Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) 1979

Summary

CEDAW requires states to eliminate discrimination against women in all spheres of public and private life. Its Optional Protocol enables individual complaints. Specifically relevant to Tamil women who experienced sexual violence during the war, displaced women's property rights in the North and East, and Tamil women prisoners' conditions under the PTA.

Relevance to the diaspora

Tamil diaspora women's organisations document gender-specific violations including sexual violence by Sri Lankan security forces, the particular vulnerability of Tamil female detainees under the PTA, and property rights issues for widows; CEDAW shadow reports are a key diaspora advocacy tool.

Key provisions

• Art. 2 — obligation to eliminate discrimination
• Art. 15 — equality before law
• Art. 16 — equality in family matters
• Optional Protocol Art. 2 — individual complaint mechanism

Primary source

Related entries

• → ICCPR Article 27 — Rights of Minorities (UN)
• → UN Basic Principles on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation 2005 (van Boven/Bassiouni Principles) (UN)
• → Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1979 (Sri Lanka) (LK)