A/HRC/35/29 victory was a key factor in the development of a rights-based constitutional framework for gender equality. 79. The new Constitution, adopted in 2014, enshrined the equality of the sexes before the law without discrimination and committed the State to protecting and strengthening gains in women’s rights, guaranteeing the equality of opportunities in all domains and protecting against legal regression. Another progressive measure was the inclusion of the principle of parity in elected assemblies and a clear statement that men and women alike could run for president. The progressive framework of the constitution was protected in article 49, which affirmed that no amendment could undermine the human rights and freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution. 80. Women’s rights advocates pointed to some areas of concern in the constitutional framework that were illustrative of the ongoing political and cultural struggle between the protection and contestation of conservative gender roles. While a single State religion was recognized and protected in the Constitution, it also includes provisions reiterating that the country was a civil State based on the primacy of law that promoted moderation and tolerance. How those potentially conflicting interests would work out in practice remained to be seen, particularly given that the constitutional courts were not yet in place. 81. While insufficient time has elapsed since adoption of the 2014 Constitution to fully assess its impacts, the crucial importance of this broad legal umbrella for women’s equality cannot be overstated. Translating constitutional protections into reality will require the ongoing harmonized efforts of the Government and civil society. Some constitutional provisions have yet to be entrenched in the law, such as the stalled adoption of a law on violence against women, which was being discussed in Parliament at the time of writing. In the area of political participation, a 2016 amendment to the electoral law implanted the constitutional principle of political parity into law. Applying to municipal and regional elections, the law included “vertical and horizontal gender parity”, guaranteeing a 50/50 split and alternation to ensure leadership positions for women. Elections scheduled to be held in 2017 thus open the way for a massive entry of women into local politics, creating huge potential for social transformation if well supported and sustained. Key lessons 82. The active participation of citizens and women’s organizations in the process of democratization and constitution drafting are key to the adoption of a progressive, rightsbased constitutional framework that creates an enabling legal environment for women’s human rights implementation. 83. Robust and detailed constitutional gender equality protections based on international human rights standards are essential for a strong and enforceable domestic legal framework, and the active intervention of human rights organizations at the request of civil society can contribute to achieving the gender equality goal. (b) Progressive and participatory application of the law Conflict, displacement and women’s human rights 84. Longstanding internal armed conflict in one country in the Latin America Region has displaced more than 6 million people internally. Half of those are women, who have suffered a traumatic change in gender roles, family structure and socioeconomic and cultural standing, deepening gender and social inequalities and increasing risk of violence and gender-based discrimination. While many challenges persist, the situation faced by displaced women has improved over the past decade, largely owing to three groundbreaking decisions of the Constitutional Court, shaped by widespread citizen and civil society organization mobilization and implementation efforts. 85. For many years, internally displaced people and civil society organizations had demanded protection measures from the Government without receiving an appropriate response. This had prompted hundreds of displaced persons to invoke the protection of the judiciary through the judicial remedy known as a tutela: a constitutionally established judicial action that citizens can bring before any judge to ensure the effective exercise of 15