A/HRC/35/29 105. Among the key challenges in eliminating discrimination against women in law and practice is the question of sustainability in the efforts and impacts of changing laws. Local and global political and ideological landscapes are ever-shifting and resources are limited and insecure. 106. The developmental process of a good practice over longer periods of time means that political shifts in national or international governance can adversely affect sustainability. 107. A key area of concern to the Working Group is the profound level of backlash against women’s human rights gains, which is on the rise both within States and in international spheres. In a climate of rising populism, xenophobia and fundamentalisms, long-established women’s human rights norms are being undermined, heightening the fragility of good practices in this context. In addition, a concurrent attack on women’s organizations, women’s human rights defenders and civil society movements — including feminist, environmental and human rights movements — creates an atmosphere in which these key actors are criminalized, defunded and even killed, making the question of good practices moot. The Working Group emphasizes the importance of maintaining the autonomy of local and national movements and other civil society actors — including national human rights institutions, public interest lawyers and scholars — as an essential means of protecting and sustaining good practices. Backlashes within intergovernmental forums, as well as at the national level, must be challenged head-on by the international community. 108. Resource allocation to support the progressive implementation of women’s human rights is part of State obligation. States must undertake a process of gender budgeting to ensure that their legal and policy commitments bear results. Key limiting factors of the good practices identified were insufficient funds, disproportionate burden of implementation on non-government actors and dependence on large-scale or single donor international funding resources. While involvement of autonomous women’s organizations has been seen as essential in the implementation of rights, the relationship between State and non-State actors should involve complementary efforts. Even States with limited resources make key decisions that support the implementation of rights when political will is present to do so. Budget allocation, whether originating from the State or a donor, must take into account the longitudinal nature of change to ensure that promising practices are not arrested before they can fully come into fruition. B. 1. Recommendations General recommendations 109. There are multiple entry points to change the law and ensure effective implementation of laws guaranteeing women’s right to equality, including through the initiative of women rights holders and autonomous women’s organizations in civil society. The Working Group recommends that States: (a) Take every measure to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and its Optional Protocol, withdraw reservations thereto, incorporate its provisions into national constitutions and all hierarchies of domestic law, and actively seek to implement recommendations made by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Working Group and other relevant human rights mechanisms in view of improving the realization of women’s human rights; (b) Repeal all laws that directly discriminate against women, and review all new and existing legislation through a rights-based, gender-sensitive lens, involving independent experts, including autonomous women’s organizations; (c) Improve the knowledge-base on good practices by providing the ways and means to support initiatives that apply a living-law approach to evaluating 19