In an interview was conducted by UN Women with a number of representatives of civil society who participated in the 62nd of the UN Commission on the Status of Women entitled “Voices from the CSW 62“. The interview raised two questions; Why do they come and what do they take back with them from this UN meeting?
The answer of Nehad Abo El-Komsan; Lawyer, Co-founder and Chairwoman of the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights- Egypt, was:
“In the recent years, there have been many positive developments in Egypt. Women’s rights were included in our constitution in 2014 and since then many legislations have been changed, especially in relation to violence against women. The National Council for Women (NCW) developed a national strategy for stopping violence against women. Sexual harassment, female genital mutilation and child marriage have been included in the law, with harsh penalties. Although these good developments have taken place, women still face challenges. Implementation of the law is a major challenge. It is very important to raise awareness of law enforcement authorities and [help them] understand it is not just a women’s issue, it is protection for the whole society.”
It is worth mentioning that more than 4,300 civil society representatives from 130 countries participated in the 62nd session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 62), which focused this year on rural women and girls.
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the UN’s largest annual gathering on gender equality and women’s rights. It brings together governments, women’s rights, gender experts and other actors to build consensus and commitment on policy actions to advance women’s rights.
For more please see “Why I come to CSW?” http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2018/3/news-voices-of-csw62
