be determined only in
the light of the calendar of conferences for 1992-1993. However, as indicated
in paragraph 32.4 of the programme budget, the 1992-1993 level of resources
for temporary assistance for meetings was estimated on the basis of previous
experience to accommodate not only meetings known of at the time of the budget
preparations but also meetings that would be authorized subsequently, provided
that the number and distribution of meetings and conferences in the biennium
1992-1993 was consistent with the pattern of meetings in past years. On that

basis, it is estimated that no additional resources would be required under section 32 of the programme budget for the biennium 1992-1993 as a result of either of the options proposed in paragraph 269 of the Committee's report.
Other costs
7. As regards the costs involved for the additional travel and daily
subsistence allowance for 23 members of the Committee, it is estimated that
US$ 64,400 would be required under section 21 if an additional two-week
session is held in 1993. If the twelfth session of the Committee is to be
extended by one week, the additional costs would be US$ 39,900 under
section 21.
F. Contingency Fund
8. It will be recalled that, under the procedure established by the General Assembly in its resolution 41/213 of 19 December 1986 and in effect starting with the biennium 1990-1991, a contingency fund is established for each biennium to accommodate additional expenditures derived from legislative mandates not provided for in the programme budget. Under the same procedure, if additional expenditures are proposed that can exceed resources available from the contingency fund, those activities can be implemented only through redeployment of resources from low-priority areas or modifications of projected activities. Otherwise, such additional activities will have to be deferred until a later biennium. A consolidated statement of all programme budget implications and revised estimates will be submitted to the Assembly towards the end of its forty-seventh session.
9. No activities have been identified for termination, deferral, curtailment or modification under section 21. In the event, therefore, that resources are available from the contingency fund, it will be possible for the Committee to either hold an additional session of two weeks, or extend its twelfth session by one week during 1993.
G. Summary
10. Should the General Assembly adopt the report of the Committee on its
eleventh session and endorse the request for an additional two-week meeting in
Vienna during 1993, it is estimated that additional requirements of US$ 64,400
will be needed under section 21, Centre for Social Development and
Humanitarian Affairs. Should the General Assembly alternatively endorse the
request for the extension of the twelfth session of the Committee in 1993 by
one week, it is estimated that US$ 39,900 would be required under section 21.