The 47th session of the Universal Periodic was held from 4 to 15 November 2024. 14 Countries were reviewed during the session: Norway, Albania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Portugal, Bhutan, Dominica, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Brunei Darussalam, Costa Rica, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Qatar and Nicaragua.
In collaboration with our partners, the SRI submitted reports for Ethiopia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bhutan and Albania.
Notably this session, there were more recommendations made that focused on different aspects of work - including the need to address the gender pay gap, conditions of service, and ensuring that women are able to work outside of the home, with a number of states alluding to the need for women’s economic empowerment. This session also saw a number of recommendations include the concept of families in particular in recommendations pertaining to economic, social, and cultural rights beyond the “protection of the family” framing we have come to expect. Indeed, even within recommendations engaging that framing, we are seeing some novel formulations including allusions to social heritage. We are also seeing “families” being included in the list of vulnerable groups that the state needs to provide additional support to - search through the recommendations attached, for a number of examples.
The UPR outcome for each State reviewed during UPR 47 will be adopted at the 58th session of the HRC which begins in February 2025. The outcome report indicates which recommendations the State agrees to implement and its responses to other recommendations.
The adoption of the outcome is the only opportunity for civil society to make an oral statement during the official UPR process. The SRI, in collaboration with partners and allies, will work to ensure that sexual and reproductive rights are visible during this segment of the UPR process.
The intervening period is an opportunity to engage in dialogue with States on accepting relevant recommendations – and, at the same time, not accepting those recommendations that are inconsistent with human rights norms and standards. It is also a means for gaining the support of the media and the general public.
Sexual Rights-Related Highlights
Below are some sexual rights-related highlights from each UPR 47 review. Click here for the full list of recommendations made related to sexual rights, including State responses to date. We have noted with interest the breadth of sexual rights issues raised in recommendations this session, with a particular uptick on recommendations which include an overt economic or financial element. This session's sexual rights recommendations have touched on divorce settlements, unpaid care work, the gender pay gap, the right to work and just favourable conditions of work, women’s entrepreneurship, the right to transmit nationality, and on the right to legal gender recognition by self-identification amongst others.
Albania
Read our submission for Albania here.
Deferred
- Consider adopting legislative measures to reduce evasion of child support and alimony payments (Chile);
- Adopt an adequate legal framework to regulate unpaid and care work (Panama);
- Implement comprehensive policies and a national plan of action to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and provide access to quality health services for women, children and families, particularly the minority groups such as the Roma community (Malaysia);
- Strengthen and ensure the effective enforcement of laws prohibiting prenatal sex selection, including amending Law No. 8876 on Reproductive Health and developing programmes that raise awareness of the value of the girl child (Gambia);
Bhutan
Read our submission for Bhutan here.
Deferred
- Promote the equal sharing of parental responsibilities, in particular by guaranteeing paid maternity and paternity leave for parents working in the private sector and increasing the duration of paid paternity leave in all sectors, introducing flexible working arrangements for both parents and providing incentives for fathers to play an active role in raising children (Togo);
- Expand its National Disaster Management and Contingency Plan, with particular attention to the needs of women, children, and persons with disabilities during disaster events (Viet Nam);
- Implement legislative and public policy measures to promote equal inclusion of women in positions of popular representation and leadership such as parity rules at the electoral level (Costa Rica);
- Implement measures to prevent statelessness and eliminate discriminatory practices that impede access to Bhutanese nationality, allowing children of Bhutanese mothers married to foreigners to have access to nationality (Mexico);
Brunei Darussalam
Deferred:
- Continue discussions on the withdrawal of the reservation to Article 9 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women regarding equal rights of men and women with respect to the nationality of their children and make amendments to its national legislation accordingly (Serbia);
- Ensure the preservation and strengthening of traditional family values, parental rights and related social heritage including support the historical family institution (Iran (Islamic Republic of));
- Decriminalize abortion under all circumstances (Iceland);
- Enshrine equal rights and protections for women and girls in law, including by criminalising domestic violence and marital rape (Ireland);
Costa Rica
Read our submissions for Costa Rica here and here.
Accepted:
- Take appropriate steps to stop violations of freedom of expression and disinformation campaigns on social networks, online attacks against women, especially Indigenous political activists, women in politics and journalists (India);
- Take further actions to improve working conditions, promote decent work and eliminate wage gap (Nepal);
- Promote the participation of women and girls in non-traditional fields of study and career paths, especially in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, information and communications technology, as well as in environmental sciences (Chile);
Deffered:
- Adopt legislation to stop child sex tourism throughout the country (Cyprus);
Cote d'Ivoire
Deferred:
- Ensure that women's unpaid work is recognised, reduced and redistributed through investments in infrastructure and social services, such as childcare, and the promotion of men's participation in domestic and family responsibilities (Panama);
- Decriminalize abortion under all circumstances and strengthen measures to ensure access to safe abortion and post-abortion services (Iceland);
- Prevent child pregnancies by introducing comprehensive and age appropriate sexual education in school curricula (Mexico);
- Ensure the meaningful and equal participation of women and girls, including those in rural areas, in decision-making related to the triple planetary crises of biodiversity loss, pollution and climate change, and disaster risk reduction, in implementation of the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment (Costa Rica);
Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea
Deferred:
- Reduce the preventable infant and maternal mortality ratio to less than half of the present level within the next four years (Estonia);
- Strengthen efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls by reviewing the Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Law, the Medical Law and the Family Law, harmonizing them with Article 46 of the Law on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Women, which prohibits domestic violence and mandates its prevention (Mexico);
- Establish comprehensive reporting and recourse mechanisms to ensure that all forms of gender-based violence, including sexual and reproductive violence, are thoroughly investigated, prosecuted and criminalized, in the domestic sphere, at work and in detention settings (Belgium);
Noted:
- Protect against all forms of torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and end forced labour and sexual and gender-based violence throughout the penal system (Switzerland);
Democratic Republic of Congo
Read our submission for the DRC here.
Deferred:
- Investigate, prosecute and punish perpetrators of trafficking, exploitation and forced prostitution of women and girls, including in artisanal mines and conflict zones, and ensure that victims of trafficking and forced prostitution are exempt from any criminal liability (Mali);
- Step up initiatives to tackle the issue of poverty and food insecurity that target the most affected vulnerable groups such as women, children and Indigenous Peoples (Malaysia);
- Amend relevant national legislation to decriminalise termination of pregnancy and legalise it in cases of risk to the life and health of the pregnant woman, rape, incest and severe foetal impairment, in line with the Maputo Protocol (Denmark);
- Continue and accelerate the establishment of National Fund for reparation for victims of conflict-related sexual violence and other crimes against the peace and security of humanity (FONAREV) decentralized offices, combat violence against women and gender-based violence, and its impunity, and promote access to justice for LGBT+ people (France);
Dominica
Deferred:
- Continue efforts to combat drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, and suppress financial crimes and money laundering in line with international standards (Jordan);
- Adopt a human rights-based approach, culturally sensitive and with a gender approach to address the specific challenges and needs of Kalinago women and girls (Costa Rica);
- Amend the Domestic Violence Act to explicitly define rape based on the lack of freely given consent and to apply the same definition to both marital and non-marital rape (Iceland);
- Repeal legislative provisions that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations and establish legislation and policies to combat discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and to introduce and pass amendments to existing legislation to broaden the definition of rape in order to include nonconsensual sexual activity perpetrated by any individual regardless of their gender identity (Netherlands (Kingdom of the));
Equatorial Guinea
Deferred:
- Increase the health budget to provide antiretroviral treatment to all people living with HIV/AIDS, prioritizing care for girls, boys, adolescents and women in vulnerable or marginalized situations (Panama);
- Abolish the 2017 ministerial decree prohibiting access to school for pregnant girls and guarantee their right to education by implementing school reintegration programs and arrangements adapted to their specific needs (Belgium);
- Consider reviewing traditional and customary norms to eliminate discrimination against women in matters relating to marriage, guardianship and inheritance, in line with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Zimbabwe);
- Continue its efforts to promote gender equality and women empowerment by strengthening programs to fight against gender-based violence and enhance women's economic autonomy (Viet Nam);
Ethiopia
Read our submission for Ethiopia here.
Deferred:
- Strengthen women’s rights in national political processes of importance, such as the Transitional Justice process and the National Dialogue, with a focus on implementation of stated commitments to meaningful participation and ownership of these processes by women (Netherlands (Kingdom of the));
- Intensify efforts to ensure that rural women and girls had access to health services, education, employment, housing, safe water, and adequate sanitation (South Sudan);
- Take steps towards implementing programs to support victims of the recent conflict, especially survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, by establishing reporting centers for the survivors and ensuring the prosecution of perpetrators to address impunity (Ghana);
- Provide immediate and unrestricted access to food, healthcare, and shelter for all internally displaced persons, with a focus on vulnerable groups, including women and children (Republic of Korea);
Nicaragua
Read our submmission for Nicaragua here.
Deferred:
- Amend the Family Code to recognise the rights of same-sex couples, ensuring equal legal protections and the right to family life (Iceland);
- Continue investing in programmes aimed at the empowerment of women through education and entrepreneurship, especially in the areas of agribusiness and cooperatives (Malaysia);
- Strengthen efforts to advance women's participation in decisionmaking spaces and implementation of programs to promote women's empowerment and their economic rights and development capacities (Sri Lanka);
- Fully implement all recommendations issued by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the UN Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua, in particular those related to the protection of human rights defenders working with youth, women and girls, LGBTQI+ and Indigenous Peoples both in country and those living in exile (Netherlands (Kingdom of the));
Norway
Deferred:
- Address multiple and intersectional forms of discrimination against at-risk groups, including women and girls, Indigenous Peoples, ethnic minorities and people with disability (Australia);
- Strengthen awareness-raising on the right to bodily autonomy, including in primary and secondary education (Slovenia);
- Adopt relevant legislation so that companies are accountable of the impact of their activities on the rights of women and environmental rights and undertake regular and compulsory training for judges, prosecutors, lawyers and law enforcement officials regarding the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, the optional protocol and the general comments of the Committee (Dominican Republic);
- Align the definition of rape with international standards, basing it on the lack of consent rather than use of force or threat (Namibia);
Portugal
Deferred:
- Further strengthen efforts, in awareness-raising campaigns to dismantle discriminatory stereotypes regarding the roles and responsibilities of women and men in the family and in society (Botswana);
- Protect the right to freedom of religion and conscience of patients, health care professionals and others notably protecting conscientious objection in the medical field (Holy See);
- Address the particular effects of the housing crisis on women and the security of women, and strengthen measures to ensure access to adequate and affordable housing, including social housing, as well as access to safe drinking water and sanitation (Finland);
- Collect systematically comprehensive data on firearms ownership and its implication in cases of femicide, gender-based violence and domestic violence, in order to identify risk factors and formulate evidence-based policies (Panama);
Qatar
Deferred:
- Strengthen labour law enforcement including by expanding inspections, access to justice and joint committees to improve health and safety standards; also enhance protections for domestic workers by ensuring fair wages and the right to a day off (Netherlands (Kingdom of the));
- Create opportunities for women and girls to build their capacity in information systems such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and leadership in the digital world (Dominican Republic);
- Adopt temporary special measures to increase the participation of women in political and public life (South Sudan);
- Abolish the male guardian system (Iceland);