>Yet difficult questions remain: What about situations where some women in >a society consider a practice to be legitimate and others consider it VAW?
In the view of IWRAW Asia Pacific, any belief, practice or policy that results in harm cannot be seen as violating the cultural right of any community/society. Thus, even if there are women within a community/society who accept cultural practices that result in the violation of fundamental human rights, we should speak out against this since we need to adhere to certain standards. This is especially necessary when persons who are being violated may not necessarily have the power to object. Fundamental human rights are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which all UN member states must conform to. They include the right not to be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the right to equal protection under the law; the right to the liberty and security of a person, the right to life, etc. It is important to note that in line with this as well as general international law and human rights conventions, governments are obliged to uphold basic human rights. This means that when two sets of obligations seem to be in conflict -- e.g. protection of universal rights versus protection of culture -- governments must remove any (cultural) practices that deny the fulfilment of basic human rights. Where women are concerned, Article 5 of the UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (the CEDAW Convention) stipulates that states parties (governments) "shall take all appropriate measures [to] modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women, with a view to achieving the elimination of prejudices and customary and all other practices which are based on the idea of the inferiority or the superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped roles for men and women." The link between culture and violence against women is further elaborated in the Convention's General Recommendation 19 (Violence Against Women): "Traditional attitudes by which women are regarded as subordinate to men or as having stereotyped roles perpetuate widespread practices involving violence or coercion, such as family violence and abuse, forced marriage, dowry deaths, acid attacks and female circumcision. Such prejudices and practices may justify gender-based violence as a form of protection or control of women. The effect of such violence on the physical and mental integrity of women is to deprive them of the equal enjoyment, exercise and knowledge of human rights and fundamental freedoms." (paragraph 11) It goes on to say that the persistence of violence against women also helps to "maintain women in subordinate roles and contribute to their low level of political participation and to their lower level of education, skills and work opportunities." Given that 169 states (governments) have ratified the CEDAW Convention, women should utilise this treaty to demand that cultural practices which limit women's rights be eliminated. The recent amendments to the inheritance laws in Nepal is a good example of how governments can intervene to challenge and change negative cultural values and practices. Prior to the amendments, women had limited inheritance rights i.e. linked to their marital status, because culture viewed that they should be dependant on their husbands for economic resources. While it is too early to know if this legal reform will result in changing cultural values, it is still useful to remember that governments CAN -- and under CEDAW, ARE OBLIGATED TO -- take action to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, including those which have cultural origins. For more information on the CEDAW Convention, please visit our website: http://www.iwraw-ap.org beng hui Information and Communications Officer -- International Women's Rights Action Watch - Asia Pacific (IWRAW Asia Pacific) 2nd Floor, Block F, Anjung FELDA Jalan Maktab 54000 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Tel: (603) 2691-3292 Fax: (603) 2698-4203 Email: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Website: <www.iwraw-ap.org> ***End-violence is sponsored by UNIFEM and receives generous support from ICAP*** To post a message, send it to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe end-violence OR type: unsubscribe end-violence Archives of previous End-violence messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/end-violence/hypermail/
