The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
According to a UN statement issued yesterday, Tanzania has ratified
the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women and so is required to be reviewed regularly by the
committee on how it is implementing the convention.
Among the possible issues for discussion by CEDAW and a delegation
from the government are harmful practices including female genital
mutilation, polygamy, killing of women accused of witchcraft, ritual
killings and attacks on women and girls with albinism.
Other issues include lack of a specific law on domestic violence,
trafficking of girls for domestic work and sexual exploitation, high
dropout rates from school among girls, mandatory pregnancy testing,
discrimination against women living with HIV and discrimination against
rural and indigenous women.
The UN team is expected to scrutinise the state on issues related
to Maasai women, measures being taken to repeal or amend discriminatory
customary laws and to harmonise competing legal systems governing
succession and inheritance.
The committee will hold a news conference to discuss its findings
on Tanzania and other states being reviewed which include Japan,
Iceland, Sweden, Mongolia, Czech Republic, Vanuatu and Haiti on March 7.
CEDAW is composed of 23 independent human rights experts drawn from
around the world. Members serve in their personal capacity and not as
representatives of states parties. The Committee’s concluding
observations are an independent assessment of states’ compliance with
their human rights obligations under the treaty.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
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