Women's Rights Flashcards
Who is a woman? Sex-based or gender-based discrimination?
CEDAW focuses on discrimination. Question is what this discrimination is based on - women as a sex group or women as a gender group? CEDAW very clearly refers to women as a sex category.
Comparative equality
The limitations of formal equality and “equal treatment” (direct discrimination)
Substantive equality
Redress the institutionalized history of discrimination and disadvantage. Discrimination: direct, indirect, intended, unintended, public and private. “Special measures”: temporary and permanent. Obligation to promote social change.
CEDAW
189 ratifications. The reservations: States that apply some form of Sharia law (reservation on religious grounds). These are reservations on the core articles of the treaty (equity between men and women). Those kinds of reservations are usually considered invalid in international law. Take this under consideration when thinking about high number of ratifications.
Abortion under international human rights law
Beyond discrimination: Women’s special needs and vulnerabilities (violation of women’s special reproductive rights have nothing to do with discrimination, but with entitlement that states must respect). Big debate: clash between women’s reproductive rights and right to life of fetus. Each society gets to decide whether the embryo or the fetus has a right to life or not (margin of appreciation).
Sex-selective abortions
There are many societies where men are wanted over women and the decision to abort is determined by the sex of the fetus. If we see more than 105 for every 100 girls, it is likely that there are sex-selective practices going on. Easy access to voluntary abortion can be a double edged sword.
Cecilia Kell v. Canada (CEDAW 2008/2012): The facts
Aboriginal woman subjected to domestic abuse. Violation of property rights by public authority. Losing her property rights over a house that they co-owned.
Cecilia Kell v. Canada (CEDAW 2008/2012): The complaint
Discrimination on the grounds of sex. Canada had discriminated against her based on her sex.
Cecilia Kell v. Canada (CEDAW 2008/2012): The defence
There was no evidence of sex- based (or other kind of) discrimination. She never used the mechanisms that existed to find remedies, so she can’t complain that the mechanisms don’t work.
Cecilia Kell v. Canada (CEDAW 2008/2012): The Committee’s views
Canada committed an act of intersectional discrimination. She was a women, indigenous, poor. She had many vulnerabilities and disadvantages that multiple with each other
Cecilia Kell and discrimination: What is discrimination under CEDAW?
Her rights were violated because she was a women. Because she’s part of at least 3 disadvantaged groups, any violation that she suffers is going to automatically constitute an act of discrimination. Any rights violation suffered by a member of a disadvantaged group serves as enough to constitute discrimination under CEDAW. The Committee here is not working with the traditional and well-established definition of discrimination. They are using a particular conception of discrimination which gives sense to their views on admissibility.
