In the first-ever maternal death case to be decided by an international human rights body, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women established that governments have a human rights obligation to guarantee that all women in their countries—regardless of income or racial background—have access to timely, non-discriminatory, and appropriate maternal health services. Read more…
Updates
Historic U.N. Ruling Finds Brazil Violates Woman’s Human Rights in Maternal Death Case
August 18th, 2011
Tell US Senators: Let’s End Discrimination against Women NOW!
November 10th, 2010
By: Joanna Hoffman, Program Associate at Women Deliver
Twenty-one years have passed since the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. This development was largely due to the efforts of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which has worked to develop a number of critical declarations focusing on the human rights of women. The text of the Convention was initially drafted by working groups within the Commission and through a working group of the General Assembly from 1977-1979. Since then, 186 of 193 countries have ratified CEDAW. Only seven have not, including the United States, Sudan, Somalia, Iran, and three small Pacific Island nations (Nauru, Palau and Tonga). Next Thursday, November 18th, a hearing will be held in the US Senate on the importance of ratifying CEDAW.
Click through to learn: What is CEDAW?; Why should the US ratify CEDAW?; and What you can do right now!