Delegation of the Government of the Republic of Serbia presented the Second and Third periodic report on the implementation of the CEDAW Convention on the 55th session of the UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women on 18th of July 2013 in Geneva. Government representatives talked about legislative and institutional measures taken in Serbia in order to improve the position of women in the country.
As a response to the State report, the Committee was also presented with the “Shadow over Serbia” report written by nongovernmental organizations Autonomous Women Center, ASTRA – Anti Trafficking Action, Women in Black, Labris and Voice of Difference. In this report, authors state that systemic barriers to protection of women’s rights are still encountered in Serbia. For this reason, the Committee was requested to set strict requirements to the Republic of Serbia in order to protect women from grave violations of their rights.
A video of the presentation of the state report is available at http://www.treatybodywebcast.org/cedaw-55-session-serbia/, while additional information on the process and NGO involvement can be found on http://www.womenngo.org.rs/cedaw.