CEDAW CEDAW/C/2000/II/4 (2000)

Distr.: General

CEDAW/C/2000/II/4

8 May 2000

ORIGINAL: English

Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women

Twenty-third session

12-30 June 2000

Item 6 of the provisional agenda */

Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee

Report by the Secretariat

Contents                                                                                                                      Paragraphs

I. Introduction................................................................................................................................... 1-3

II. Proposed approaches where States Parties have not submitted at least two reports required under

Article 18 of the Convention ...............................................................................4-15

III. Long term programme of work regarding general recommendations..................................... 16-20

IV. Developments in the Human Rights Regime........................................................................ 21-22

V. Reports to be considered at future sessions of the Committee................................................ 23-24

VI. Efforts to encourage universal ratification, ratification of the Optional

Protocol and acceptance of the amendment to article 20(1).......................................................... 25-26

Annexes

I. States parties whose reports are more than five years overdue............................................................

II. States parties whose reports have been submitted but have not yet been

considered by the Committee.................................................................................................................

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            */ cedawc2000II4.doc

III. States parties which have deposited with the Secretary-General instruments of the acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention.......................................................

IV. State parties which have signed the Optional Protocol...............................................................

V. States which have not ratified or acceded to CEDAW................................................................

I. Introduction

1. The present report addresses a number of issues relevant to the work of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, including:

(a) Proposed approaches in cases where States parties have not submitted at least two reports required under article 18 of the Convention;

(b) The Committee’s long-term programme of work with regard to general recommendations. The report also contains relevant developments in other parts of the United Nations human rights regime.

2. A list of States parties whose reports are more than five years overdue is contained in annex I to the present report. The report also contains a list of States parties whose reports have been submitted but have not yet been considered by the Committee (annex II), as well as the date of the receipt of such reports.

3. Information on efforts by the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women and the Director of the Division for the Advancement of Women with regard to universal ratification, timely reporting, acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention and ratification and accession to its Optional Protocol is included in the report. A list of those States parties that have accepted the amendment is contained in annex III, while those States parties that have signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention is contained in annex IV. A list of those States that have not ratified or acceded to the Convention is contained in annex V.

II. Proposed approaches where States parties have not submitted at least two reports required under article 18 of the Convention

4. Article 18, paragraph 1, of the Convention provides that States parties undertake to submit reports on implementation of the Convention within one year after its entry into force for the State concerned, and thereafter at least every four years and further whenever the Committee so requests. Since the Convention entered into force in 1982, the Committee’s practice has been to observe the four-yearly periodicity foreseen in article 18, irrespective of whether the State party concerned has fallen behind in its reporting obligations, or if the consideration of a State party’s report by the Committee has been delayed. In this context, the Committee has interpreted submission of reports “whenever the Committee so requests” to refer to exceptional reports, with regard to which it adopted standards and guidelines in its decision 21/I of its twenty-first session in 1999.

5. Currently, 39 States parties have not submitted two reports required under article 18 of the Convention, 9 States parties have not submitted three reports, 10 States parties have not submitted four reports, and 7 States parties have not submitted five reports. Of these, 36 States parties have not submitted their initial reports.

6. At its twentieth session in January 1999, the Committee reiterated its decision 16/III of its sixteenth session, in which it had decided, on an exceptional basis, and as a temporary measure, in order to address the backlog of reports awaiting consideration and encourage States parties to report in a timely fashion, to invite States parties to combine a maximum of two reports. This decision governs situations where reports are combined in a single document, and the Committee has considered reports of States parties that have submitted two reports combined in a single document, as well as another report, on three occasions 1/ since the adoption of that decision. Moreover, on one occasion since the adoption of decision 16/III, 2/ the Committee has considered a report from one State party that had presented three reports combined in a single document.

7. The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Convention on the Rights of the Child contain provisions governing the periodicity of reporting in similar terms to article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Article 9, paragraph 1, of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination requires submission of a report within one year after entry into force of the Convention for the State party concerned, and thereafter every two years and whenever the Committee so requests, while article 19, paragraph 1, of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment requires a report within one year after entry into force of the Convention for the State party concerned and that thereafter States parties shall submit supplementary reports every four years on any new measures taken and such other reports as the Committee may request. Article 44, paragraph 1, of the Convention on the Rights of the Child requires States parties to report within two years after entry into force for the State party concerned, and thereafter every five years. Neither the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, nor the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights established the periodicity for reports required under those treaties.

8. A significant number of States parties to these treaties have fallen behind in their reporting obligations and several of the treaty bodies have developed strategies in this regard. At its thirty-eighth session in 1990, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination decided that the periodicity outlined in the Convention would be satisfied if States parties would submit a comprehensive report every four years and a brief updating report in the two-year interim. The determination of whether a report is comprehensive, so as to warrant the interim brief updating report, is at the discretion of the Committee and this decision is reflected in its concluding observations on the State party’s report, which request the State party to cover all the points raised in the concluding observations.3/ That Committee has also adopted the practice of allowing States parties to fulfil their past reporting obligations by combining all outstanding reports in one document.4/ The Committee against Torture does not allow for the consolidation of reports, but does allow departure from the Convention’s periodicity on an ad hoc basis. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, which has a large backlog of initial reports awaiting review, as well as growing number of unsubmitted reports, has invited one State party to submit a consolidated second and third periodic report. 5/

9. Article 17, paragraph 1, of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights makes provision for States parties to submit their reports in stages, in accordance with a programme to be established by the Economic and Social Council within one year of the entry into force of the Covenant and after consultation with the States parties and the specialized agencies concerned. Economic and Social Council resolution 1988/4, which is reflected in rule 58 (2) of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, provides that States should submit an initial report within two years of the Covenant’s entry into force for the State party concerned, and thereafter every five years. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights does not allow for consolidation of overdue reports, but agrees to rescheduling of the reporting dates when this is requested by States parties. Both to encourage regular reporting and expedite its work, that Committee is also making efforts to encourage the submission of focused reports concentrating on matters raised in the concluding observations on the preceding report of the State party.

10. Article 40, paragraph 1, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provides that reports are due within one year of the entry into force of the Covenant for the State party concerned, and thereafter whenever the Committee so requests. States parties that submitted initial reports before July 1981, are required to submit reports five years after the consideration of their initial reports and every five years thereafter, while other States parties are required to submit periodic reports to the Committee every five years from the date when the initial report was due. 6/ At its sixty-third session, in 1998, the Human Rights Committee decided that “the date of submission of the following periodic report should generally be up to five year after the consideration of the previous report”. The criteria to be used in this determination are: (a) delays in submission of reports; (b) delays in consideration of these reports if attributable to the State; (c) quality of the reports and of the dialogue, and (d) nature of the concerns and recommendations expressed in the concluding observations. 7/ The Human Rights Committee determines the date that the next report should be submitted after consideration of the report before it and reflects this in the concluding observations adopted with respect to the State party. In cases of States parties that regularly submit reports, a period of five years is usually nominated; where States parties reports are long overdue, the Committee will usually require the submission of a report within three years after the consideration of the current report.

11. In light of the practice of these bodies, and taking into account the views of the ninth meeting of chairpersons of the human rights treaty bodies, which encouraged treaty bodies to develop a flexible approach, although avoiding those that might provide an incentive to States parties to delay the submission of their reports, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women may wish to reconsider its decision 16/III and encourage States parties with outstanding reports to submit a single document consolidating all outstanding reporting obligations. In cases where the State party’s outstanding reporting obligations include the initial report, the Committee may wish to decide that, where the consolidated document fully and comprehensively meets the requirements of the Committee’s reporting guidelines and in addition provides an assessment of the implementation of the Convention from the date at which the State party’s initial report fell due, the consolidated report satisfies the State party’s reporting obligations to that date. In such cases, however, the Committee may wish to ensure that the dialogue between it and the State party is sustained by requiring a report in less than four years as it is entitled to do within article 18, paragraph 1. Thereafter the Committee may decide that the State party should revert to its regular four-year reporting cycle indicated in the Convention.

12. In addition, in order to ensure that States parties that have submitted reports do not fall behind with their reporting obligations, the Committee may wish to consider adopting the practice of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and require States parties to submit a comprehensive report at eight-yearly intervals and a brief updating report in the four-year interim. As in the practice of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the elements to be addressed in the updating report could be identified in the concluding comments of the Committee on the earlier report of the State party. In this context, also, the Committee may wish to consider whether a full and comprehensive response to the list of issues and questions posed by the pre-session working group of the Committee to States parties presenting periodic reports could fulfil subsequent reporting obligations in cases where the subsequent report of a State party considered by the pre-session working group is due or due shortly after the meeting of the pre-session working group.

13. The Committee may also wish to consider the practice advocated by the chairpersons of human rights treaty bodies and adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of considering implementation of their respective treaties in States parties that consistently fail to fulfil their reporting obligations, in the absence of a report.

14. Where initial reports are overdue by five years or more, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination notifies States parties that: (a) it shall review implementation of the Convention in the State party concerned at a future session and invite one or more representatives of the State party to participate in its consideration; and (b) in view of the absence of an initial report, the Committee shall consider as an initial report all information submitted by the State party to other organs of the United Nations or, in the absence of such material, reports and other information prepared by organs of the United Nations. 8/ Where overdue periodic reports are concerned, in addition to encouraging consolidation of outstanding reporting obligations, the Committee, after informing the States parties concerned in advance, reviews implementation of the Convention in States parties whose reports are overdue for five years or more on the basis of previous reports submitted by those States. 9/

15. Since 1990, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has similarly adopted the practice of considering the implementation of the Covenant in respect of States parties whose initial or periodic reports are significantly overdue. In this context, a four-step procedure has been adopted: (a) the identification of those States parties whose initial or periodic reports are long overdue; (b) notification to those States parties that the Committee intends to consider at a subsequent session; (c) consideration of the status of economic, social and cultural rights in those States parties on the basis of all available information; and (d) adoption of concluding observations. 10/ It should be noted that many States parties that are notified by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination or the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights that implementation of the relevant treaty will be considered in the absence of a report submit a report before the scheduled review or request postponement on the grounds that a report will be submitted imminently.

III. Long-term programme of work regarding general recommendations

16. At earlier sessions, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women had adopted a long-term programme of work regarding its elaboration of general recommendations. Thus, at its eleventh session, in 1992, members of the Committee volunteered to prepare draft general recommendations on specific articles of the Convention for the consideration of the Committee at its twelfth session, 11/ while at that session additional members volunteered to prepare general comments and recommendations on articles 2 to 8, 11 and 12. 11/

17. Also at its eleventh session, in accordance with its long-term programme of work, the Committee concluded general recommendation 19, concerning violence against women. General recommendation 21, concerning equality in marriage and family relations, was concluded at the Committee’s thirteenth session (1994); 12/ general recommendation 23, on women and public life, was adopted at the sixteenth session, and included in the Committee’s report on its seventeenth session; 13/ and general recommendation 24, on article 12 of the Convention, women and health, was adopted by the Committee at its twentieth session (1999). 14/

18. Also at its twentieth session, the Committee decided that articles 2 and 4 would be taken up in its long-term programme of work on general recommendations. 15/ At its seventeenth session, the Committee had agreed that general recommendations on articles 2 and 4 would be formulated separately 16/ and at its twentieth session it decided that work on a general recommendation on article 4 would begin at its twenty-second session in January 2000. 15/

19. Several entities within the United Nations system have invited the Committee, when considering its long-term programme of work for general recommendations, to take certain issues into account. The Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, in its resolution 1998/19, adopted at its fiftieth session, on the report of the Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, invited the Committee to elaborate general recommendations with regard to trafficking in persons and related practices of sexual exploitation, and in its resolutions 1998/15, on women and the right to land, property and adequate housing, and 1999/15, the right to development, adopted at its fiftieth and fifty-first sessions, invited the Committee to explore the possibility of adopting a general recommendation on the theme of women’s economic rights as it related, inter alia, to the provisions of article 14 of the Convention. The Commission on the Status of Women, in its resolution 42/3, adopted at its fiftieth session, invited the Committee to develop a general recommendation on women and migration, while both the Commission on Human Rights in its resolution 1998/17, and the General Assembly in its resolution 54/138, have encouraged the Committee to consider developing a general recommendation on the situation of women migrant workers.

20. The Committee may wish to confirm its long-term programme for the preparation of general recommendations. Bearing in mind its three-stage process for the preparation of general recommendations adopted at its seventeenth session, 17/ the Committee may also wish to schedule a general discussion and exchange of views on the subject of its next general recommendation, with the participation of specialized agencies and other United Nations bodies, as well as non-governmental organizations, at its twenty-fourth session in January 2001.

IV. Developments in the human rights regime

21. At its sixty-eighth session, in March 2000, the Human Rights Committee adopted general comment No. 28 on equality of rights between men and women. 18/ The general comment, which updates and replaces general comment No. 4, adopted at its thirteenth session in 1981, seeks to take account of the important impact of this article on the enjoyment by women of the human rights protected under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

22. At its fifty-sixth session in March 2000, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination adopted a general recommendation on gender-related dimensions of race discrimination.19/ The general comments of the Human Rights Committee and the general recommendation of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination have been made available to members of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.

V. Reports to be considered at future sessions of the Committee

23. At its twenty-second session, the Committee drew up the list of States parties whose reports would be considered at future sessions. The Committee decided that, at its twenty-fourth session in January 2001, the initial reports of Singapore and Uzbekistan; the second periodic report of the Netherlands; the combined second and third periodic report of Jamaica; the third periodic report of Egypt; the combined third and fourth periodic report of Mongolia and the fourth periodic report of Sweden would be considered. The Netherlands, Singapore and Sweden indicated that they would be unable to report at the twenty-fourth session, while Finland agreed to present its third and fourth periodic reports. In finalizing the list of States parties to be considered at the twenty-fourth session, the Committee may wish to take account of the fact that the initial reports of Fiji and Maldives have been submitted.

24. The Committee decided that at its twenty-fifth session, the initial report of Kazakhstan, the second periodic reports of Guyana, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and Viet Nam; the third and fourth periodic reports of Finland and the fourth periodic report of Nicaragua would be considered. In finalizing the list for the twenty-fifth session, and drawing up the lists for future sessions the Committee may wish to consider annex II to the present report, which contains a list of those States parties that have submitted reports which have not yet been considered, and provides information on those available in the languages of the United Nations.

VI. Efforts to encourage universal ratification, ratification of the Optional Protocol and acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1

25. The Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women and the Director of the Division have continued efforts to encourage universal ratification of the Convention, ratification of the optional protocol and acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention relating to the Committee’s meeting time.

26. During the sixth meeting of Commonwealth Ministers for Women’s Affairs, held in April 2000 in New Delhi, these issues were addressed by the Special Adviser during her speech to the meeting, as well as in briefings. The Director of the Division for the Advancement of Women also addressed ratification during the 103rd meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Union of Women Parliamentarians held in Amman, in April 2000.

27. During the forty-fourth session of the Commission on the Status of Women and the third meeting of the preparatory committee on the special session of the General Assembly, for the five-year review of the Fourth World Conference on Women in March 2000, the Special Adviser and the Director of the Division for the Advancement of Women met with several delegations to discuss ratification and compliance with reporting obligations. Offers of technical support have also been made to countries contemplating ratification and with regard to reporting obligations.

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Notes

1/ Eighteenth session: Dominican Republic, combined second and third periodic report and fourth periodic report; twenty-second session: Democratic Republic of the Congo: initial report and combined second and third periodic reports; Germany: combined second and third periodic report and fourth periodic report.

2/ Seventeenth session: Antigua and Barbuda: combined initial, second and third periodic report.

3/ See for example, the concluding observations on Morocco: “The Committee recommends that the State party’s next report, which was due on 17 January 1998, should be an updating report and that it should cover all the points raised in these concluding observations”. Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-third Session, Supplement No. 18 (A/53/18), para. 420.

4/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-sixth Session, Supplement No. 18 (A/46/18), para. 28.

5/ CRC/C/91, footnote 2: “In response to a note verbale submitted by the Government of Australia on 17 August 1999 requesting guidance on the periodicity of submission of its second periodic report, the Committee, by letter sent on 22 September 1999, invited the Australian authorities to submit a consolidated second and third periodic report by 15 January 2003”.

6/ CCPR/C/19/Rev.1.

7/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-third Session, Supplement No. 40 (A/53/40), vol. I, annex VIII, para. 7.

8/ Ibid., Fifty-first Session, Supplement No. 18 (A/51/18), para. 608.

9/ Ibid., paras. 603-607.

10/ Manual on Human Rights Reporting, 2nd edition, 1997 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.GV.97.0.16), pp. 159-160.

11/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-seventh Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/47/38), paras. 456-458.

12/ Ibid., Forty-ninth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/49/38).

13/ Ibid., Fifty-second Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/52/38/Rev.1), part two.

14/ Ibid., Fifty-fourth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/54/38/Rev.1), part one.

15/ Ibid., para. 434.

16/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-second Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/52/38/Rev.1), part two, para. 482.

17/ Ibid., Fifty-second Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/52/38/Rev.1), part two, para. 480.

18/ CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.10.

19/ CERD/C/56/Misc.21/Rev.3.

Annex I

State parties whose reports are more than five years overdue as of 4 May 2000

State party                                                                                                                   Date due

A. Initial reports

Angola.....................................................................................................................17 October 1987

Bahamas................................................................................................................5 November 1994

Benin .............................................................................................................................. 11 April 1993

Bhutan ..................................................................................................................... 30 September 1982

Bosnia and Herzegovina ............................................................................................ 1 October 1994

Brazil ............................................................................................................................... 2 March 1985

Burundi ....................................................................................................................... 7 February 1993

Cambodia ........................................................................................................... 14 November 1993

Cape Verde .......................................................................................................... 3 September 1982

Central African Republic ............................................................................................. 21 July 1992

Congo ........................................................................................................................... 25 August 1983

Costa Rica ...................................................................................................................... 4 May 1987

Dominica ............................................................................................................. 3 September 1982

Estonia ............................................................................................................... 20 November 1992

Gambia ........................................................................................................................ 16 May 1994

Grenada ................................................................................................................... 29 September 1991

Guinea ..................................................................................................................... 8 September 1983

Guinea-Bissau ................................................................................................... 22 September 1986

Haiti ..................................................................................................................... 3 September 1982

State party                                                                                                                   Date due

Lao People’s Democratic Republic ................................................................... 13 September 1982

Latvia ................................................................................................................................ 14 May 1993

Liberia .......................................................................................................................... 16 August 1985

Malta .................................................................................................................................. 7 April 1992

Saint Kitts and Nevis ........................................................................................................ 25 May 1986

Saint Lucia ................................................................................................................. 7 November 1983

Samoa .......................................................................................................................... 25 October 1993

Seychelles ........................................................................................................................... 4 June 1993

Sierra Leone ............................................................................................................. 11 December 1989

Suriname ........................................................................................................................ 31 March 1994

Tajikistan ..................................................................................................................... 25 October 1994

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ........................................................... 17 February 1995

Togo ............................................................................................................................ 26 October 1984

Trinidad and Tobago .................................................................................................. 11 February 1991

B. Second periodic reports

Angola ......................................................................................................................... 17 October 1991

Bhutan ..................................................................................................................... 30 September 1986

Brazil .............................................................................................................................. 2 March 1989

Cape Verde ................................................................................................................ 3 September 1986

Congo ........................................................................................................................... 25 August 1987

Costa Rica ........................................................................................................................... 4 May 1991

Dominica ................................................................................................................... 3 September 1986

State party                                                                                                                   Date due

Gabon ......................................................................................................................... 20 February 1988

Guinea ....................................................................................................................... 8 September 1987

Guinea-Bissau...........................................................................................................22 September 1990

Haiti ........................................................................................................................... 3 September 1986

Lao People’s Democratic Republic ......................................................................... 13 September 1986

Liberia ........................................................................................................................... 16 August 1989

Madagascar ...................................................................................................................... 16 April 1994

Malawi ............................................................................................................................. 11 April 1992

Mali ............................................................................................................................. 10 October 1990

Saint Kitts and Nevis ........................................................................................................ 25 May 1990

Saint Lucia ................................................................................................................ 7 November 1987

Sierra Leone ........................................................................................................... 11 December 1993

Togo ............................................................................................................................ 26 October 1988

Trinidad and Tobago .................................................................................................. 11 February 1995

C. Third periodic reports

Bhutan ..................................................................................................................... 30 September 1990

Brazil ............................................................................................................................... 2 March 1993

Cape Verde ................................................................................................................ 3 September 1990

Congo ........................................................................................................................... 25 August 1991

Costa Rica ........................................................................................................................... 4 May 1995

Cyprus ........................................................................................................................... 22 August 1994

State party                                                                                                                   Date due

Dominica ................................................................................................................... 3 September 1990

El Salvador ............................................................................................................. 18 September 1990

Gabon ......................................................................................................................... 20 February 1992

Ghana ........................................................................................................................... 1 February 1995

Guatemala .............................................................................................................. 11 September 1991

Guinea ....................................................................................................................... 8 September 1991

Guinea-Bissau ......................................................................................................... 22 September 1994

Guyana ...................................................................................................................... 3 September 1990

Haiti ........................................................................................................................... 3 September 1990

Lao People’s Democratic Republic ......................................................................... 13 September 1990

Liberia ........................................................................................................................... 16 August 1993

Mali ............................................................................................................................. 10 October 1994

Mauritius ......................................................................................................................... 8 August 1993

Saint Kitts and Nevis ........................................................................................................ 25 May 1994

Saint Lucia ................................................................................................................. 7 November 1991

Senegal ............................................................................................................................. 7 March 1994

Togo ............................................................................................................................ 26 October 1992

Tunisia ......................................................................................................................... 20 October 1994

Uganda .......................................................................................................................... 21 August 1994

Viet Nam ........................................................................................................................ 19 March 1991

State party                                                                                                                   Date due

D. Fourth periodic reports

Belarus........................................................................................................................3 September 1994

Bhutan ..................................................................................................................... 30 September 1994

Bulgaria ......................................................................................................................... 10 March 1995

Dominica ................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Ecuador ...................................................................................................................... 9 December 1994

El Salvador .............................................................................................................. 18 September 1994

Ethiopia ...................................................................................................................... 10 October 1994

Guyana ...................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Haiti ........................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Hungary ..................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Lao People’s Democratic Republic ........................................................................ 13 September 1994

Panama .................................................................................................................... 28 November 1994

Poland ....................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Rwanda .................................................................................................................... 3 September 1994

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ............................................................................. 3 September 1994

Uruguay ..................................................................................................................... 8 November 1994

Viet Nam ........................................................................................................................ 19 March 1995

Yugoslavia ..................................................................................................................... 28 March 1995

Annex II

States parties whose reports have been submitted but have not yet been considered by the Committee

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a/ Reports to be considered by the Committee at its twenty-fourth session, to be held in New York in January 2001.

            b/ Reports that have been translated, reproduced and made available in all official languages.

Annex III

States parties that have deposited with the Secretary-General instruments of the acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention

________________

            a/ For the Kingdom in Europe, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.

b/ For the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Annex IV

States parties that have signed the Optional Protocol

Annex V

States that have not ratified or acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

            Africa                                                             Mauritania
                                                                                    Sao Tome and Principe
                                                                                    Somalia
                                                                                    Sudan
                                                                                    Swaziland