Commentary: What does CEDAW do?

Abigail Fitzgibbon, BPAS Press and Public Policy Officer, examines what the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women means for abortion rights in the UK. 

The United Nations (UN) ‘Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women’ (CEDAW), adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1979, is widely regarded as an international Women’s Bill of Rights. However, questions have been raised over how useful it can be in improving the lives of women in developed nations.

A recent conference on 24 March 2009, organised by the Women’s Resource Centre (WRC), and supported by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, focused on ‘seizing the opportunities of CEDAW’ to make a difference to the lives of women. The meeting brought together representatives of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) across the women’s sector, concerned with rape, domestic violence, healthcare and advocacy, to discuss a joined-up approach to maximising the power of CEDAW to help women in the UK.

The UK Government’s commitment to tackling discrimination against women was last examined at the UN in New York in July 2008. CEDAW’s Committee examined the measures taken by the UK in fulfilling the obligations to which it committed by ratifying the Convention, and produced a series of recommendations that must be addressed before the next assessment in four years time in 2011.

The WRC conference discussion focused on how women’s organisations can best work together to hold the government to account, prior to the next assessment. The Government submits an official report to the Committee, alongside a series of shadow reports by NGOs. It was agreed by organisations at the meeting that, by working together on the official shadow report, NGOs can be a powerful influence on the Committee. The Women’s Resource Centre is looking at how best to coordinate this work and ensure that the voice of women’s organisations is heard in at the next examination. 

There are two recommendations to the Westminster Government from the Committee that relate directly to abortion rights. The first of these is that it should ‘initiate a process of public consultation in Northern Ireland on the abortion law’. The second is that it should ‘give consideration to the amendment of abortion law in Northern Ireland so as to remove punitive provisions imposed on women who undergo abortion’. These are both useful advocacy points. However, in practice there has been little progress in securing abortion rights for women in Northern Ireland, despite these recommendations from what is thought to be an influential body.

There are barriers to using CEDAW to change abortion law in Northern Ireland. While healthcare is a matter devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly, abortion, as it is covered by criminal law, has not yet been devolved. Westminster has made it clear that it intends to hand over the responsibility for criminal law imminently, which means that by the time the UK Government is next examined by the UN Committee it will be able to state that abortion is no longer within its remit.

As the UN is concerned with the UK as a whole, it may not be convinced by this argument and it can ask the UK government to put pressure on the Northern Ireland Assembly to make progress on abortion rights. However, as there are no sanctions in the event of inaction on CEDAW recommendations there is nothing to force Westminster to take such action.

Despite these obstacles, it would be unfair to say that CEDAW cannot serve a purpose in the campaign to win abortion rights for the women of Northern Ireland. Last year the UK Government had the opportunity to change the law, via Diane Abbott MP’s amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, but chose to prevent the debate using parliamentary procedure. It was rumoured that this was due to political horse-trading with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MPs from Northern Ireland, whose votes can be critical to Labour in certain circumstances.

The CEDAW Committee will have the opportunity to raise this with the Government’s representative in 2011 and, hopefully, will encourage the Government to explain what other moves it has made to support the women of Northern Ireland. Should a Conservative Government win the next General Election, it will inherit the CEDAW recommendations and be accountable for abortion rights in Northern Ireland.

CEDAW is a useful campaigning tool that can be used in the work of women’s organisations to encourage the government to take action on specific issues. Liz Kelly, of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, cited CEDAW recommendations as the reason that the Government published the recent consultation on violence against women , which does suggest that the Convention has some influence over the executives in developed countries. However, when Governments are prepared to suppress Parliamentarians’ opportunities to improve women’s reproductive rights, it is debateable how effective CEDAW alone can be in bringing about change.

Also read:

1967 Abortion Act section, Abortion Review