Appendix II CHAIRPERSON’S SUMMARY OF VIEWS EXPRESSED AND COMMENTS MADE BY DELEGATIONS DURING THE NEGOTIATIONS ON THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN 1. The Open-ended Working Group on the Elaboration of a Draft Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women held a number of informal meetings to continue negotiations on the optional protocol based on the results of a first reading of the draft which had been completed in 1997, and reflected in appendix I of annex III to document E/1997/27. The Working Group requested the Chairperson to prepare a summary of the discussions held during the informal meetings for inclusion in the report of the Working Group. 2. Throughout the informal meetings, the Working Group benefited from the comments of and replies to questions by Ms. Silvia Cartwright, a representative of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, who participated in the Working Group as a resource person in accordance with Economic and Social Council decision 1997/227. The Working Group also benefited from the comments of a member of the Human Rights Committee who provided the Working Group with information on the practice of the Human Rights Committee under its first Optional Protocol (to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). The Working Group received information from a representative of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on technical aspects of the work and practice of human rights treaty bodies under similar procedures to those contained in the draft optional protocol, and from a representative of the Office of Programme Planning, Budget and Accounts of the United Nations Secretariat. 3. The following reflects the Chairperson’s understanding of the discussions of the Working Group on the optional protocol, arranged on an article-by-article basis. Delegations requested amendments to the text from the floor, but the Chairperson wishes to note that this text was not negotiated, nor was it adopted by the Working Group. Preamble 1. The Working Group agreed that the optional protocol would be preceded by a short, succinct preamble which reflected the international human rights framework of the United Nations. Delegations agreed that the preamble would note that the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights establish the principles of equality between men and women and the entitlement of all, without distinction based on sex and other grounds, to human rights. Delegations agreed that the preamble would recall the international covenants and other human rights instruments, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. It would reaffirm States parties’ determination to ensure the full and equal enjoyment by women of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and to take effective action to prevent violations of these rights and freedoms. Some delegations suggested that the preamble should also recall that the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action reaffirmed the universality, indivisibility and interrelatedness of all human rights and that it called for the introduction of the right of petition through the preparation of an optional protocol to the Convention. -86-