English - CEDAW Southeast Asia

CEDAW and the Law:
education and reduce maternal mortality rates through safe motherhood services
and prenatal assistance. When possible, legislation criminalizing abortion should be
amended, in order to withdraw punitive measures imposed on women who undergo
abortion;
(d) Monitor the provision of health services to women by public, non governmental and
private organizations, to ensure equal access and quality of care;
(e) Require all health services to be consistent with the human rights of women,
including the rights to autonomy, privacy, confidentiality, informed consent and
choice;
(f) Ensure that the training curricula of health workers include comprehensive,
mandatory, gender sensitive courses on women’s health and human rights, in
particular gender based violence.
V.9.1.3 Concluding Comments
The relevant provisions relating to Article 12 of CEDAW in Concluding Comments on Viet Nam
2007 are:
Paragraph 24
The Committee expresses its concern about women’s limited access to sexual and
reproductive health-care services, and about the very high rate of abortions, in particular
among adolescent and young women. The Committee is also concerned about the
increase in HIV/AIDS infections among women.
Paragraph 25
250
The Committee urges the State party to take concrete measures to enhance women’s
access to health care, in particular to sexual and reproductive health services, in
accordance with article 12 of the Convention and the Committee’s general
recommendation 24 on women and health. It requests the State party to strengthen
measures aimed at the prevention of unwanted pregnancies, including through
improved availability, acceptability and use of modern means of birth control, in order to
eliminate the use of abortion as a method of family planning. The Committee
recommends that the State party give priority attention to the sexual and reproductive
health needs of adolescent and young women and men and that it provide ageappropriate
sex education, including in school curricula, with special attention to the
prevention of early pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS. The
Committee also calls on the State party to ensure the effective implementation of its
national strategy on the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS, including improved access
to antiretroviral drugs, protection and care for babies born with HIV and training for
medical personnel.
V.9.2 SELECTED INDICATORS
CEDAW and the relevant GRs require the elimination of all forms of discrimination in the field
of health and to ensure women’s access to health services. Paragraphs 7 and 8 of GR 24
Review of key legal documents and compliance with CEDAW