O Desenvolvimento Sustentável 5

s[pic 1]    SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 5

Gender equality and women’s empowerment have advanced in recent decades. Girls’ access to education has improved, the rate of child marriage declined and progress was made in the area of sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, including fewer maternal deaths. Nevertheless, gender equality remains a persistent challenge for countries worldwide and the lack of such equality is a major obstacle to sustainable development.

The principle of equality is a central commitment in international human rights instruments. The achievement of substantive equality is understood here as having four dimensions: redressing disadvantage; countering stigma, prejudice, humiliation and violence; transforming social and institutional structures; and facilitating political participation and social inclusion.

In the Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) it is provided that every human being is entitled to all the rights and freedoms within the Declaration ‘without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status’ (UN General Assembly 1948). Similarly, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) requires States to respect and ensure the rights in the Covenant ‘without distinction’ (UN General Assembly 1966a, article 2), while the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) requires State parties to guarantee that the rights enunciated in the Covenant will be exercised without discrimination of any kind on the grounds mentioned in the UDHR (UN General Assembly 1966b, article 2(2)). Both the ICCPR (article 3) and ICESCR (article 3) have specific provisions for the ‘equal right’ of women and men to the enjoyment of all rights in the respective Covenants. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) focuses specifically on women, stating that ‘discrimination against women’ shall mean ‘any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field’ (UN General Assembly 1979, article 1).

In Brazil, the constitutionality of the Maria da Penha Law on domestic and family violence against women (Law 11340) has been an increasing progress through achieving equal rights. However, given the resistance from various sectors of the judiciary to the application of this law as well as the federal and decentralized configuration of the State party, it is concerning the lack of expertise within the judiciary on domestic and family violence cases. It is further concerned about the lack of accurate and consistent data on violence against women.

In CEDAW (2012) article 19. The following recommendations are provided:

“(a) Provide systematic training to judges, prosecutors and lawyers on women’s rights and violence against women as well as on the Maria da Penha Law and on its constitutionality, as stated in the verdicts of the Supreme Court;

(b) Strengthen its judicial system to ensure that women, in particular disadvantaged groups, have effective access to justice and facilitate women’s access to justice by increasing both the number of courts dealing with domestic and family violence cases and judges with expertise in these;

(c) Improve its system of regular collection and analysis of statistical data aimed at assessing and monitoring the impact of the Maria da Penha Law; and

(d) Provide all entities which participate in the implementation of the National Plan to Combat Violence against Women with substantial human, technical and financial resources, including for the establishment of shelters for women victims of violence.”

The country must recon as well that the full participation of women in all spheres of life, on an equal basis with men, is essential for the full and complete economic, political and social development of Brazil. We must recon and be deeply regretted that many women and girls face multiple forms of discrimination and are still subject to significant disadvantage as the result of discriminatory laws and practices, and that de jure and de facto equality has not been achieved.

In UPR (2012) some recommendations are provided as a try to solve these matter, such as the article 119.48 the recommendation said by Ecuador which consists in: “Consider the possibility of implementing affirmative action policies in order to achieve a larger representation of women in the executive, legislative and judiciary branches.”

It is concerning also, the fact that stigmatization, harassment and various forms of violence against women, including targeted attacks and sexual violence, have been used to silence and discredit women engaging in political and public life,

We must be concerned as well that child, early and forced marriages expose young married girls to a greater risk of HIV and sexually transmitted infections, often lead to early childbearing and increase the risk of disability, stillbirth, obstetric fistula and maternal death, and reduce their opportunities to complete their education, gain comprehensive knowledge or develop employable skills, and violate and impair the full enjoyment of the human rights of women and girls, preventing women and girls from becoming full, contributing members of society,

In UPR (2012) some recommendations are provided as a try to solve those matters, such as the article 119.98 said by Sweden which consists in: “Strengthen domestic cooperation between relevant actors, as well as international cooperation, in order to combat both internal and international trafficking and sexual exploitation of women and children”

Or in CRC (2014) article 44 which provides the following: “The Committee urges the State party to revise its Civil Code to abolish all exceptions to the minimum age of marriage. In the light of its general comment No. 18 (2014) on harmful practices, adopted jointly with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Committee also recommends that the State party: