UNITED

NATIONS

Distr.

LIMITED

CEDAW/SP/1995/L.1

18 May 1995

ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

MEETING OF THE STATES PARTIES

TO THE CONVENTION ON THE

ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF

DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN

Eighth meeting

New York, 22 May 1995

Item 5 of the provisional agenda*

CONSIDERATION OF THE REQUEST FOR THE REVISION OF

ARTICLE 20, PARAGRAPH 1, OF THE CONVENTION ON

THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION

AGAINST WOMEN

Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France,

Germany, Ghana, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia,

Malta, Namibia, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Poland,

Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovenia, Spain,

Sweden, Turkey, United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia:

draft resolution

Proposed amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention

on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

The States Parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,

Recalling General Assembly resolution 49/164 of 23 December 1994 on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,

Noting the proposed revision of article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention by replacing the words "normally meet for a period of not more than two weeks annually in order" by the words "meet annually for a period necessary" put

*	CEDAW/SP/1995/1.

95-14926 (E) 180595	/...

*9514926*

forward by the Governments of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, in accordance with article 26 of the Convention,

Also noting General Assembly decision 49/448 of 23 December 1994, in which the Assembly, in accordance with article 26, requested the States parties to consider the proposed amendment at the current meeting and to limit the scope of any revision of the Convention to article 20, paragraph 1,

Reiterating the importance of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as well as the contribution of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women to the United Nations efforts to eliminate discrimination against women,

Noting that the workload of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has increased because of the growing number of States parties to the Convention and that the annual session of the Committee is the shortest of all the annual sessions of the human rights treaty bodies,

Recalling recommendation 22 adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its fourteenth session, on the meeting time of the Committee,

Convinced of the need to adopt measures to enable the Committee to consider in a thorough and timely manner the reports submitted by States parties and to discharge all its responsibilities under the Convention,

Also convinced that the provision of an adequate amount of time for the meetings of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women is a vital factor in ensuring the continued effectiveness of the Committee in future years,

1.	Decide to replace in article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the words "normally meet for a period of not more than two weeks annually in order" by the words "meet annually";

2.	Recommend that the General Assembly approve this amendment at its fiftieth session;

3.	Decide that the amendment shall enter into force when it has been approved by the General Assembly and accepted by a two-thirds majority of States parties which shall have so notified the Secretary-General as depositary of the Convention.

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