Article 17(2)-(3) of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/08/03
Article 17
2. The members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of persons nominated by States Parties. Each State Party may nominate one person from among its own nationals.
3. The initial election shall be held six months after the date of the entry into force of the present Convention. At least three months before the date of each election the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a letter to the States Parties inviting them to submit their nominations within two months. The Secretary-General shall prepare a list in alphabetical order of all persons thus nominated, indicating the States Parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to the States Parties.
Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979)
In the equality of the sexes, there should be formal mechanisms and representatives for the formulation of ways in which to implement the ideals. An ideal without a plan is a dream; the clouds are wonderful but not much without the ground to solidly peer at them and build a lattice.
The election of the members to the Committee on behalf of the Convention takes place within the context of a secret ballot. No one knows what the other representatives will vote. Those individuals will be voted who most qualify but also who represent nationals. An individual must be a national to represent properly the work of the Committee for the Convention.
The nations must select a national from their constituency. This becomes important for the equal opportunity in the representation of the vote. The proper measures from equal representation to a secret ballot keep the interests of all parties concerned at a level playing field.
The important consideration here is the timing and type of election. It has a secret ballot with representative nationals, and then the first election being held only six months after the force of the current Convention – to enter into force means the Conventions stipulation must begin to be implemented within the country.
It has to be en-forced – in a real way. The import of the elections comes with the message from the Secretary-General of the United Nations in the form of a letter to the relevant States Parties about the submissions. That is, they are invited to submit nominations within the next two months.
This then leads to a prepared list in alphabetical order, so as to not show preference, of the persons nominated. This will also note the relevant nations that have nominated those individuals, and then those will be given to the nations’ representatives. It amounts to a straightforward process of fair proceedings mediated by the Secretary-General several months beforehand.
–One can find similar statements in other documents, conventions, declarations and so on, with the subsequent statements of equality or women’s rights:
- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the Preamble, Article 16, and Article 25(2).
- Convention Against Discrimination in Education (1960) in Article 1.
- The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) in Article 3 and Article 13.
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).
- Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979).
- Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984).
- The Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (1993).
- Beijing Declaration(1995).
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000).
- Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children (2000).
- The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa or the “Maputo Protocol” (2003).
- Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence or the Istanbul Convention (2011) Article 38 and Article 39.
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