COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN REVIEWS REPORT OF ARMENIA

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women today reviewed the fourth periodic report of Armenia on how that country implements the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.

Arman Kirakossian, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, presenting the report, said Armenia had ratified the Convention in 1993, and since then had presented two periodic reports, in 1996, and 1999. The present report was on the period from 2002 to 2007, and contained information on the further legislative and institutional measures taken by the State with the aim of improving the situation of women in society, in particular efforts aimed at eliminating all forms of discrimination and making men and women truly equal. National legislation had been reformed to this end, and a number of lateral and bilateral agreements signed. Discrimination against women had been banned - there were no discriminatory laws, policies or practices against women in Armenia.

Among the questions and issues raised by Experts were what activities the Government had undertaken to increase the awareness of the judiciary of the Convention and the country's obligations there under; whether there was any legal basis or mention in any legal act regulating the Government and its structure that would provide for a basis for a department being the National Machinery for Gender Equality; whether there were any deterrents in place against domestic violence; why there was such a high level of violence in the election process, in particular against journalists; the feminisation of poverty where women were in low-paid jobs and in unemployment and what were the results of programmes in this context; and what was the legal framework, rights and obligations of people in de facto relationships and whether women's and children's rights were affected in this situation.

In concluding remarks, Dziunik Aghajanian, Director of the International Organizations Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Government was open to discussion, in particular with civil society and others to discuss new trends and to tackle issues as they came up, before they became unmanageable. Armenia had problems, as did other countries, but it saw the prospect and was keen on working and getting to its destination.

Also in concluding remarks, Naela Gabr, Chairperson of the Committee, said more interaction would lead to further respect of women's rights and the activation of women's rights in Armenia and its full implementation. The delegation should address the Parliament on its return and inform it of the discussions. There should be further awareness raising on the Convention so that a greater role for women in diplomacy, Parliament and political life as a whole could be achieved. Abortion should not be used as a means of family planning, and work should be done to ensure that proper family planning was available.

The delegation of Armenia also contained representatives of the Permanent Mission of Armenia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, the Police of the Republic of Armenia, the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Education.

The next public meeting of the Committee will be on Monday, 26 January at 3 p.m., when it will hold informal discussions with non-governmental organizations and representatives of national human rights institutions.

Report of Armenia

The combined third and fourth periodic report of Armenia (CEDAW/C/ARM/4) covers the period from 2002 through 2006 and contains information on subsequent legislative and institutional measures taken by the State to improve the status of women in society, including by means of eliminating all forms of discrimination and effecting true equality between men and women. The principal guarantee of the achievement of that goal is the Constitution of Armenia of 1995, which has supreme juridical force. The referendum of 27 November 2005 adopted amendments to the Constitution. Law-making bodies are guided in their work by the international commitments and standards agreed to by the Republic of Armenia, as well as by the Constitutional provision obliging the National Assembly (parliament) to bring prevailing law into conformance with the new provisions within two years after the adoption of the constitutional amendments.

Armenian law provides all the guarantees of the protection of human and civil rights, including the prohibition of discrimination against women. In Armenia, there are no laws, resolutions, decisions, policies or practices that discriminate against women. The new version of the Constitution (2005) not only preserves the articles that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex and that secure the equality of rights of men and women upon entry into marriage, during marriage, and in the dissolution of the marriage, but also improves the provisions on the protection of the family, maternity, and children. A gender focus has also been included in the Labour Code that took effect in June 2005. A range of norms are provided for in articles pertaining to guarantees for pregnant women and for employees with children and in chapters pertaining to working hours, vacation time, wages, benefits, safety, and employee health.

The continuing economic blockade, the socio-economic adjustments associated with the transition to a market economy and the high levels of unemployment and poverty are placing a multitude of obstacles on the path to democratization and the rule of law. Women are the most vulnerable component of society as a result of the negative aspects of those processes, which is why the government is devoting greater attention to protecting their interests. Operating in the Ministry of Labour and Social Issues is the Department of Women's, Family, and Children's Issues, which, in essence, constitutes the main national mechanism for the social protection of women, as well as gender equality. The National Programme to Improve the Status of Women and to Enhance Their Role in Society in the Republic of Armenia for 20042010 calls for measures to be taken in the socio-economic, political, and cultural spheres to improve the situation.

Presentation of Report

ARMAN KIRAKOSSIAN, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, presenting the report, said Armenia had ratified the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in 1993, and since then had presented two periodic reports, in 1996, and 1999. The present report was on the period from 2002 to 2007, and contained information on the further legislative and institutional measures taken by the State with the aim of improving the situation of women in society, in particular efforts aimed at eliminating all forms of discrimination and making men and women truly equal. National legislation had been reformed to this end, and a number of lateral and bilateral agreements signed. Discrimination against women had been banned - there were no discriminatory laws, policies or practices against women in Armenia. The Armenian Constitution of 1995 had the highest legal force, and contained amendments ensuring the protection of women. Provisions had been included protecting motherhood and children.

On 8 April 2004, by decision of the Government, the National Programme to Improve the Situation of Women had been adopted, setting out principles and the basic priorities and direction of the State to improve women's problems. It was directed towards fulfilling obligations contained in the Convention. The Programme provided for guaranteeing equal rights and opportunities for men and women on the basis of decisions in public and institutional matters, improving women's health, eliminating violence against women including trafficking, and overcoming of poverty, among others. It also provided for the implementation of measures in the fields of education and culture, and the clarification of women's problems through the mass media and implementation of institutional reforms. Discrimination on the basis of gender did not exist in the field of education.

Armenia had recently begun a process of constant open discussion, including annual press conferences on the Government's efforts in this field. Every year there were 16 days focussing on the elimination of domestic violence. Armenia had joined with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in order to eliminate domestic violence, publicising the issue - combating violence against women was part of the National Programe, and the Government was also focusing other programmes on this issue. Armenia was aiming to improve the safety regime in public places, and the police carried out daily prophylactic work with this aim in areas where the public assembled. A Working Party had been set up with the purpose of timely implementation of the National Programme, in particular the prevention of violence against women in the family. The Government was working in close collaboration with international organizations working in the area of trafficking in people, and had elaborated a National Plan of Action in this regard. A Labour Code had been adopted which enforced the equality of persons in labour relations irregardless of gender. Levels of participation by women in the political life of the country were varied, but with the support of other organizations a number of legislative instruments had been adopted with the aim of improving this. De jure, there was no discriminatory behaviour, but in practice this could be the case due to the existing practices and mentality of society. Efforts were being made to eradicate these.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles one to four of the Convention, Experts then raised a number of questions and issues, including what measures, campaigns and initiatives had been undertaken by the Government to increase public awareness of the Convention and the Optional Protocol and the awareness of civil society and women's organizations to them; which prevailed in the context of a discrepancy between legislation or the Constitution and an international treaty and who determined this; what activities the Government had undertaken to increase the awareness of the judiciary of the Convention and the country's obligations there under; whether there was a special unit under the Human Rights Defender that focussed on protection of women and women's equality; whether there were figures on the number of complaints that had been addressed to the Human Rights Defender; whether there was any legal basis or mention in any legal act regulating the Government and its structure that would provide for a basis for a department being the National Machinery for Gender Equality; whether there was a department that worked specifically on gender equality and if so how many worked on monitoring and assessing the policies that were part of the National Gender Plan for the Advancement of Women; and whether the Government had any types of temporary special measures targeting women, and not pregnant women, both for enabling their access to political power but also in education or their access to employment, among others.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said in Armenia, when an international treaty was ratified, it became part of the legislative system and was therefore published in the official journals by the Ministry for International Affairs and was put on the websites intended to inform society. The Ministry of Justice was the one that dealt with the legislative aspect, giving the information to the Ministry for International Affairs as to the differences with national legislation. Precedence was, however, given to the international treaty. Before the treaty was ratified by the Government, it passed through different channels, and one was the Constitutional Court, which determined whether it agreed with the Constitution. The Constitution and legislation were gender neutral - there had been some discussion as to whether there was a need to include specific reference to women, but it was thought this could give rise to a new range of problems that did not currently exist.

With respect to the Ombudsman's Office, it had received no complaints on a gender basis, the delegation said. The age of marriage was seventeen for women and eighteen for men, and the Government was planning to amend the Family Code in this regard, and a draft had already been prepared. At the moment, the coordination of gender questions was dealt with by the Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs, with a sub-section of ten people working on Women and the Family, divided in two, part dealing with women's problems, and the other on children's problems. Gender issues were considered by the women's division, which had three staff members. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs had within it a national institute for labour research and social questions, and it contained a sub-unit on social questions, including gender questions, and it took measures such as the elaboration of a draft bill on gender equality. Gender equality was now part of the measures to be undertaken by the Government. Under the draft legislation on gender equality, there was a provision for a coordination body.

On what expertise and knowledge was needed to make progress, this was always needed, the delegation said, no matter the level of development or advancement of a country. Civil servants could be given specific training on request on the issues that were of importance. There was also an expert level representation in the Parliament within the standing committees in existence, such as on human rights and women and gender issues. On the reporting of the implementation of the National Action Plan, there was reporting, with the Government reporting annually to the Parliament on the programmes it carried out, both substantially and on the allocation of resources. Parliament could also call special meetings to discuss issues, and women and gender issues had been the focus of such meetings, both on the political and expert levels. There were special programmes targeted at women in special vulnerable groups, and they could be given special funding and special training. There had been programmes for women victims of domestic violence and trafficked women, as these were the particularly vulnerable groups. They were also helped to reintegrate into economic life so that the social reason for, for example, their being trafficked, could be removed.

Responding to follow-up questions, the delegation said that legislation contained the definitions of the different qualities between men and women - such as in the Labour Code, which defined the rights of men and women, the Civil Code which contained an article on the rights between the two, and the Constitution which defined general human rights. The draft legislation had been formulated with the involvement of experts and the participation of civil society representatives, and this year a number of measures would be adopted which involved society and interested parties working on this document. The Government had adopted the concept of gender equality, and would take the necessary measures and had already outlined what it was going to do in order to accelerate the process. Next year the draft law would be submitted to the Government. As regarded concrete measures, the delegation said everything on gender equality was included in the draft, and it also contained monitoring legislation, not only of the law but of various programmes, and there were specific sections on the rights and duties of local Government among others, and there were punitive measures to be applied if these were not implemented. It also contained reference to the Convention.

There was a procedure in the Government for the adoption of national laws, which involved the drafting of the law, then a process of public discussion, including civil society, after which it would be re-drafted and then re-submitted before being adopted by Parliament, the delegation said. In Armenia there was no discrimination against women in the fields of education, health, labour, and payment of wages, nor against minority groups. These groups were targeted as long as they were part of a poverty reduction strategy as socially vulnerable groups that could be dealt with as Armenian citizens with equal rights to the rest of the population. The issue of marital discrimination was being discussed. There was monitoring of the implementation of all national programmes and plans of action that were adopted by the Government. The Cabinet oversaw these and they went through a process to amend and update these plans and programmes. The Ombudsman dealt with women's issues, and it had not yet received any complaints under this, as apparently the legal cases that had taken place had received satisfactory results, which was why the women involved had not applied to the Ombudsman.

Over the last 70 years, economic disparities had drawn women to the family - now that the situation was improving, women were working more, in particular in the civil service, the delegation said. The Government could not artificially raise the figures for women's participation, but over the last years it could be seen that women were gaining more decision-making posts. Work was being done to raise awareness and increase self-esteem among women in order to encourage them to go into politics.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles five and six of the Convention, Committee Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including whether there had been any survey or study on gender stereotypes that were present in Armenian society; whether there was any legal provision on the prohibition of gender stereotypes in the media and advertising; whether there were any measures in place to encourage the media to adopt a self-regulating mechanism with regards to the use of gender stereotypes; whether there were any deterrents in place against domestic violence; whether rape within marriage was also an offence; the need for Armenia to further address the issue of domestic violence; a request for more information on the penalties for domestic violence such as fines and imprisonment; why there were such low figures on rape reporting and whether this was due to issues of corruption; what efforts were being made to combat trafficking and what was being done to rehabilitate the victims of trafficking and of forced marriage; a request for an assessment of the first Programme of Action to Prevent Trafficking as well as for statistical data on the number of trafficked persons; what was being done to protect the rights of victims, in particular in the case of witness protection; and whether registration of the individual legalised prostitution, and what sort of protection it afforded.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said there were a number of pieces of legislation which covered domestic violence, and there was no discrimination with regards to gender in this regard. The term "violence" covered everything including murder, grevious bodily harm, mental cruelty, threats, destruction of property, and rape by a husband, all of which were punishable. There were crisis centres for those who had been subjected to violence, which aimed to provide full support to women victims. Work was being carried out actively in this area and had been for several years, in particular to determine the figures for domestic violence. The Police and the Government had been actively working on a National Programme for several years which would include measures to eliminate violence against women and children.

With regards to the rape figures, there was a total number of 29 articles under which such cases could be brought to the courts, the delegation said, including "sexual untouchability". With regards to bride kidnapping, this did not exist as such, but there were cases where there was a basic agreement from the girl, and later on the couple got married. With regards to prostitution, this was not punishable by law, and was not a criminal offence. It was considered to be breaking the law, and was covered by the Criminal Administrative Code, with a fine levied of 50 per cent of the amount at least. This fine was only applied to people over the age of sixteen, and for people under that age it was the other persons involved who were punished. This came under the Criminal Code and was viewed as trafficking. Since 2000 the Police had been working hard with the civil society community on this issue.

Gender stereotypes did exist in Armenia, but not in the fields of education and health, the delegation said. Girl students went to areas that were traditionally considered to be male-dominated and vice versa, with more girls going to higher education than to boys, which was also a matter of concern. There were stereotypes that impeded more active participation by women in political life - a wide-ranging and deep study had recently been published on this matter, which would serve as a basis for the Government to formulate means to increase women's participation in political life. On trafficking, a consistent information flow for the last six years showed the limits of this. The causes were being dealt with through very strict preventive mechanisms by providing information to the population on a regular basis on emigration laws and on trafficking. All victims that were revealed were mainly found abroad and were repatriated, and they went into the reintegration and assistance process. Upon identification of a victim as a possible victim of trafficking, then shelters and assistance as well as a range of other services were provided.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles seven to nine of the Convention, Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including why there was such a high level of violence in the election process, in particular against journalists, and whether the State was aware of this, and if so what was it doing to prevent this; the need for sex-disaggregated data on women's representation at a certain level of the civil service, including in the Foreign Ministry; and a request for information on women's entrepreneurship.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said the 15 per cent rule had been made stricter by stipulating that there should be one woman out of every ten on the election lists, and this would be made even more strict. The process was continuing, and by the time of the next elections the issues would be worked out. On violence against journalists, only one case had been reported and it had been investigated under Criminal Law and it went to the courts. There were a number of women in various posts in the Foreign Ministry, and the number was increasing, in particular that of women Ambassadors. The number of judges in Armenia was 172, and 34 of them were women. On violence against journalists again, there was a special article, 164, in the Criminal Code which protected the freedom of journalists and covered various penalties for this crime. There were no cases of journalists being abducted and raped. There had been an increase of the number of women working for the Police to 20 per cent, some of which were officers, numbering two per cent.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and issues as well as follow-up questions, the delegation said with regards to media and sensitivity to stereotypes, there were training sessions annually for the media on all issues that could be considered derogatory. A Code of Conduct for journalists had been adopted that regulated their behaviour. As far as specific programmes aimed at targeting specific groups of people such as victims of trafficking or domestic violence, there was a weekly TV programme by the Police informing people, and there were also talk-shows on specific issues that taught and raised awareness of existing legislation and the avenues that victims could use to gain redress.

On trafficking, the delegation said the Criminal Code only contained an article on this in 2003, so there was no earlier information. There were 14 cases with 36 victims in 2007, and 11 cases with 20 perpetrators in 2008 out of which 19 were women, and four were convicted, all women - there were 39 victims, 29 of which had been referred to non-governmental organizations for assistance.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles 10 to 14 of the Convention, Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including what was being done to reduce the drop-out rate and encourage girls to continue their education, particularly in rural areas; if there was any sort of strategy in place and safety net that had been provided to women who had been affected by the closure of schools and pre-schools, either by a loss of employment or by the need to leave employment to provide care to children; the feminisation of poverty where women were in low-paid jobs and in unemployment and what were the results of programmes in this context; what was being done to reverse the structural problem in which women had temporary or fixed-term contracts and men had the long-term contracts; how did the Labour Code deal with sexual harassment in working life; what were the results of a programme on gender-mainstreaming; whether there were any plans to improve family planning services and through this reduce the use of abortion as a means of birth control; whether birth control pills were distributed to all free of charge; and the importance of envisaging measures focusing on women refugees living in the countryside.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and issues and others, the delegation said everybody had the right to education - general education was compulsory, with the exception of certain specific cases. There were no fees linked to general education. After study at school, students, on a competitive basis, went to higher education establishments, either free of charge or on the basis of payment. The number of girls in tertiary education was higher than that of boys, they were therefore not suffering. Following the closing of schools due to optimisation, there had been a large number of teachers who had been retrained. In the field of general education, the number of women was higher. In past years there had been a drop in the payment of teachers, and men had therefore been taken up by other jobs. In schools, among teachers, the majority had been and were women. In scientific work there were more men, but this trend had existed for a very long time due to women taking time out for children. Regarding the standard of living and the programme, the latter was taught in the higher classes of the general education system.

Armenia did have a high birth rate compared to some countries, the delegation said, due to early marriage. At 17 or 18, six per cent of young people had already married. With regards to the reproductive rights of young persons, Armenia was one of the first Commonwealth of Independent States countries where sexual education had begun for young people, and for the last 10 years there had been "life skills", which was something which ensured sexual health. This aimed to change previously entrenched sereotypes. All age groups had dropping mortality and morbidity. There was a State programme aiming to improve not only general health but also the health of mothers. Armenia recognised the importance and problems of abortion, and there had been programmes on this topic. Armenia had created services for family planning in many areas, including rural areas. The birth rate was somewhat better in rural areas than in towns. Substantial steps were being taken to improve the medical services' equipment and the teaching of staff.

With regards to disabilities, there was no specific difference in disability programmes for men or women. They all used the same programmes, and there had not been any form of discrimination on a medical or employment level.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles 15 and 16 of the Convention, Experts raised, among other things, whether there were special family courts in Armenia; what was the legal framework, rights and obligations of people in de facto relationships and whether women's and children's rights were affected in this situation; whether same sex couples had any form of rights and recognition in Armenia; whether spouses' pension rights were considered part of marital property to be divided; and how was economic safety provided for and protected with regards to divorced women.

Response by Delegation

Answering these questions and issues as well as others, the delegation said both men and women had the right to free legal assistance from the State. During a marriage, the property created jointly was divided absolutely 50/50 between the former husband and wife. In Armenia there were no Family Courts. Divorce could be carried out in a registry office in cases where the couples had no claims on each other and there were no children. With regards to de facto marriages, same sex couples enjoyed the same rights as any other citizen in Armenia - there was no specific registration required, and they enjoyed the same property, education, political and health rights as any other citizen. If a marriage had not been registered, then children from that relationship were under the guardianship under the State. In a civil marriage, the father could declare that he was the father, then the child received a birth registration certificate.

Responding to a range of follow-up questions, the delegation said that Armenia had a law in writing which governed entry into marriage and succession - there was a whole mass of laws, which were gathered into the Family Code, which regulated marriage. If a court ruled divorce or it was a question of what happened to children after a marriage or to property after divorce, all was regulated by the Family Code, which was long, containing a multiplicity of articles on what could happen between a man and a woman. Abortion was not a method of family planning and was not viewed as such. It could be a method of regulating births for the population - the Government considered that in any case it should take steps to reduce the number of abortions, and State statistics did give some glimmer of hope that something had been achieved in this regard.

With regards to the female population from 15 to 30, the delegation said there was entirely free external testing for all citizens of Armenia, men and women. Medical services and treatment in hospital were free for all, regardless of their financial situation, and in every town there was a centre which provided medical services to women, free of charge. There were very few women drug-takers or alcoholics in Armenia compared to men, and depression did not affect them as much as men either. Some 85 per cent of women in 2008 had voluntarily tested to see if they were affected by HIV/AIDS. There was a total of 600 cases of HIV/AIDS that were registered, with women at about 27 per cent. There had recently been pregnant women identified with HIV/AIDS, and five children who were born to infected mothers, but these women had all been infected from heterosexual intercourse, and were mainly from the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

In secondary schools, boys dropped out and started to work, the delegation said. Pensions were not divided during a divorce. Alimony was attributed to a mother if there was an underage child. If a family was under the poverty line, then the family could enjoy social benefits from the State. Women went for low-paid jobs, whereas men did not - this was a matter of sustaining the family, and they therefore always tried to get higher-paid jobs. Given the fact that recent economic growth had allowed the Government to get involved in funding, it was increasing this with regards to a shelter for trafficking, and would next fund a shelter for domestic violence. There was a law which ensured equal pay for equal work and posting.


Concluding Remarks

In concluding remarks, DZIUNIK AGHAJANIAN, Director of the International Organizations Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, said she wished to thank the Committee for its very interesting and challenging questions. The Government was open to discussion, in particular with civil society and others to discuss new trends and to tackle issues as they came up, before they became unmanageable. Armenia had problems, as did other countries, but it saw the prospect and was keen on working and getting to its destination.

NAELA GABR, Chairperson of the Committee, in concluding remarks, said she wished to thank Armenia for the report, even though it was a bit late. She thanked the delegation for the clarity and sincerity of their answers, and was pleased at the progress that had been achieved. More interaction would lead to further respect of women's rights and the activation of women's rights in Armenia and their full implementation. The delegation should address the Parliament on its return and inform it of the discussions. There should be further awareness raising on the Convention so that a greater role for women in diplomacy, Parliament and political life as a whole could be achieved. Abortion should not be used as a means of family planning, and work should be done to ensure that proper family planning was available.


For use of the information media; not an official record

CEDAW09005E