English - CEDAW Southeast Asia

A Gendered and Rights-Based Review of Vietnamese Legal Documents through the Lens of CEDAW
Indicator 14
Indicator 15
Indicator 16
Indicator 17
Is there a specific agency responsible to coordinate measures to
achieve gender equality or women’s human rights Is the agency provided
with appropriate mandates, powers and resources to be able to
promote gender equality and protect women’s human rights
Are there legal documents that clearly establish responsibilities of various
State agencies (whether legislative, executive, judicial or administrative)
to incorporate gender equality in their operations
Are there legal documents that require systematic collection and analysis
of sex-disaggregated data, monitoring impact of interventions as well
as trends or progress in relation to gender equality
Does legislation require that strategies and plans be put in place to
ensure promotion and protection of gender equality
Indicator 18 Are there agencies, whether State or independent, that monitor or supervise
State compliance with gender equality and/or CEDAW
V.1.2.5 Incorporation and Application of Treaties
The status of CEDAW in the domestic legal framework is one of the indicators consistently
asked by the CEDAW Committee members of State delegations during their constructive dialogue.
This was also the case for Viet Nam when it appeared for its constructive dialogue
before the CEDAW Committee on 17 January 2007. 142 This is important to make the rights
under CEDAW more accessible to women, as well as for CEDAW to operate in a complementary
and supplementary basis with domestic legal documents.
The selected indicators for the incorporation and application of treaties are:
Indicator 19
Indicator 20
What is the status of CEDAW in the domestic legal framework
Can CEDAW’s provisions be invoked directly in judicial or quasi-judicial
proceedings as a source of an actionable right
Indicator 21 In case of conflict between CEDAW and domestic legal documents,
which will prevail
V.1.2.6 Gender-Based Violence/Violence Against Women and its Manifestations
CEDAW General Recommendation No. 12: Violence against women (1989) (GR 12) and
CEDAW General Recommendation No. 19: Violence against women (1992) (GR 19) clearly
highlight the obligation of the States Parties under CEDAW to address GBV. GR 19 provides
a definition of ‘gender-based violence’, examples of its forms and manifestations (such as family
or domestic violence, rape and other forms of sexual assault, including marital rape, sexual
harassment, forced and early marriage, trafficking and sexual exploitation). It strongly urges
States Parties to put in place a comprehensive range of measures to be able to address the
violence and its various forms and manifestations.
69
142
“New Law on Gender Equality will Greatly Improved Viet Nam’s Legal Regime for Women’s Advancement, Anti-
Discrimination Committee Told”, Department of Public Information, New and Media Division, UN New York (17 January
2007) at www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/37sess.html (UN Press Article)
General undertakings to eliminate discrimination and ensure equality (Articles 1-3 of CEDAW)