E/2008/27 E/CN.6/2008/11 Ending female genital mutilation 71. At the 13th meeting, on 5 March, the observer for Cape Verde, on behalf of the States Members of the United Nations that are members of the Group of African States, and Chile, introduced a draft resolution entitled “Ending female genital mutilation” (E/CN.6/2008/L.2), which reads as follows: “The Commission on the Status of Women, “Recalling General Assembly resolutions, 56/128 of 19 December 2001, 58/156 of 22 December 2003 and 60/141 of 16 December 2005, 51/2 of the Commission on the Status of Women, and all other relevant resolutions, as well as all relevant agreed conclusions of the Commission on the Status of Women, “Reaffirming that the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, together with their Optional Protocols, constitute an important contribution to the legal framework for the protection and promotion of the human rights of girls, “Reaffirming also the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly, entitled ‘Women 2000: gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century’, the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development and their five and ten-year reviews, as well as the United Nations Millennium Declaration and the commitments relevant to the girl child made at the 2005 World Summit, “Recalling the entry into force of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women of Africa, adopted in Maputo on 11 July 2003, which contains, inter alia, undertakings and commitments on ending female genital mutilation and marks a significant milestone towards the abandonment and ending of female genital mutilation, “Recalling also general recommendation 14, concerning female circumcision, adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its ninth session; paragraphs 11, 20 and 24 (l) of general recommendation 19, concerning violence against women, adopted by the Committee at its eleventh session; paragraphs 15 (d) and 18 of general recommendation 24, concerning article 12 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women on women and health, adopted by the Committee at its twentieth session, and taking note of paragraphs 21, 35, and 51 of general recommendation 14 concerning article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights adopted by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights at its twenty-second session, “Recognizing that female genital mutilation violates, and impairs or nullifies the enjoyment of the human rights of women and girls, “Recognizing also that female genital mutilation is an irreparable, irreversible abuse that affects one hundred to one hundred and forty million 08-29062 39