IV. GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS ADOPTED BY
THE COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN
Thirteenth session (1994)*
General recommendation No. 21: Equality in marriage and family relations
1.
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
(General Assembly resolution 34/180, annex) affirms the equality of human rights for women
and men in society and in the family. The Convention has an important place among
international treaties concerned with human rights.
2.
Other conventions and declarations also confer great significance on the family and
woman’s status within it. These include the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(General Assembly resolution 217/A (III)), the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights (resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex), the Convention on the Nationality of Married Women
(resolution 1040 (XI), annex), the Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for
Marriage and Registration of Marriages (resolution 1763 A (XVII), annex) and the subsequent
Recommendation thereon (resolution 2018 (XX)) and the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for
the Advancement of Women.
3.
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women recalls
the inalienable rights of women which are already embodied in the above-mentioned
conventions and declarations, but it goes further by recognizing the importance of culture and
tradition in shaping the thinking and behaviour of men and women and the significant part they
play in restricting the exercise of basic rights by women.
Background
4.
The year 1994 has been designated by the General Assembly in its resolution 44/82 as the
International Year of the Family. The Committee wishes to take the opportunity to stress the
significance of compliance with women’s basic rights within the family as one of the measures
which will support and encourage the national celebrations that will take place.
5.
Having chosen in this way to mark the International Year of the Family, the Committee
wishes to analyse three articles in the Convention that have special significance for the status of
women in the family:
Article 9
1.
States parties shall grant women equal rights with men to acquire, change or retain
their nationality. They shall ensure in particular that neither marriage to an alien nor change of
nationality by the husband during marriage shall automatically change the nationality of the
wife, render her stateless or force upon her the nationality of the husband.
*
Contained in document A/49/38.