Want to know more about the international framework for women’s human rights?

The Australian Human Rights Commission and the Australian Government Office for Women have produced Women’s Human Rights, an educational kit of fact sheets about the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

In the words of Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, “The Women’s Human Rights education kit provides people with a clear and basic understanding of international human rights, particularly as they relate to women.”

CEDAW enshrines women’s right to be free from discrimination in all areas of life including education, health, employment, public and political life, law, economic life, sport and culture. It is the key international human rights document which ensures that the human rights of women are protected and fulfilled. The Australian Government reports to the CEDAW Committee in the UN every four years.

“The Women’s Human Rights kit will increase community understanding about how to use the human rights standards enshrined in CEDAW,” Ms Broderick said. “Understanding our rights is a good step towards ensuring that they are protected and fulfilled, so I hope this kit gives people a good grounding to engage with the human rights of women in their work and every day life.”

The kit also includes information about the Optional Protocol to CEDAW, which came into force in Australia in March 2009. The Optional Protocol gives women in Australia the ability to take a complaint about a breach of their rights under CEDAW to the CEDAW Committee.

The kit can be downloaded from the Australian Human Rights Commission website at www.humanrights.gov.au/sex_discrimination/publication/CEDAW/