Women's Human Rights Resources Database

This article examines the European approach to combating human trafficking, with a focus on the trafficking of women into and within the European Union (EU). This article begins by examining human trafficking within the EU, and considers current international and European strategies to combat trafficking. Highlighting the shortcomings of criminal approaches, the author emphasizes the importance of adopting a rights-based approach to prevent human trafficking. She argues that states violate their international obligations when they ignore the victims human rights. The author then provides a comprehensive analysis of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (2005) and recommends states follow this model, which adopts an integrated approach focused on both criminalizing trafficking and protecting victims human rights.

After fifty years of independence from British colonial rule, Ghana made history by passing into law a bill aimed at combating domestic violence. This bill was met with vehement opposition by those who claimed that the women's movement it embodied was not in line with Ghanaian culture and that it borrowed uncritically from Western feminism. Using the rights concerns of women and minorities in Ghana as an entry point, the author discusses the interconnected nature of first and second generation rights and cultural relativism in universal rights discourses. The author first engages theoretical debates on the power dynamics which are in play in assessing human rights as a universal good and provides context for women's rights advocacy in Ghana. The author then focuses on how Canada engages Ghana in the promotion and protection of human rights. Finally, the article concludes with suggestions for a research agenda on Canadian-Ghanaian human rights engagements that would include a detailed ethnographic work to assess the myriad of human rights problems and employ critical discourse analyses on texts to understand how both governments address these issues.

In this article, Karima Bennoune assesses two competing views about the status of the protection of women in armed conflict in international humanitarian law. The first view, espoused by the International Committee of the Red Cross, holds that existing laws are adequate to protect women in armed conflict if only they are properly implemented and respected. The second view, espoused by a number of contemporary feminist critics, holds that existing laws are archaic and reflect stereotypes about women that perpetuate discrimination such that implementing them is insufficient adequately to protect women in armed conflict. Bennoune agrees with the second view. She argues that, since what the law designed to protect women says about them affects how militaries are trained, the way in which crimes against women are understood, and whether these crimes are prosecuted, the existing law should be revised to reflect our advanced understanding of violence against women.

This article discusses the pivotal importance of Jessica Gonzales v United States, heard by the Inter-American Commission in March 2007. At the time this article was written, the case had not yet been decided. The article offers an in-depth discussion of Ms. Gonzales' case, while also providing a comprehensive outline of the current treatment of domestic violence within American law and international human rights law. The case is not only important to Gonzales but also to the rights of women, especially those of colour. In particular, the article discusses how domestic violence is often viewed as a private issue and, thus, has been neglected both in state law and international human rights law. The article discusses the importance of framing domestic violence as a human rights violation, and explains how the case may serve to change the legal, political and social perspectives on violence against women. Caroline Bettinger-Lopez, Human Rights at Home: Domestic Violence as a Human Rights Violation (2008) 40:1 Colum HRL Rev 19.

This article examines States' responsibility under international law to implement treaty obligations, and to withdraw legislation that is in incompatible with treaty obligations. The article uses the International Law Commission's Articles on State Responsibility to define the notion of breaching obligations. The article examines the powers and mandates of various United Nations monitoring bodies, and, under section 5.3, focuses specifically on violations of the "Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). The article outlines the inquiry procedures included in many treaties, which allow the treaty bodies to investigate systemic and/or grave violations of human rights. Finally, examples of domestic laws that are in violation of various conventions, including CEDAW, are provided.

This article examines three cases decided under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW-OP), two of which concerned domestic violence, and the third of which dealt with forced sterilization. The cases illustrate the Committee's position on the obligation of due diligence to prevent and punish violence against women, as well as its position on reproductive choice and admissibility. Andrew Byrnes & Eleanor Bath, Violence against Women, the Obligation of Due Diligence, and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women Recent Developments (2008) 8:3 Oxford Human Rights Law Review 517.

The author of this article argues that the monitoring of women's right to health under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) is hampered by several factors, including the lesser priority on economic, social and cultural rights, conceptual and methodological problems in monitoring, and severe limitations on the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This article suggests a new approach to monitoring women's right to health based on the identification of three types of potential and actual violations of this right: violations resulting from governmental actions, laws and policies, violations based on discrimination, and violations related to the failure to fulfill a minimum core of obligations of enumerated rights. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

The authors explore the structure of the concept of jus cogens: "fundamental legal norms from which no derrogation is permitted". They argue that the concept is not properly universal, as its development has privileged the experiences of men over those of women, and it has provided a protection to men that is not accorded to women. The authors conclude that taking women's experiences into account in the development of jus cogens norms will require a fundamental rethinking of every aspect of the doctrine; without full analysis of the value incorporated in jus cogens norms or their impact of their application, further work to make them effective in a new international legal order will in fact only continue the male orientation of international law. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

This article explores how developments in the international law of state responsibility can be applied to ensure more effective protection of women's human rights. Part II explores the scope of state responsibility and discusses the advantages of using feminist legal methods, empirical data, and documentation of actual abuses to expose violations of human rights. Part III explores how to redress violations under the traditional law of state responsibility, and how to strengthen supportive legal doctrines to prevent, remedy, and punish violations. Part IV focuses on the particular challenges of holding states responsible for violations of the human rights of women and the development of appropriate criteria for determining responsibility. Finally, the author reviews the means by which states limit legal responsibility for violations of women's human rights. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

This article highlights the increasing importance of women's concerns in the international human rights field and briefly discusses the advances and limitations of the Beijing Platform for Action (PFA). The author argues for the need to ensure domestic implementation of the PFA through activism and through the development of scholarship on women's international human rights. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, World Conferences, International]

This article examines both the strengths and the weaknesses of the CEDAW committee's decision in Vertido v The Philippines. Vertido is the Committee's leading decision on gender stereotyping. The case concerns the impediment that gender stereotypes can present to securing convictions for rape and sexual assault. The salient points of the case include the Committee's decision to frame the issue as the Philippines' legal liability for stereotyping in a rape trial; and the Committee's application of the obligations to eliminate wrongful gender stereotyping, under articles 2(f) and 5(a), to the right to a fair trial. Simone Cusack & Alexandra S H Timmer, Gender Stereotyping in Rape Cases: The CEDAW Committee's Decision in Vertido v The Philippines (2011) 11:2 Oxford Human Rights Law Review 329.

This article engages with well-known critiques of international human rights law discourse and how they limit the human rights project’s ability to further profound change. The author argues that it is possible to transform discursive practices of international human rights law so as to better address structural inequalities. The author demonstrates this using the case study of the feminist campaign to frame domestic violence as torture (DVT). She analyzes the discursive practices of the campaign and applies the common critiques of justification and representation to it. The author finds that while the discourse of DVT exhibits familiar flaws of justification and representation, it overcomes these critiques by putting forward a substantive vision of justice to address what is identified as a social, structural problem. This in turn suggests international human rights law’s potential for profound reform. The author concludes that the case study suggests it is possible to successfully operate within international human rights law while advocating for a structural understanding of injustice.

This article identifies and discusses the two mechanisms established under the United Nations system to protect and promote the equality of women. These two regimes consist of policy prouncements, through the work of the Commission on the Status of Women, and treaties, particularly the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The article reviews and discusses the history and methods of both the policy and treaty-based approaches. The article argues that the two regimes are not mutually exclusive, and that it is in fact necessary to have the two systems operating in tandem as both address different aspects of the UN objective of achieving gender equality. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

This article is the published record of an American Society of International Law panel discussion held in April 1997. The panelists were Marsha Freeman (International Women's Rights Action Watch), Andrew Byrnes (University of Hong Kong), and Christine Brautigam (United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women), with remarks from Theresa Loar (U.S. Department of State). They addressed compliance under the CEDAW Convention, the development of an Optional Protocol to the Convention, and mainstreaming a gender perspective in the work of the United Nations treaty bodies. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, CEDAW Convention, International]

This article critically assesses the decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (UKSCt) on whether Northern Ireland’s near-total abortion ban was compatible with the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) in terms of the UKSCt’s treatment of international law. It argues that the UKSCt was justified in finding that Northern Ireland’s ban on abortion in cases of rape, incest, and FFA was a violation of Article 8, but that the majority erred in its assessment of Article 3 ECHR and of the relevance of international law more generally.

This article examines the realization of economic, social and cultural rights for women during financial pre-crisis, times of crisis, and post-crisis. The author discusses her observations as a member of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). Before the crisis, women did not participate in the formal labour market, and were without access to social security benefits or protections for income loss. Social and economic inequalities during the crisis increased for vulnerable groups. As governments curtailed their social spending in response, due to rising costs for privatization of education, girls’ rights to education, right to work, social security, and standard of living were impacted. The author discusses the lack of recognition by governments toacknowledge the gendered dimensions of the crisis and austerity measures which have led to violation of women’s rights. Examples of recommended government measures to address the impact of the crisis are also discussed.

The central concern underlying this article is the reproductive health of migrant women. This article addresses migrant women's reproductive rights under international law, the barriers they face in exercising those rights, and the international legal standards national governments must uphold to ensure migrant women's enjoyment of these inalienable rights. These legal standards include ensuring access to information about pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease, access to reproductive health services, and protection from sexual violence, abuse, and trafficking. This article does not address refugees or internally displaced persons whose situation arises out of emergency situations and who may be under the protection of relief or aid bodies. Part I introduces the issue. Part II discusses the feminization of migration. Part III identifies principal sources of law for migrant women's reproductive rights. Part IV discusses central issues affecting migrant women's reproductive health. Part V provides recommendations for national governments and the international community.

This survey is an initial attempt to determine the status of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) in the domestic law of state parties to the Covenant. The sources used are the reports of state parties to the Human Rights Committee (HRC), the core documents of state parties given to the six international human rights treaty bodies, and the summary records of the HRC where state party representatives responded to questions. Information such as whether the ICCPR is self-executing, the provisions of the Covenant that are directly applicable before domestic courts, and the rank of the ICCPR in domestic law, is presented in tables accompanied by explanations, recommendations and summaries. The survey does not however focus specifically on women's human rights. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - Domestic, International]

UNSCR 1325 (2000) represented the first time women, peace and security were addressed as a component of the Security Council agenda. UNSCR 1960 (2010) was one of four resolutions intended to supplement UNSCR 1325, and contained a naming and shaming process, which at the time appeared to be a positive development in increasing accountability under UNSCR 1325. This article provides an explanation of the terminology and context of UNSCR 1960, followed by a critical analysis of the naming and shaming process found in operative paragraph 3. The article argues that the lack of accuracy checks to avoid erroneous listings may result in non-state actors, including members and leaders of armed groups, choosing to distance themselves from the peace process. The article concludes that the naming and shaming process may undermine the effectiveness of UNSCR 1325, as it fails to recognize the necessity of the participation of armed groups in securing long-term peace within a region. Gina Heathcote, Naming and Shaming: Human Rights Accountability in Security Council Resolution 1960 (2010) on Women, Peace and Security (2012) 4:1 J Hum Rts Prac 82.

This article does not specifically address women's rights, but it sets out the status of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in national and international law. Examples in the article refer to international law provisions protecting the right to health. The author asserts that legally, politically, and morally, the UDHR remains even more significant today than when it was adopted in 1948. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

This article articulates the ways in which international human rights law can respond to global trends of violence against women and girls with disabilities. In parts one and two, the article describes the prevalence of violence against women and girls with disabilities in personal and institutional contexts, and addresses the barriers stalling its reduction. In part three, the article looks at the legal, physical, and perception-based obstacles that women and girls with disabilities face in accessing the justice system. In part four, the article explores the ways in which international human rights law can serve to promote access to justice for women and girls with disabilities. The authors analyze the capacity of three UN Conventions to promote such access: the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In parts five and six, the authors compare the regional human rights protections available to women and girls with disabilities in North America, Africa, and Europe, then explores a Peruvian case study on violence against women with disabilities. In parts seven and eight, the article presents normative recommendations to state governments to better empower women and girls with disabilities’ access to justice using international human rights law. 

This article asks how the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) has affected the rights of women, especially women in Africa. The article argues that the contributions of women to the economic lives of their communities are still not given the recognition deserved and the human rights movement has failed to give women's human rights the attention and priority that they require. The article mentions the cluster of treaties that have been adopted since the UDHR, but emphasizes that it was not until the United Nations Conference on Human Rights in Vienna (1993) that a resolution was adopted recognizing women's rights as human rights. The article concludes that this recognition came about only as a result of a massive campaign by the women's rights movement worldwide. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - International, International]

The article discusses the global human rights movement of comfort women, who suffered serious abuses by the Japan during WWII. The movement demands that Japan publically apologize and provide reparation for the acts committed. The article discusses the human rights strategy used by the movement to advance its claims and focuses on how this strategy can serve as a lesson to other similarly situated groups. The author compares the people-centric paradigm of post-conflict justice put forth by the movement with the state-centric paradigm employed by Japan. The first part of the article focuses on the early strategies of the movement, and analyzes the Hwang v Japan decisions to dissect the litigation efforts put forth and the challenges faced. The second part discusses the impacts of the more recent human rights strategies employed which go beyond litigation, including the 2000 Womens Tribunal mock trial. Finally, the paper examines the transnational legislative campaigns brought forward by the movement in 2007 and 2008, and conducts a case study of the U.S. House Resolution 121. The author also discusses the impact of pursuing routes that go beyond litigation and how they further the movement. Cheah Wui Ling, Walking the Long Road in Solidarity and Hope: A Case Study of the "Comfort Women" Movement's Deployment of Human Rights Discourse (2008) 22:1 Harv Hum Rts J 63.

There are two dilemmas relating to group politics and group movements which create two dilemmas. The first dilemma is the problem of incorporation. For a marginal group, the struggle for greater power, privilege or autonomy, typically takes the form of a quest for incorporation into the existing social order. Benefits generated by the strategy are disproportionately captured by elites within the group by corporate and professional elites best able to capture and deploy the instruments of group preferment. The second dilemma associated with the rise of group politics stems from the tension between the defense of group interests and the debate over institutional alternatives. The author suggests that the framework requires a more inclusive agenda that does not just appeal to a privileged few by collaborating in the development of institutional ideas and in defense of institutional positions that respond to women’s needs.