The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women was this afternoon briefed by representatives of non-governmental organizations on the situation of women’s rights in Niger, Tajikistan, Italy and Turkmenistan, whose reports the Committee will review this week.
In relation to Niger, speakers raised concerns regarding the phenomenon of wahaya; women’s poor political representation; and girls dropping out of school.
On Tajikistan, speakers addressed women’s access to resources; gender-based violence issues; and women living with HIV.
Non-governmental organizations speaking on Italy raised issues including the patriarchal society; women with disabilities; and violence against trans-women.
Regarding Turkmenistan, speakers raised issues on the protection of women from domestic violence; the country’s abortion law; and the treatment of women in prisons.
The following non-governmental organizations spoke on Niger: Collectif des Organisations de Defense des Droits de l’Homme et de la Democratie / Timidria / Anti-Slavery / Tanadi; and Dimol.
Speaking on Tajikistan were: From Equality de Jure to Equality de Facto / Equality Now / Your Choice / Women Lawyers for Development / Bureau of Human Rights and Rule of Law / Jahon / Office of Civil Freedoms/ Gulrukhsor / International Partnership for Human Rights / Nota Bene; Tajikistan Network of Women Living with HIV; and ADC Memorial.
The following non-governmental organizations spoke on Italy: Italian Civil Society Organizations for CEDAW; Forum Italiano sulla Disabilita / International Disability Alliance; and Gruppo Trans / Office against Discrimination, Racism, and Intolerance.
Speaking on Turkmenistan were: Rights and Freedoms of Turkmenistan’s Citizens; Progress Foundation; Centre for Reproductive Rights; and Rights and Freedoms of Turkmenistan’s Citizens.
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women’s eighty-seventh session is being held from 29 January to 16 February. All documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage. Meeting summary releases can be found here. The webcast of the Committee’s public meetings can be accessed via the UN Web TV webpage.
The Committee will next meet in public at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 30 January to consider the fifth periodic report of Niger (CEDAW/C/NER/5).
Opening Remarks by the Committee Chair
ANA PELÁEZ NARVÁEZ, Committee Chairperson, said this was the first opportunity during the session for non-governmental organizations to provide information on States parties whose reports were being considered during the first week, namely Niger, Tajikistan, Italy and Turkmenistan. A second meeting would be held on Monday, 5 February, where civil society would provide information on the countries whose reports were being considered in the second week of the session.
Statements by Non-Governmental Organizations from Niger, Tajikistan, Italy and Turkmenistan
Niger
On Niger, speakers among other things, said traditional slavery in Niger contradicted the Convention. Niger witnessed several forms of slavery, including the phenomenon of wahaya, which was the institution whereby a woman, considered a slave, was acquired for the purposes of sexual, domestic or other exploitation. The practice consisted of the sale of young girls of servile origin by so-called masters. The practice of wahaya constituted a serious form of human rights violation as it discriminated against women. This component of the society of Niger, influenced by institutions such as traditional chieftaincy, led to the weakness of the State. It was urgent that this issue be dealt with urgently, with a view to its full eradication.
Speakers said the situation of women in Niger was marked by the persistence of child marriages, women’s economic dependence, girls dropping out of school, women’s low participation in the management of public affairs, migration, and the rural exodus of women. Women were under-represented in decision-making bodies and political parties, and the 30 per cent quota for appointed positions was never respected.
Several recommendations were made, including for Niger to criminalise the practice of wahaya; to support human rights organizations in the monitoring and implementation of treaties and conventions protecting women’s rights; to involve civil society organizations in the implementation and evaluation of any human rights agendas; to ensure strict enforcement of the Quota Act; to popularise legal instruments relating to women’s rights; and to implement development projects aimed at ensuring the empowerment of women and girls in areas where the wahaya phenomenon persisted, among others.
Tajikistan
Speakers said that in Tajikistan, women’s unequal access to resources, including education, land, financial resources, access to decision-making processes, and leisure time, was of particular concern. No branch of government had reached 30 per cent female representation, especially among decision-makers. The lower retirement age for women in government agencies created indirect discrimination against them. Women of working age only represented 27.8 per cent of the workforce.
Speakers also said that domestic violence was still not criminalised in the country, and lacked a victim-centred approach. There were insufficient services to protect survivors of gender-based violence, such as shelters and alternative long-term housing, and the State had not prioritised funding such services from the central budget. Articles of the Criminal Code on sexual abuse, in particular on rape, were outdated, and did not comply with United Nations standards. Furthermore, women living with HIV in Tajikistan faced numerous forms of discrimination every day due to their HIV status. There was an article in the Criminal Code relating to HIV, which put women in a vulnerable position.
Several recommendations were made to Tajikistan, including to develop instruments for the use of temporary measures to empower women in various sectors of the economy; to significantly increase the presidential quotas; and to remove all legal barriers to the promotion of women to senior positions. Speakers also recommended that Tajikistan include a separate article criminalising domestic violence in the Criminal Code; establish domestic violence as a criminal offence; bring the definition of rape in criminal law into line with international standards of human rights; and provide free medical examinations to those who had suffered from violence, among others. The article relating to HIV exposure in the Criminal Code should be removed, and women living with HIV needed to be given increased access to health and mental health services.
Italy
Speakers, among other things, said Italy was a country which did not seriously consider the Convention and its Protocols. The society was characterised by strong and traditionally patriarchal prejudices and stereotypes, where women were relegated to the main role of mothers and caregivers with discriminatory consequences, including insufficient economic means, lack of autonomy, risk of poverty, and employment segregation. The employment rate for women aged 15-64 was 52.2 per cent in Italy, the lowest in the European Union. Women’s participation in the labour market was linked to family burdens, as 31 per cent of women aged 25-49 did not work or left work when they became mothers.
The judiciary’s pattern of overlooking violence against women in child custody perpetuated severe secondary victimisation of mothers and children. The recent Cartabia reform on justice risked adversely impacting women’s rights. The absence of transparent procedures to ensure the appropriate allocation of funding for victims of violence against women, specifically committed to women anti-violence centres and shelters, had resulted in severe underfunding and sustainability issues for women’s associations.
Migrant women, asylum seekers and refugee women were still exposed to multiple discrimination and exploitation. Women with intellectual disabilities and those in institutional settings remained at high risk of violence. Access to justice was not assured to women with disabilities. Speakers also said that Italian society remained fundamentally patriarchal and transmisogynistic. Trans women were still not considered rights holders and media portrayals of trans women continued to be degrading. Italy held the European record for the number of murders of trans people: at least 48 between 2008 and 2023. The Italian Government was failing to provide adequate protection against hate crimes and acts of violence based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
Speakers asked the Committee to urge the Italian State to implement quality public childcare services and better care for the elderly in line with European standards, and to introduce structural incentives to the private sector to promote gender equality and growth opportunities for women; to provide comprehensive education and mandatory training against gender stereotyping; to combat cultural and patriarchal prejudices and encourage significant structural and cultural change to eliminate existing gender stereotypes and discrimination; and to monitor Cartabia reform on family law, among other measures. The Committee was also urged to request the Italian Government to collect disaggregated data concerning trans women in all relevant fields, and to implement legislation regarding the criminalisation of hate crimes and violence against trans women.
Turkmenistan
Speakers said Turkmenistan lacked adequate legislation aimed at protecting women from domestic violence, and current legislation did not fulfil the necessary standards and lacked sufficient protection for victims. Law enforcement agencies frequently chose to qualify domestic violence as an “administrative offense,” and only if committed repeatedly was it considered a criminal offense. The legislation lacked adequate support for victims. Women did not report domestic violence due to shame and fear of public judgment. Furthermore, Turkmenistan currently had the world’s lowest gestational limit on abortion, up to five weeks. This represented a significant regression from the previous law, which allowed abortions up to 12 weeks of gestation. The practice persisted as a crime under the Criminal Code, and qualified providers could be imprisoned for up to two years if they performed an abortion beyond the legal grounds.
Turkmen women did occupy some leadership positions, but these roles were often merely symbolic and lacked any real decision-making power. Additionally, restrictions on appearance had been imposed on women working in budgetary organizations. They were required to adhere to a strict dress code, wearing only national clothes. In Turkmenistan’s correctional facilities, female prisoners faced severe persecution. They were often forced into sexual relations with the heads of the facilities and other officers, were subjected to torture by prison officers, and faced extremely poor living conditions. There was a severe shortage of water in prisons, with only one and a half litres of water provided per day for all the needs of a convicted woman.
Speakers requested that the Committee recommend that the State party draft a law addressing gender-based violence and domestic violence in line with the Convention, as a priority. The Committee was also urged to reiterate its recommendations to decriminalise and legalise abortion in Turkmenistan. The State party needed to ensure access to comprehensive abortion care aligned with international standards. It was necessary to enforce legislation equally for every citizen, as currently the law was enforced and implemented only in favour of the president, his family, his relatives, or the heads of ministries and departments.
Questions by Committee Experts
A Committee Expert asked Italy about the step backwards in abortion issues?
Another Expert asked Turkmenistan how the law addressed issues of employment and labour? To what extent had the law been implemented?
A Committee Expert asked Turkmenistan about what triggered the change in the law concerning the right to abortion. Had there been any attempt by civil society to renegotiate going back to the old legislation? Was there an economic dimension; could some women access abortion but not all?
An Expert asked Tajikistan if more information about the migration policy could be provided? Was there a maintenance clause in the migration policy so that families and dependents received payments from the migrants?
Another Expert asked why there was no central organization in Turkmenistan for women and equality? Was there a problem with identifying acts of sexual violence in the country? For Tajikistan, what was the biggest problem regarding trafficking legislation being ineffective? Was this a social issue?
A Committee Expert asked Tajikistan if there were plans to revise the law which allowed for exceptions for the marriageable age? Concerning Turkmenistan, was there a law defined on internal trafficking? Were there services provided and were they operational? What was the status of women in prostitution? Was it criminalised and were women prosecuted?
Another Expert asked Tajikistan if it was correct that as the level of entrepreneurship grew in the country, the ban on women’s employment also spiked? On Turkmenistan, were the allegations of morality police who prohibited women from wearing makeup, including false eyelashes, accurate?
A Committee Expert asked Turkmenistan for information on how many standing Committees were headed by women? Had the female members of parliament taken any measures to ease the over-regulated family life?
Another Expert asked if more information could be provided about rural women, elderly women and women in prisons in Italy?
A Committee Expert asked Italy if there were specific recommendations for the Committee around the issues of paternity leave? Were there any comments on the Equality Pay Act?
Responses by Non-Governmental Organizations
Tajikistan
Responding to questions on Tajikistan, a speaker said there was a migration policy, a strategy to regulate the migration process, which ran to 2040. Experts were saying that this was one of the best migration strategies in recent times in central Asia, and that it planned for the adoption of a law on foreign migration. The Committee’s concerns regarding the marriage age was noted and continued discussions were being held. There was still not a single programme on the gender aspect of this specific issue, and so the Government’s plans were not known.
Italy
Responding to questions on Italy, a speaker said the abortion issue was urgent and written information would be provided. Data would be provided on equality and paternity leave. There was a real problem in accessing reproductive rights for transgender people, and more would be shared in writing.
Turkmenistan
Responding to questions on Turkmenistan, a speaker said that the abortion law was enacted in 2015 but only made public in 2022, meaning it had not been publicly available for several years. There was no line of open communication between the Government and international civil society groups. Women with resources could use bribes or personal connections to obtain abortions while others were left without access. There was no State body advancing women’s rights in Turkmenistan. Several ministries were tasked with the implementation of vaguely defined goals. To get a job in Turkmenistan, a bribe needed to be paid by the woman. Women often suffered if they were divorced. Pregnant women were not allowed to have any leading position. It was a very patriarchal society; the policy was that women’s place was in the kitchen and they could only get a job with a man’s permission. There was a law on trafficking in persons, but it was not subject to awareness raising and it was difficult to find information on it. There was a criminal punishment provided for engaging in prostitution. There was no ban in law on certain clothing and makeup, but there was a punishment associated for women who did this.
