Resource Page on Women and ESCR
We encourage you to explore the resources and websites in this section. We hope that they will be a useful starting point for further discussions, ongoing learning, and the development of collective work. However, we recognize that this list of resources and organizations is incomplete. We welcome you to submit additional materials, useful websites, and valuable tools to strengthen this resource. If you have materials that you are willing to share, please send them to wescr@escr-net.org.
We also encourage you to send additional links, materials, updates, and comments to the Women and ESCR Discussion Group at: ESCR-FEM@yahoogroups.com.
RESOURCES ON WOMEN AND ESCR:
Claiming Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: A Guide to Advocacy and Litigation Using OP-CEDAW and OP-ICESCR (available in English and Spanish)
Factsheet on Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (available in English, Spanish, French and Arabic)
Women’s ESCR: A Vital Framework for Fulfilling and Strengthening the Millennium Development Goals (available in English)
Primer on Women's Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (available in English, French, Russian, Arabic and Spanish)
GENERAL INFORMATION ON WOMEN AND ESCR:
- Dossier and Bibliography on Women's Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Full document is available in English, French and Spanish below.)
- United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. "General Comment No.16 (2005), The equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights," (2005).
- Women's Environment and Development Organization, Beijing Betrayed: Women Worldwide Report that Governments Have Failed to Turn the Platform into Action, (2005).
- Brodsky, Gwen / Day, Shelagh. "Beyond the Social and Economic Rights Debate: Substantive Equality Speaks to Poverty." Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, Vol. 14, pp. 185-220, (2002).
- Chinkin, Christine, "The Protection of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Post-Conflict," paper series commissioned by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (2009), available at: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/women/docs/Paper_Protection_ESCR.pdf.
- Farha, Leilani, "Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women: Women Claiming Economic, Social and Cultural Rights - the CEDAW Potential", in Socio-Economic Rights Jurisprudence: Emerging Trends in Comparative and International Law, Langford, Malcolm, ed., Cambridge University Press, (2008).
- International Women's Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific. "The OP-CEDAW As A Mechanism for Implementing Women's Human Rights: An Analysis of the First Five Cases Under the Communications Procedure of the OP-CEDAW," Occasional Papers Series, No. 12, (2008).
- Pautassi, Laura. "Is there equality in inequality? Scope and limits of affirmative actions," Sur - International Journal on Human Rights, No. 6, (2007).
- Symington, Alison / Gokal, Shareen / Principe, Tania. "Achieving Women's Economic and Social Rights - Strategies and Lessons from Experience," Association for Women's Rights In Development, (2006).
- Naylor, Nikki. "Dealing with the busy bodies - Rules of Standing in Litigating Public Interest Cases on Behalf of Women on The Continent," Africa Human Rights Access to Justice, Women's Rights Programme Workshop on Strategic Litigation for Women's Property Rights, Discussion Paper, (Aug. 2005).
WOMEN'S ESCR IN THE REGIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS SYSTEMS:
- Freeman, Elizabeth Jay, "Re(gion)alizing Women's Rights in Latin America," Paper presented at International Studies Association 49th Annual Convention, Bridging Multiple Divides, (2008). Available at: http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/2/5/0/8/5/pages250852/p250852-1.php. Last access on October 23, 2008.
- O'Sullivan, Michelle. "Ensuring Women's and Children's Equality Rights and Socio-Economic Rights - Recent South African Developments". Housing and ESC Rights Quarterly, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 1-5, (2005), 8 pages. Available at http://www.cohre.org/store/attachments/Housing%20&%20ESC%20Rights%20Law%20QuarterlyVol2%20No2.pdf. Last access on April 14, 2008.
- Corrin, Chris. "Transitional Road for Traffic: Analyzing Trafficking in Women from and Through Central and Eastern Europe," Europe-Asia Studies,Vol. 57, No. 4, pp. 543-560 (2005).
- Wandia, Mary. "Time to walk the talk on women's rights," Chioke, (2004). Available at: http://www.choike.org/nuevo_eng/informes/2396.html. Last access on April 14, 2008.
- Dairiam, Shanthi. "The Status of CEDAW Implementation in the ASEAN Countries and Selected Muslim Countries," Presented at the Roundtable Discussion on Rights and Obligations Under CEDAW Organized by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, (2003), 20 pages. Available at: http://www.iwraw-ap.org/aboutus/paper11.rtf. Last access on October 23, 2008.
HOUSING AND LAND RIGHTS:
- Farha, Leilani, "Is There a Woman in the House? Re/concieving the Human Right to Housing," vol. 14 Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, pp. 118-136 (2002).
- Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD)– an independent, non-profit NGO committed to enabling women to use law as an instrument of social change for equality, justice and development.
- Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) -- an international membership organization connecting, informing and mobilizing people and organizations committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women's human rights; the Women’s Human Rights Net is a project of AWID, providing reliable, comprehensive, and timely information and analyses on women's human rights in English, Spanish and French.
- Baobab for Women's Human Rights - promotes women's human rights principally via improving knowledge, exercise and development of rights under religious laws, customary laws and statutory laws in Nigeria.
- Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation - romotes social equality and women's human rights in Bulgaria through research, education and advocacy programs.
- Center for Women’s Global Leadership – develops and facilitates women's leadership for women's human rights and social justice worldwide, drawing on the academic resources of Douglass College and Rutgers University.
- Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA) and National Working Group on Women and Housing – a non-profit human rights organization that promotes human rights in housing, with a working group and program on women and housing
- Center on Housing Rights and Evictions, Women and Housing Program - Ensuring that women and girls throughout the world are able to enjoy their housing and land rights is the fundamental work of the COHRE Women and Housing Rights Programme.
- CLADEM (Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights) – a women’s organization network committed to uniting efforts to effectively defend women’s rights in Latin America and the Caribbean
- Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) – a network of women scholars and activists from the economic South who engage in feminist research and analysis of the global environment and are committed to working for economic justice, gender justice and democracy
- Estudio para la Defensa y los Derechos de la Mujer (DEMUS) - a national women's rights organisation focusing on media campaigns and legal services for women in Peru.
- FEMNET-African Women's Development and Communication Network – was created to share information, experiences, ideas and strategies among African women's non-governmental organizations (NGOs) through communications, networking, training and advocacy so as to advance women's development, equality and other women's human rights in Africa
- Human Rights Watch-Women's Rights Division – fights against the dehumanization and marginalization of women, promoting women's equal rights and human dignity
- International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) is to secure the full enjoyment of the human rights of all people and communities subject to discrimination or abuse on the basis of sexual orientation or expression, gender identity or expression, and/or HIV status
- International Gender and Trade Network (IGTN) – a network of feminist gender specialists who provide technical information on gender and trade issues to women’s groups, NGOs, social movements and governments
- International Women’s Rights Action Watch – Asia Pacific (IWRAW-AP) – a non-profit international women’s organization based in the South that promotes the domestic implementation of international human rights standards by building the capacity of women and human rights advocates to claim and realize women’s human rights; they have also recently produced a Resource Guide to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) Optional Protocol
- Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights – a volunteer based, NGO dedicated to the promotion and protection of internationally recognized human rights that is engaged in a number of gender-focused human rights projects, including the Stop Violence Against Women Website
- Programme on Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (PWESCR) – an international initiative established to strengthen links between local and global initiatives that are promoting women’s human rights, especially in the context of economic, social and cultural rights by bringing a gender framework to policy, law and practice at the local, national, regional and international levels
- Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative (EGI) - founded by Mary Robinson, EGI seeks to foster more equitable international trade and development; strengthen responses to HIV/AIDS in Africa; and shape more humane migration policies. Among other efforts relevant to women’s ESCR, EGI is supporting the Wye River Calll to Action for Global Women’s Health
- Social Watch – an international watchdog network monitoring poverty eradication and gender equality, including a very useful 2005 annual report focusing on gender and poverty: “Social Watch Report 2005: Roars and Whispers; Gender and poverty: promises vs. action”
- Women Aid Collective (WACOL) - assists in the educational, social, economic and political development of women and young people through a wide range of services in Nigeria.
- Women's Economic Agenda Project (WEAP) – demands economic justice for poor women and their families by effecting societal and governmental policies that relegate women to the bottom of the economic pyramid and by assisting poor women achieve a livable wage, envisioning a world in which all women and their families have the shelter and nourishment they need to enjoy a happy, healthy and productive life
- Women’s Environment & Development Organization (WEDO) – an international organization that advocates for women’s equality in global policy and seeks to empower women as decision makers to achieve economic, social and gender justice, a healthy, peaceful planet and human rights for all
- Women in Law and Development Africa (WILDAF) - a Pan-African non-governmental, non profit making organisation bringing together organisations and individuals using a variety of tools, including law, to promote a culture for the exercise and respect for women's rights in Africa.
- Women’s United Nations Report Program & Network (WUNRN) – a non-governmental coalition established to implement the conclusions and recommendations of a United Nations Study on Freedom of Religion and Belief and the Status of Women From the Viewpoint of Religion and Traditions (E/CN.4/2002/73/Add.2)