Optional Protocol to the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General
Assembly resolution 54/4 of 6 October 1999
Entry into force 22 December 2000
The States Parties to the present Protocol,
Noting that the Charter of the United Nations reaffirms faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and
worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women,
Also noting that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Resolution 217 A (III). proclaims that all human
beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms
set forth therein, without distinction of any kind, including distinction based on sex,
Recalling that the International Covenants on Human Rights Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex, and other
international human rights instruments prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex,
Also recalling the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women ("the
Convention"), in which the States Parties thereto condemn discrimination against women in all its forms and
agree to pursue by all appropriate means and without delay a policy of eliminating discrimination against
women,
Reaffirming their determination to ensure the full and equal enjoyment by women of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms and to take effective action to prevent violations of these rights and freedoms,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
A State Party to the present Protocol ("State Party") recognizes the competence of the Committee on the
Elimination of Discrimination against Women ("the Committee") to receive and consider communications
submitted in accordance with article 2.
Article 2
Communications may be submitted by or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals, under the jurisdiction
of a State Party, claiming to be victims of a violation of any of the rights set forth in the Convention by that
State Party. Where a communication is submitted on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals, this shall be
with their consent unless the author can justify acting on their behalf without such consent.
Article 3
Communications shall be in writing and shall not be anonymous. No communication shall be received by the
Committee if it concerns a State Party to the Convention that is not a party to the present Protocol.
Article 4
1. The Committee shall not consider a communication unless it has ascertained that all available domestic
remedies have been exhausted unless the application of such remedies is unreasonably prolonged or unlikely to
bring effective relief.
2. The Committee shall declare a communication inadmissible where:
(a) The same matter has already been examined by the Committee or has been or is being examined under
another procedure of international investigation or settlement;
(b) It is incompatible with the provisions of the Convention;
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