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The girl child 1998, para. c
- Paragraph text
- [Actions to be taken by Governments, civil society and the United Nations system, as appropriate:] Eradicate all customary or traditional practices, particularly female genital mutilation, that are harmful to or discriminate against women and girls and that are violations of women's human rights and obstacles to the full enjoyment by women of their human rights and fundamental freedoms, through the design and implementation of awareness-raising programmes, education and training, as well as programmes to help the victims of such practices to overcome their trauma;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 1998
Paragraph
Gender and all forms of discrimination, in particular racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance 2001, para. 1c
- Paragraph text
- [Actions to be taken by Governments, the United Nations and civil society, as appropriate]: Acknowledge the need to address the issues of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance as and where they affect young women and men, boys and girls and recognize the role they play in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, including particular forms of racism experienced by young women and girls, and support the fundamental role played by youth non-governmental organizations in educating young people and children to build a society based on respect and solidarity;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2001
Paragraph
The right of the child to rest, leisure, play, recreational activities, cultural life and the arts 2013, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Girls: A combination of significant burdens of domestic responsibilities and sibling and family care, protective concerns on the part of parents, lack of appropriate facilities and cultural assumptions imposing limitations on the expectations and behaviour of girls can serve to diminish their opportunities to enjoy the rights provided for in article 31, particularly in the adolescent years. In addition, gender differentiation in what is considered girls' and boys' play and which is widely reinforced by parents, caregivers, the media and producers/manufacturers of games and toys serve to maintain traditional gender-role divisions in society. Evidence indicates that whereas boys' games prepare them for successful performance in a wide range of professional and other settings in modern society, girls' games, in contrast, tend to direct them towards the private sphere of the home and future roles as wives and mothers. Adolescent boys and girls are often discouraged from engaging in joint recreational activities. Furthermore, girls generally have lower participation rates in physical activities and organized games as a consequence of either external cultural or self-imposed exclusion or lack of appropriate provision. This pattern is of concern in the light of the proven physical, psychological, social and intellectual benefits associated with participation in sports activities. Given these widespread and pervasive barriers impeding girls' realization of their rights under article 31, the Committee urges States parties to take action to challenge gender stereotypes which serve to compound and reinforce patterns of discrimination and inequality of opportunity.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Boys
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
The right of the child to rest, leisure, play, recreational activities, cultural life and the arts 2013, para. 58f
- Paragraph text
- [Municipal planning: Local municipalities should assess provision of play and recreation facilities to guarantee equality of access by all groups of children, including through child-impact assessments. Consistent with the obligations under article 31, public planning must place a priority on the creation of environments which promote the well-being of the child. In order to achieve the necessary child-friendly urban and rural environments, consideration should be given to, inter alia:] Provision of clubs, sports facilities, organized games and activities for both girls and boys of all ages and from all communities;
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Non-discrimination in economic, social and cultural rights (Art. 2, para. 2) 2009, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Discrimination is frequently encountered in families, workplaces, and other sectors of society. For example, actors in the private housing sector (e.g. private landlords, credit providers and public housing providers) may directly or indirectly deny access to housing or mortgages on the basis of ethnicity, marital status, disability or sexual orientation while some families may refuse to send girl children to school. States parties must therefore adopt measures, which should include legislation, to ensure that individuals and entities in the private sphere do not discriminate on prohibited grounds.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2009
Paragraph
Women and girls with disabilities 2016, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Gender equality is central to human rights. Equality is a fundamental human rights principle that is inherently relative and context specific. Ensuring the human rights of women requires, firstly, a comprehensive understanding of the social structures and power relations that frame laws and policies as well as the economy, social dynamics, family and community life, and cultural beliefs. Gender stereotypes can also limit women's capacity to develop their personal abilities, pursue their professional careers and make choices about their lives and life plans. Both hostile/negative or seemingly benign stereotypes can be harmful. There is a recognized need to address harmful gender stereotypes in order to promote gender equality . The Convention equally enshrines an obligation to combat stereotypes, prejudices and harmful practices relating to persons with disabilities, including those based on sex and age, in all areas of life .
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Women and girls with disabilities 2016, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- The right of women with disabilities to choose their place of residence may be adversely affected by cultural norms and patriarchal family values that limit autonomy and oblige them to live in a particular living arrangement. Thus, multiple discrimination can prevent the full and equal enjoyment of the right to live independently in the community. In the case of older persons with disabilities, age and impairment, separately or jointly, can increase their risk of institutionalization . In addition, it has been widely documented that institutionalization may expose persons with disabilities to violence and abuse, with women with disabilities particularly exposed .
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Harmful practices (joint General Recommendation with CEDAW) 2014, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- Child marriage, also referred to as early marriage, is any marriage where at least one of the parties is under 18 years of age. The overwhelming majority of child marriages, both formal and informal, involve girls, although at times their spouses are also under 18 years of age. A child marriage is considered to be a form of forced marriage, given that one and/or both parties have not expressed full, free and informed consent. As a matter of respecting the child's evolving capacities and autonomy in making decisions that affect her or his life, a marriage of a mature, capable child below 18 years of age may be allowed in exceptional circumstances, provided that the child is at least 16 years of age and that such decisions are made by a judge based on legitimate exceptional grounds defined by law and on the evidence of maturity, without deference to culture and tradition.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Harmful practices (joint General Recommendation with CEDAW) 2014, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- One of the first steps in combating harmful practices is through prevention. Both Committees have underlined that prevention can be best achieved through a rights-based approach to changing social and cultural norms, empowering women and girls, building the capacity of all relevant professionals who are in regular contact with victims, potential victims and perpetrators of harmful practices at all levels and raising awareness of the causes and consequences of harmful practices, including through dialogue with relevant stakeholders.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Harmful practices (joint General Recommendation with CEDAW) 2014, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- Childhood, and early adolescence at the latest, are entry points for assisting both girls and boys and supporting them to change gender-based attitudes and adopt more positive roles and forms of behaviour in the home, at school and in wider society. This means facilitating discussions with them on social norms, attitudes and expectations that are associated with traditional femininity and masculinity and sex- and gender-linked stereotypical roles and working in partnership with them to support personal and social change aimed at eliminating gender inequality and promoting the importance of valuing education, especially girls' education, in the effort to eliminate harmful practices that specifically affect pre-adolescent and adolescent girls.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Boys
- Girls
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Indigenous children and their rights under the Convention 2009, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- States parties should ensure that school facilities are easily accessible where indigenous children live. If required, States parties should support the use of media, such as radio broadcasts and long distance education programmes (internet-based) for educational purposes and establish mobile schools for indigenous peoples who practice nomadic traditions. The school cycle should take into account and seek to adjust to cultural practices as well as agricultural seasons and ceremonial periods. States parties should only establish boarding schools away from indigenous communities when necessary as this may be a disincentive for the enrolment of indigenous children, especially girls. Boarding schools should comply with culturally sensitive standards and be monitored on a regular basis. Attempts should also be made to ensure that indigenous children living outside their communities have access to education in a manner which respects their culture, languages and traditions.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Year
- 2009
Paragraph
Rights of rural women 2016, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Article 16 provides for equality for women in marriage and family relations, which is something that many rural women do not enjoy owing to discriminatory social norms, practices and laws, plural justice systems where they exist, or the lack of enforcement of relevant laws. Girls from rural communities are at special risk of child and/or forced marriage and early pregnancy. Rural women are also disproportionately affected by polygamy, which severely undermines equality in marriage and family relations.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Rights of rural women 2016, para. 39e
- Paragraph text
- [States parties should safeguard the right of rural women and girls to adequate health care, and ensure:] That rural health-care facilities have adequate water and sanitation services;
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 73a (iii)
- Paragraph text
- [The Working Group recommends that States:] Establish a national legal framework recognizing gender equality in cultural and family life, in accordance with regional and international standards: (iii) Develop national strategies to eradicate cultural practices that discriminate against women and girls, as well as gender stereotypes, through awareness-raising campaigns, educational and informational programmes and stakeholder mobilization. Engage men, as appropriate, in prevention and protection efforts in respect of gender-based discrimination and violence;
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Rights of indigenous women and girls 2015, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- When examining the rights of indigenous women and girls, it is vital to consider the unique historical experiences of indigenous communities. Many forms of violence and abuse against indigenous women and girls have a strong intergenerational element. Violations of the broad right to self-determination of indigenous peoples are historically and currently endemic. Those have included gross and sustained assaults on the cultural integrity of indigenous peoples; denigration and non-recognition of customary laws and governance systems; failure to develop frameworks that allow indigenous peoples appropriate levels of self-governance; and practices that strip indigenous peoples of autonomy over land and natural resources. Those patterns of violations are vividly exemplified by colonization, but have also been perpetuated by post-colonial power structures and State practices. Those violations of the right to self-determination have been highly detrimental to the advancement of the rights of indigenous women and girls in a number of ways.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Rights of indigenous women and girls 2015, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- As discussed by the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences in her 2007 thematic report, culture-based identity politics can be used to justify violence against women in the name of traditional practices and/or values. Practices commonly carried out in the name of tradition, such as female gender mutilation and child marriage, impact some but not all indigenous communities. The fact that those traditional practices cut across religious, geographical and ethnic characteristics demonstrate that there are multidimensional causal factors and that no one factor attributed to the identity of women makes them vulnerable. Violations suffered by indigenous women and girls must be viewed within the context of the broad spectrum of violations experienced and their specific vulnerabilities as members of indigenous communities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Priorities for the work of the Independent Expert and the twentieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities 2012, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- Sex- and minority-based discrimination in hiring, promotion and pay also create significant barriers for minority women. Increasingly informal labour markets - a result of globalization - have brought more women into paid work, but often with low pay, excluded from basic labour protection and employed under poor working conditions. This renders the conditions under which minority women - and all too often young girls - earn incomes that may be insecure, difficult, harmful or even dangerous. Their workload can be made heavier by the lack of such basic amenities as clean water and sanitation, the availability of child-care support and protection against domestic and social violence. Minority girls and women in difficult circumstances are often forced to find survival opportunities outside their communities and home, and can easily fall victim to trafficking, exploitation and illegal migration within or outside their own country, which makes them even more vulnerable.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Comprehensive, rights-based and child-centred care, recovery and reintegration programmes 2015, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Gender-based discrimination and inequalities also play a large role in the propagation of sexual exploitation of children, in particular girls and children who identify as transgender. Sexual exploitation of girls is often rooted in patriarchal structures that promote male sexual domination and do not condemn the commercialization of girls and women. Culturally imposed feminine gender stereotypes also contribute to sexual exploitation of women and girls by placing them in the role of serving males, negating their ability to make decisions regarding their own sexual and reproductive life and making them prime targets for sexual violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Servile marriage 2012, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- In its resolution 66/140, the General Assembly reiterated its call for an end to harmful traditional or customary practices, such as early and forced marriage, and called upon States to take appropriate measures to address the root factors of child and forced marriages, including by undertaking educational activities to raise awareness regarding the negative aspects of such practices. It urged all States to enact and strictly enforce laws to ensure that marriage was entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses, and, in addition, to enact and strictly enforce laws concerning the minimum legal age of consent and the minimum age for marriage and raise the minimum age for marriage where necessary, and to develop and implement comprehensive policies, plans of action and programmes for the survival, protection, development and advancement of the girl child in order to promote and protect the full enjoyment of her human rights and to ensure equal opportunities for girls, including by making such plans an integral part of her total development process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 92
- Paragraph text
- Women also have the right to freely participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits. International law has recognized a woman and girl child's right to benefit from artistic and literary endeavours, and to pursue interests in science or other forms of creative expression. Additionally, all women have a right to fully participate in the cultural life of their communities and States. Any group or individual that denies a woman or girl child the right to cultural expression is denying her right to participate fully in a meaningful cultural life. Similarly, if any act of abuse is perpetrated against a woman or girl child in the name of culture, this individual or group is perverting the basic fundamental right to culture as found in international law, and is perpetuating a static and narrow conception of culture.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- The intersection of different layers of discrimination based on race, ethnic identity, sex, class, education and political views further disenfranchises indigenous and aboriginal women, reproducing a multi-level oppression that culminates in violence. In cases of killings of aboriginal and indigenous women, the main failings by the authorities are the failure of police to protect aboriginal women and girls from violence and to investigate promptly and thoroughly when they are missing or murdered, and the disadvantaged social and economic conditions in which aboriginal women and girls live, which make them vulnerable to such violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Integrating non-discrimination and equality into the post-2015 development agenda for water, sanitation and hygiene 2012, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- In her country missions, the Special Rapporteur has noted that specific groups are excluded from access to water and sanitation, often reflecting patterns of discrimination, marginalization and limited political will to ensure substantive equality. These groups can be identified along ethnicity and socioeconomic divides. In some countries, indigenous peoples living on reserves do not have access to water or sanitation services. Dalits often suffer discrimination in accessing water and sanitation, while Roma are most disadvantaged in many European countries. Moreover, the Special Rapporteur's attention has repeatedly been drawn to vast gender inequalities and multiple discrimination, or the compounded impact of various grounds of discrimination on the same individual or group. For instance, women and girls are overwhelmingly tasked with collecting water and are physically and sexually threatened when they fetch water. Persons with disabilities are also disproportionately represented among those who lack access to safe drinking water and sanitation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Different levels and types of services and the human rights to water and sanitation 2015, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- Hygiene facilities and services must be culturally acceptable. Personal hygiene is a highly sensitive issue across regions and cultures. Differing perspectives on the acceptability of hygiene practices must be taken into account regarding the design, positioning and conditions of use for sanitation, hand-washing and menstrual hygiene facilities. Facilities should accommodate hygiene practices in specific cultures, such as anal and genital cleansing, and women's toilets must accommodate menstruation hygiene management needs, particularly with respect to privacy. Menstruation is taboo in many countries, which makes menstrual hygiene a major concern for the health and well-being of women, and particularly of girls, who may not have sufficient knowledge about managing menstruation to be able to develop good practices. Education is necessary at schools, for boys as well as girls, to start to address the social taboos associated with menstruation and menstrual hygiene.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Different levels and types of services and the human rights to water and sanitation 2015, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Achieving equality does not mean that everyone should be treated identically. With respect to water, sanitation and hygiene, human rights requires that everyone has equal access to services; but this does not mean that everyone must enjoy the same type of service, such as flush toilets, as these are not appropriate in all circumstances and contexts. Also some individuals or groups have specific needs such as menstrual hygiene for women and girls. However, States may need to adopt affirmative measures, giving preference to certain groups and individuals in order to redress past discrimination. Social, cultural, economic and political inequalities perpetuate social exclusion, and this needs to be carefully considered in the development of water, sanitation and hygiene service delivery options (see E/C.12/2002/11, para. 17).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Common violations of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- Many cultures have certain prescriptions for women's and girls' behaviour during menstruation which may amount to harmful traditional and cultural practices, violating not only the right to sanitation but, more broadly, women's and girls' human rights and gender equality. In Nepal, the Supreme Court issued an order to eliminate the practice of chaupadi, which forces menstruating women and girls to sleep in isolation from the rest of the family, in a hut or shed, with risks to their health and security. The Court declared that the practice was discriminatory and violated women's rights. It ordered the Government to conduct a study on the impact of the practice, to create awareness and to take measures to eliminate the tradition.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work 2017, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- The Commission recognizes that women's equal economic rights, economic empowerment and independence are essential to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. It underlines the importance of undertaking legislative and other reforms to realize the equal rights of women and men, as well as girls and boys where applicable, to access economic and productive resources, including land and natural resources, property and inheritance rights, appropriate new technology and financial services, including microfinance, and equal opportunities for women for full and productive employment and decent work, and equal pay for equal work or work of equal value. The Commission acknowledges the positive contribution of migrant women workers to inclusive growth and sustainable development.
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Culture and religion are often invoked to justify discrimination and violent practices against women and girls. Women have often been viewed as objects rather than as equal participants with men in the creation and manifestation of cultural principles. Indeed, when culture and religion are invoked to justify different forms of discrimination against women, women are seen not as victims or survivors of such discrimination, but as persons who "violate" cultural rules and norms.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee on the Rights of the Child have noted that harmful practices affecting women and girls are deeply rooted in social attitudes according to which women and girls are regarded as inferior to men and boys based on stereotyped roles. They highlight the gender dimension to violence and indicate that sex- and gender-based attitudes and stereotypes, power imbalances, inequalities and discrimination perpetuate the widespread existence of practices that often involve violence or coercion. They maintain that the nature and prevalence of these practices vary according to region and culture. These practices cause serious harm to every aspect of the lives of the women and girls who fall victim to them and include incest, female genital mutilation, early and/or forced marriage, so-called "honour crimes", dowry-related violence, neglect of girls, extreme dietary restrictions, virginity tests, servitude, stoning, violent initiation rites, widowhood practices and female infanticide. The obligations set out in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child form the basis for the elaboration of a global strategy to eliminate harmful practices, which should be well defined, rights-based, have local relevance and comprise legal, economic and social support measures combined with proportional political engagement and State responsibility at all levels.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in economic and social life with a focus on economic crisis 2014, para. 98
- Paragraph text
- Women's poverty and quality of life in older age derives from the culmination of the earlier phases in their life cycle and bears their imprint: stereotyping in education and girlhood; precarious jobs; informal labour; the costs of caring; interrupted career patterns; and the motherhood penalty in labour force participation. Hence women's situation in retirement can be regarded as a litmus test for the quality of women's economic and social life.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Servile marriage 2012, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- In its general recommendation No. 24, the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women specifically recommends that States parties enact and effectively enforce laws that prohibit the marriage of girls. In its general recommendation No. 21, the Committee recognizes that forced marriage may exist as a result of cultural or religious beliefs, but maintains that a woman's right to choose a spouse and enter freely into marriage is central to her life and to her dignity and equality as a human being and that this must be protected and enforced by law.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph