General exchange of views 7. At its 1st and 2nd meetings, on 10 and 11 March, the Working Group, at the invitation of the Chairperson, held a general exchange of views on item 5. Delegations welcomed the compilation text prepared by the Chairperson (E/CN.6/1997/WG/L.1), which was based on the elements suggested by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in suggestion No. 7a on proposals made by members of the open-ended Working Group at its first session (E/1996/26, annex III) and on views expressed by Governments, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations (E/CN.6/1996/10 and Corr.1 and Add.1 and 2 and E/CN.6/1997/5). The Working Group agreed that this text should be used as basis for the further deliberations in the Working Group and for the process of drafting an optional protocol. 8. It was suggested that a first reading of the Chairperson’s text be completed at the current session of the Commission, with a view to finalizing an optional protocol as quickly as possible. The aim of achieving the protocol’s entry into force before the year 2000 was put forward. It was also suggested that the Working Group should proceed cautiously with thorough consultations and without a specific timetable. 9. Delegations pointed out that an optional protocol would be an essential step in the follow-up to the World Conference on Human Rights and the Fourth World Conference on Women. It would strengthen the implementation of the legal rights of women contained in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and make the Convention more effective in promoting and protecting those rights. An optional protocol would complement and strengthen the existing implementation mechanism under the Convention, that is, the reporting procedure under article 18. An optional protocol, which should allow for complaints about violations of the rights of women, would place the Convention on an equal footing with other international human rights treaties having communications procedures. The optional protocol should be consistent with, and complementary to, similar existing mechanisms, and these should be drawn upon in its elaboration. 10. Delegations emphasized that any possible duplication or overlapping with similar existing procedures should be avoided. It was noted that the achievement of the universal ratification of the Convention, its effective implementation, and the withdrawal of reservations by States parties remained important goals to be achieved. The need to improve the effectiveness of the existing monitoring mechanism and to ensure the efficiency of any new mechanism was noted. 11. In preparing an optional protocol, a number of issues would need to be resolved. The breadth of the articles contained in the Convention, covering political, civil, economic, social and cultural rights, and the influence of social attitudes and practices on women’s de facto enjoyment of their rights, would need to be kept in mind. It was also noted that the Working Group should proceed in a way that would lead to an effective, reliable and practical instrument that was acceptable to many States parties to the Convention and that could be enforced effectively, in order to complement the implementation of the Convention at the national level, recognizing the primary role of the States parties in this regard. a Official Records of the General Assembly, Fiftieth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/50/38), chap. I, sect. B. -85-