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THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,
REAFFIRMING that discrimination on the basis of sex is contrary to the
Charter of the OAS, the Inter-American Democratic Charter, the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and its optional
protocol, the Declaration of the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights, and
the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and that its elimination is
integral to efforts toward eliminating violence against women;
BEARING IN MIND that the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention,
Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women, adopted in 1994, declared
that violence against women is a violation of their human rights and that its
elimination is essential for their individual and social development and their
full and equal participation in all walks of life;
NOTING that to date 31 member states have ratified the Convention of Belém do
Pará, thereby demonstrating their absolute rejection of and concern over any act
of violence against women, and reflecting their commitment to achieve the
objectives of the Convention and to fulfill the obligations contracted by them;
RECALLING that in compliance with resolution AG/RES. 1456 (XXVII-O/97),
“Promotion of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and
Eradication of Violence against Women, ‘Convention of Belém do Pará’,” the
Inter-American Commission of Women presented to the XXIX, XXXI, and XXXIII OAS
General Assemblies biennial reports on progress achieved in implementation of
the Convention and on the experiences and results obtained through initiatives
and programs carried out in member states to combat violence against women;
EMPHASIZING that with resolutions AG/RES. 1626 (XXIX-O/99) and AG/RES. 1768
(XXXI-O/01), adopted by the OAS General Assembly upon receipt of the
presentation of the CIM’s First and Second Biennial Reports on violence, the
Assembly expressed its continued support for the work accomplished by the
Commission and the member states in promoting the Convention and pursuing its
objectives;
FURTHER RECALLING that resolution CIM/RES. 224 (XXXI-O/02), “Follow-up of the
Convention of Belém do Pará”, adopted by the XXXI CIM Assembly of Delegates,
urges all member states to ratify that Convention, recommends specific measures
to prevent and address all forms of violence against women and the allocation of
the necessary resources to prevent, punish, and eradicate gender based violence,
and requests a group of experts from the member states party and those not party
to the Convention as well as representatives of civil society, to make
recommendations on the most appropriate way to follow up on the Convention,
based on the document prepared by the CIM, so that the OAS Secretary General can
convene a meeting of States Parties to the Convention, inviting as well the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and those member states that are not
States Parties to the Convention, in order to adopt a decision on the most
appropriate way to follow up on the Convention;
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that resolution AG/RES. 1942 (XXXIII-O/03) adopted by the
XXXIII OAS General Assembly regarding presentation of the Third Biennial Report
stresses the need to adopt the most appropriate and effective way to follow up
on the Convention of Belém do Pará and requested the General Secretariat to
provide the necessary support for the meeting of experts that will consider the
document prepared by the CIM, pursuant to resolution CIM/RES. 224 (XXXI-O/02);
BEARING IN MIND that the Government of Mexico has offered to host the meeting
of experts, which will take place July 20-21, 2004, in order to analyze the
document prepared by CIM as well as other contributions, with a view to making
recommendations on the most appropriate way to follow up on the Convention of
Belém do Pará;
CONSIDERING ALSO that the Declarations and Plans of Action of the Summits of
the Americas have shown a keen interest in the issue, and especially in the
implementation and follow-up of the Convention;
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that resolution CIM/REMIM II/RES.6/04, approved at the
Second Meeting of Ministers or Highest Ranking Authorities Responsible for the
Advancement of Women in the Member States (REMIM II), held in Washington DC in
April of 2004, urged all the member states that have not yet done so to ratify
regional human rights instruments, especially the Inter-American Convention to
Prevent, Punish, and Eradicate Violence Against Women, Convention of Belém do
Para, as a demonstration of their commitment to, respect for, promotion of, and
advancement of the protection of women’s human rights; and
EMPHASIZING that a mechanism for monitoring and analyzing the manner in which
these advances are being implemented, and for facilitating cooperation among
states parties and with member states of the OAS, would contribute to achieving
the objectives of the Convention,
RESOLVES:
1. To commend the Inter-American Commission of Women for the work it has
accomplished over more than seven decades dedicated to strengthening the rights
of women, achieving gender equity and equality, and in particular its efforts to
eliminate all forms of violence against women.
2. To encourage member states that have not yet done so to ratify regional
human rights instruments, and in particular the Inter-American Convention on the
Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women, “Convention
of Belém do Pará,” as a demonstration of their commitment to, respect for and
promotion and advancement of the protection of women's human rights.
3. To urge the States Party, as well as the States that are not party to the
Convention, to participate actively in the meeting of experts that will analyze
the most appropriate manner to create a follow up mechanism to the Convention of
Belém do Pará, to be held in Mexico City July 20-21, 2004.
4. To urge member states to continue supporting the efforts of the
Inter-American Commission of Women in the process of creating and implementing a
mechanism for follow up on implementation of the Convention, and to continue
working collaboratively to prevent, punish, and eradicate all forms of violence
against women, in both the public and private spheres.
5. To encourage the States Party to the Convention to set the XXXII CIM
Assembly of Delegates as the deadline to adopt a decision on the recommendations
of the meeting of experts on the adoption of a follow-up mechanism to the
Convention of Belém do Pará, which will be presented to the Conference of States
Parties, pursuant to resolution CIM/RES. 224 (XXXI-O/02).
6. To recommend that member states take concrete steps to ensure the
effective enforcement of national legislation, consistent with the regional and
international conventions that have been ratified to eliminate discrimination
and violence against women, in particular the Convention of Belém do Pará, and
that they take coordinated action to foster a culture of respect for human
rights for everyone.
7. To encourage member states to allocate more human and financial resources
to national and regional budgets to assist victims of violence, and to prevent,
punish, and eradicate all forms of violence against women.
8. To urge the Secretary General of the OAS to allocate more human,
technical, and financial resources so that CIM can continue its efforts to
ensure full implementation of the Inter-American Convention to Prevent, Punish,
and Eradicate Violence Against Women, “Convention of Belém do Pará,” and its
efforts to promote the elimination of violence against women.
9. To request the CIM Permanent Secretariat to include a special section on
compliance with this resolution in the biennial report on violence that will be
presented next year to the General Assembly [AG/RES. 1456 (XXVII-O/97)]. |
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