Helene Black: 2005 :: Accidental Meetings

Nicosia Municipal Centre of the Arts (Power House), Cyprus
Group show
Curated by Yiannis Toumazis
6 May 2005 – 31 July 2005

Suggestions and recommendations by the UN to the Republic of Cyprus (Instead of an Artist’s Statement)

• The Committee considered the initial and second periodic reports of Cyprus (CEDAW/C/CYP/1-2) at its 287th meeting, on 15 January, and at its 287th meeting, on 23 January 1996 (see CEDAW/C/SR.287).

Factors and difficulties affecting the implementation of the Convention

• The Committee noted with concern the reservation of the Government as to the exclusion of women from the military.
• The Committee acknowledged the State party’s statement that owing to the occupation of a part of the territory of Cyprus, it could not give any information as to the implementation of the Convention in areas not under its jurisdiction.
• The Committee noted the observation in the report that the most serious obstacles to implementation of the Convention were social attitudes and practices based on traditional and stereotyped ideas regarding the roles of men and women.
• The Committee welcomed the report’s assertion that the impact of the ratification of the Convention had been significant, in particular, that the Convention had served as a framework for government policy to reduce inequality, had helped to stimulate major changes in policy and had been a useful tool for women’s organizations pressing for change.
• The Committee commended the efforts of the Government to implement the Convention in relation to equal pay for work of equal value and to expand child day-care facilities and consider social security for homemakers.

Principal subjects of concern

• The Committee noted with great concern the information on international trafficking of women and of their sexual exploitation, including women from other countries, in violation of article 6 of the Convention.
• The Committee also noted the low representation of women in the legislature and in political life, and their absence from higher levels of government.
• The Committee expressed its concern that the Government treats the low fertility rate in Cyprus as a reason for retaining the existing criminal law restrictions on abortion.
• The Committee recommends that the Government take immediate action on its commitment made at the Fourth World Conference on Women to strengthen the national machinery for women, including its administrative structure, budget, human resources and its executive powers. The Committee further recommended that the national machinery be empowered to formulate policy and to initiate and review legislative proposals pertaining to the status of women.
• The Committee urges the Government to take into consideration all general recommendations of the Committee in future reports under the Convention.
• The Committee recommends that the Government continue its efforts to review and rectify legislation that discriminates against women in light of the Convention. It draws the Government’s attention to the Committee’s general recommendation No. 19 for amending its penal code regarding violence against women.
• The Committee urges the Government to explore the proposal of non-governmental organizations to establish an equal opportunities commission to deal with complaints by women and to serve in a mediatory capacity.
• The Committee strongly recommends that urgent special temporary measures be adopted, under article 4 of the Convention, with the aim of substantially increasing the presence of women in all areas of public and political life, as well as actively promoting their position in the senior management of the civil service and in the diplomatic service.
• The Committee recommends that the Government take additional measures through local and international law-enforcement authorities to combat the international trafficking and sexual exploitation of women. It encourages the Government to persist in its efforts to regulate the employment of foreign artists and entertainers, and to prosecute in cases of criminal offences. The Committee further urges the Government to provide education, training and support to facilitate the entry of migrant women into other occupations in the formal labour market.
• The Committee urges the Government to explore the issue of equal pay for work of equal value, to avail itself of existing experience in other countries and to begin campaigns to raise awareness of this issue among trade unions, employers’ associations and women’s organizations.
• The Committee encourages the Government of Cyprus to pursue the initiative to enact special legislation to address the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace as quickly as possible.
• The Committee encourages the Government to generate systematic data disaggregated by sex in all areas, and in particular in health needs and services to assist in policy planning.
• The Committee exhorts the Government to extend full social security coverage to self-employed rural women and to abolish existing discrimination in this respect between married and unmarried women.
• The Committee urges the Government to implement special sensitization and training programmes in gender issues for all law enforcement officials and judges, particularly judges in family courts.