COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONSIDERS REPORT OF HAITI

The Committee on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women has considered the combined initial to seventh reports of Haiti on how that country implements the provisions of the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.

Marie Laurence Jocelyn Lassegue, Minister on Women's Affairs and Women's Rights, presenting the report of Haiti, said the Haitian State had a national mechanism that was in charge of elaborating the policies of equality and promotion of women's rights and to ensure their application. The present report reported on the national implementation of the Convention, progress and delays in the different areas in the sixteen articles of the Convention. The equality of the sexes was laid down in the Constitution, which had been in force since 1987. Haiti had signed and ratified a number of international instruments on women's rights, which took precedence over national law. Sexist stereotypes were very strongly entrenched in mentalities, and this was in contradiction with the principle role played by women, and they were at the root of discriminatory behaviour and specific violence with regards to women.

Among the questions and issues raised by Committee Experts were the importance of having a definition of discrimination against women and what priorities had been given to the drafting and adoption of a law containing a definition of discrimination; the existence of patterns of sexist stereotypes and Ministerial efforts to eliminate them and achieve equal opportunities in schools; mechanisms to deal with trafficking, and whether there was a Plan of Action in that regard; whether Haitian women married to foreigners could retain their nationality in all circumstances; what measures were planned by the Government to eliminate the vertical and horizontal segregation of women in the labour sphere; and whether any favourable conditions encouraging the equality of women in rural areas had been created.

In some preliminary concluding observations, Naela Gabr, Chairperson of the Committee, said the preparation of the report did involve a whole process that was very positive, and the Government and society had to participate in it, which was one of the main aims of the review by the Committee. The Committee was aware of the social and political movement engendered by the report, and hoped that it would continue, and would be reflected in amendments to the legislation, in new legislation, and in measures and services that were essential to women such as education, health, family planning and others. It was hoped emphasis would be put on the situation of rural women.

Among the delegation of Haiti were representatives of the Senate and the National Assembly, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Health and the Population, the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Permanent Mission of Haiti to the United Nations Office at Geneva, the Cabinet, the Woman and Child Service, and a journalist.

The next meeting of the Council will be on Wednesday 28 January at 10 a.m., when it is scheduled to take up the combined second and third periodic reports of Cameroon (CEDAW/C/CMR/3).


Report of Haiti

The combined initial to seventh report of Haiti (CEDAW/C/HTI/7) says that the Convention was ratified in 1981 and, pursuant to article 18 of that same Convention, the Government of Haiti should have submitted an initial implementation report one year after ratification and another every four years thereafter. To compensate for failure to produce those reports, starting in April 2006 the Ministry for the Status of Women and Women’s Rights stepped up its activities and embarked on the process of preparing the report, which enables the State and Government to evaluate and systematize progress made with respect to women’s rights and to establish priorities for the future. Since it took office, the Government has taken care to ensure that all sectoral policies are shaped and implemented with a view to achieving due respect for the principle of gender equity. The submission of the report testifies to the Government’s determination to honour both the Haitian State’s commitment to the Convention and the commitments set out in its Overall Policy to pursue a policy of inclusion, dialogue and reconciliation with all segments of national life.

Women represent a majority (52 per cent) of the Haitian population, in both urban and rural areas. Within the family they play a key role, watching over it and ensuring its survival. They participate in all activities and are vital for the economy. Nevertheless, there is a trend toward the feminization of poverty in Haiti. According to data, people living in households in which a woman is the chief breadwinner have per capita incomes 7 per cent below those of people in households in which a man contributes most of the money. At the same time, women continue to be victims of various forms of violence (above all, rape) associated with the rapidly increasing insecurity in the country. Abuse of power by officials and maltreatment of women in the home are core problems still to be resolved. Women have been robust in their calls for political transparency and greater access to decision-making positions. Nevertheless, both qualitative and quantitative data show that they are still under-represented. Inequalities in terms of monetary income and living conditions correlate strongly with unequal opportunities as regards access to resources, such as credit, infrastructure, and education. Women and girls are among the most vulnerable and are therefore harder-hit. Indeed, between 42 per cent and 44 per cent of all heads of household are women, many of them working in the precarious informal sector while others are unemployed, a situation that exposes them to all kinds of violence.

The Haitian Senate is ready to play an active part in all initiatives regarding arrangements to be made for preparing bills for advancing the emancipation of Haitian women. The Senate is ready to give preference to all bills regarding the treatment to be accorded women, children and disabled persons in order to protect them from all kinds of aggression. A set of guidelines was adopted by the team heading the Ministry for the Status of Women and Women’s Rights that strengthened the institution and provided a clear statement of its mission, of the organizational structure established to fulfil that mission, and of partnership with civil society and women’s organizations in particular.

Presentation of Report

MARIE LAURENCE JOCELYN LASSEGUE, Minister of Women's Affairs and Rights of Haiti, presenting the report of Haiti, said the exchange with the Committee would allow Haiti to further promote the rights of women and ensure the equality of the sexes. The Haitian State had a national mechanism that was in charge of elaborating the policies of equality and promotion of women's rights and ensuring their application. The present report reported on the national implementation of the Convention and progress and delays in the different areas in the sixteen articles of the Convention. It had been elaborated in a participatory and transparent process, including civil society organizations, and the public had been regularly informed of the main stages marking the progress of the work. The Government encouraged the organization of a delegation that was representative of the Haitian State.

Ms. Lassegue noted that the equality of the sexes was laid down in the Constitution, which had been in force since 1987. Moreover, Haiti had signed and ratified a number of international instruments on women's rights, which took precedence over national law. However, laws and policies still had discriminatory clauses, and reforms ensuring respect for women's rights and gender equality had been included in the Civil and Labour Code, and these had been submitted to the Parliament. An equality law that included the notion of discrimination would also be submitted to the Parliament.

Sexist stereotypes were very strongly entrenched in mentalities, and this was in contradiction with the principle role played by women, and they were at the root of discriminatory behaviour and specific violence with regards to women, Ms. Lassegue observed. The Ministry for the Status of Women had therefore undertaken a broad campaign to eradicate sexist stereotypes in schools, media, and advertising, in collaboration with the Ministries of Education and Culture and various municipalities.

Regaring violence against women, the scope of that phenomenon was not very well understood, Ms. Lassegue continued. There was a lack of data and figures and institutional response was still weak in this area, in particular with regards to migrant women at the border with the Dominican Republic, where sexual abuse was systematic. The elaboration of a framework law on all forms of violence against women, including domestic violence, was planned.

Political life was still dominated by men, Ms. Lassegue observed. The maintenance of measures encouraging the participation of women were not enough to redress this unbalanced situation. With regard to education, recent statistics confirmed that there was a move towards parity with the same figures for success for girls and boys at official exams at the sixth and ninth years. Fifty per cent of scholarships had been given to women in 2008. Haitian women were active in the economic sector, but their contribution was not sufficiently recognised or given value. Financing and different forms of credit were not adapted to the different needs of women. Only 3 per cent of the population was covered by social insurance, the lowest range in the region. Workers in the informal and agricultural sector – 90 per cent of the labour force – were almost totally excluded, and women who belonged to these categories and were heads of household had no specific social measures covering them. There was a planned programme for reducing maternal mortality, and a proposal for a health policy for women was currently being elaborated in the Ministry for the Status of Women.

Questions by Experts

Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including the importance of having a definition of discrimination against women and what priorities had been given to the drafting and adoption of a law containing a definition of discrimination; what measures the Government was considering to make women aware of their rights and what procedures were available if their rights were violated; whether the Convention’s provisions took precedence over domestic law in case of conflict; what plans existed to make judges and lawyers more aware of human rights treaties; and whether it was the intention of the Government that the Ombudsman apply for status as a National Human Rights Institution.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said the ministries had been made aware of the requirements for drafting reports. A drafting committee had been set up to apply the recommendations and ensure follow-up, so that future reports were drafted on time.

On the definition of discrimination, the Constitution did not define this, but did guarantee equality. The Government had instituted a Committee to go through the Constitution and tidy it up, so that a definition of discrimination would be integrated into it, along with a gender dimension in all its provisions.

On the subject of judges, a study had been held in partnership with the Ministry of Justice in order to promote the awareness of the Convention, the delegation said. On judiciary assistance, those who needed it could obtain free legal aid thanks to the Ministry on the Status of Women, which was in talks with the Ministry of Justice so that legal assistance could be provided free of charge to women throughout Haiti.

Regarding gender equality policies, since 2005, much work had been done to define mechanisms for the application of that principle. As for publicising the Convention, it first had to be translated into Creole, which had been done, and the next thing was to ensure that it was accessible, as well as everything that could enable women to be aware of their rights, and to that end a number of brochures had been written on a range of topics to allow women to have access to their rights.

With respect to the status of the Convention in Haitian law, the delegation said that Haiti had always given precedence to international treaties over domestic law, and had never noted any contradiction between the two, as the Constitution and laws were inspired by the international conventions. The Government would define discrimination in a text which would contain a penalty. The Ministry of Justice had taken a decision not only to publicise and raise awareness of the existence of the texts and their application, but had also had meetings with the Public Prosecutors and others to undertake work to publicise these texts, showing the determination of the Government to apply fully the texts of the treaties and Conventions.

Haiti had gone through some very difficult times since the ratification of the Convention and work would take time, the delegation observed. There was a Government Council on Gender Equality, and this had started to draft a gender equality policy and had been working hard on it since 2004. Soon, this Policy would be approved by the Government and submitted to the National Assembly, and this would give the means for Haitians to do something about discrimination against women. Once this policy was in force, there would be a follow-up mechanism which would allow redress of the situation with regard to discriminatory laws. With regard to the dissemination of the Convention, the Ministry for the Status of Women was responsible for making it known, and it had used strategies such as a broad educational programme for the public. There were also campaigns that had been ongoing and intensified and which targeted rural populations. The challenge was now to incorporate knowledge of the Convention and women's rights in training curricula for teachers, the police, and judges and lawyers.

Questions by Experts

In a second round of questions, Experts raised a number of issues and expressed concerns, among other things, regarding the mandate of the Office of Women's Rights at the departmental level and how it worked; clarification of the nature of the Action Plan 2006-2011 and whether it was for all women, and how its implementation would be monitored; what could be done to redress the situation if a private individual violated women's rights and whether the police were gender-sensitive enough to receive such complaints; whether there was an Inter-Ministerial structure in existence or envisaged to ensure effective functioning of gender mainstreaming and whether there were any plans for such an intersectoral monitoring body; and if there was the necessary support from political powers to ensure that policies were promoted and applied.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said that, with regard to violence, a National Plan for Coordination had been established, an important instrument bringing together the Government and civil society organizations, as well as international organizations, and this was was used as a model to address other issues and problems in various areas. It ensured systemic coordination, and it was a concerted and consensual response to the issue of violence. Haiti had wished to bring together the State, women's NGOs, feminist organizations and the international parties to work on this, and had been coming up with specific responses that were adapted to Haiti's reality and needs. Haiti was currently working on a specific law on violence against women, which would include a provision on domestic violence, and the Parliament should vote on it. Departmental offices did respond to needs in towns and in remote areas. Gender was taken into account in all Ministries, but support had also been provided by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) on gender mainstreaming budget.

Free medical certificates were provided to all women throughout the country, the delegation said, and all women who had been raped had access to these certificates, notwithstanding their origin. The Ministry of Justice had formulated a health protocol allowing them to be screened for sexually transmitted diseases. The Ministry had responded in a multi-sectoral way by providing medical care and psychosexual support.

With regard to gender analysis, since 2004 there had been a structure in the Ministry for the Status of Women in charge of that, and it used both a macro- and microeconomic approach. The former was included in public policies. The Ministry supported focal points by giving them information and by supporting the gender approach in the various Ministries' policies. Work had been done analysing focal points, convincing Haiti that there was a need to strengthen these structures. The Women's Office had to give an effective response to the violation of women's rights at the level of education or labour or others. Procedures would be introduced and made available in order to achieve that. The Ministry on the Status of Women had a work plan providing for the setting up of this policy and a National Plan which would provide for the coordination of all the different structures. Coordination with civil society was important in this regard, and there were Advisory Councils in the Ministry made up of people proposed by civil society, and these had an observatory role to play and worked for gender mainstreaming, following up the impact of policies in this area.

Questions by Experts

In a third round of questions, Experts asked, among other things, whether there had been special temporary measures applied to encourage participation of women in political life as well as in the private sector and whether there had been any dialogue with the public sector as well.

Response by Delegation

Responding, the delegation said that many women were often heads of household, and yet they were not active in public life. Despite the work done by women's organizations to help women to overcome the impediments to their political participation, there had been few results, and the Government was therefore working on establishing quotas in that respect. Women were almost absent from political life, and this was one of the difficulties and causes for sadness, and the Government had to fight for further progress and ensure that women who wished to overcome obstacles such as violence, tradition, economic constraints or the fact that they were single parents, then they could be given a place in political life. Training was necessary for both men and women, but the Government was convinced that this would eventually work.

On recruitment, the Government was pleased that there had been an increase of women in the national arena, with 10 per cent in the police at the moment, owing to a quota set by a protocol signed with the Ministry of Public Works.

The delegation said that traditionally women occupied low-level jobs such as secretaries in the civil service, and therefore a programme had been established which aimed to strengthen their presence at the mid- and higher-level ranks, providing training that allowed women to access these posts. Positive action had also been studied, especially as regarded internal recruitment. Industry was not yet well developed in Haiti, and there were questions as to how to introduce measures to correct inequalities in that sector which prevented the promotion of women. Here it was recalled taht special temporary measures had been introduced by the Ministry of Labour after a hurricane in order to protect women and enhance their access to help for reinstallation. During the cyclone season, the Ministry of Social Affairs worked with UNICEF to provide priority aid to women and children. The Government was being encouraged to support these measures, to correct inequalities in various areas.

Questions by Experts

Experts next raised concerns about patterns of sexist stereotypes, and whether there had been Ministerial efforts to eliminate them and achieve equal opportunities in schools; whether progress had been made on new textbooks in that regard; whether, in addition to sexist stereotypes, additional stereotypes related to the colour of skin or other racial characteristics compounded discrimination faced by women; what had been some of the results of the initiatives to reduce sexist stereotypes in the media; and when would new training for teachers would begin.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions, and others, the delegation said, with regard to violence, the main policy instrument to reduce and eradicate that phenomenon was the National Coordination Instrument. This was a priority for the Ministry on the Status of Women. There was a draft bill that had been voted on by the Senate, which would allow domestic workers to become full-fledged workers in terms of their rights, including social security and salary coverage. For years, in women's organizations and the Ministry, women had not dared to speak. This was no longer the case; they were now speaking about violence, and that partially explained the increase in the figures. Women now realised that no social category was excluded from such violence, and that had led to women making reports and coming forward to organizations and the Ministry and the Police in that regard.

With regard to financial constraints, the budget for the Ministry was small and insufficient and that was why Haiti appealed for international cooperation and benefited from international assistance to a large extent. Violence was a national priority. There was also work going on to eliminate negative cultural stereotypes at such national events as the Carnival, and there had been progress in this regard. On decentralisation, that was something that was very important, and was a concern of Parliament to ensure that gender equality policies were taken into account in rural areas.

In Haiti, there were real problems relating to socio-economic exclusion, and this was why there was a programme to ensure that women had access to employment and health. Many children were also born without legal fathers, and that was why there was a Bill on responsible fathers, which would allow children to be born with both a father and a mother. Racial problems as identified in other countries were not a problem in Haiti, rather there were problems of exclusion due to people living in areas that were not very accessible, meaning that the Government found it difficult to implement its gender equality principles, the delegation noted.

Completing this statement, the delegation said that violence against minors had been reduced very little. The Ministry of Justice was proposing a law on all forms of violence, including sexual harassment, containing serious punishments of up to 10 years imprisonment. There were nine sentences of rape last year, showing that women were more likely to bring this matter to justice, and judges to punish it. Work was also being done to eliminate negative stereotypes in the national curriculum, and teachers were being trained and sensitised to this matter. Due to poverty, parents continued to send their children to work as domestic workers. Various Governmental bodies had noted children who had been subject to violence in this context, and over 2008, 52 children had been returned to their families having been victims of violence.

Questions by Experts

In the next set of questions, Experts raised, among other things, the issue of the draft Bill on trafficking and when it would be put through Parliament and whether the definition of trafficking therein followed the Palermo Protocol; whether there were mechanisms to deal with trafficking, and whether there was a Plan of Action in that regard; whether Haiti had bilateral agreements with other countries to address trafficking; whether the Penal Code prohibited prostitution or commercial sexual exploitation, and if it did not, whether it was not time to do so; and what was the goal of the Ministry's exploration of the situation of prostitutes and whether this was the adoption of comprehensive legislation on prostitution.

Response by Delegation

Responding, the delegation said that the Government was no longer in the situation of thinking about prostitution, but had a programme for the rehabilitation of those women. To combat trafficking, a draft law had been handed in by civil society organizations and some Ministerial representatives had been invited by civil society organizations in the context of the Group of Support for Trafficked People to respond to that issue. The programmes against violence extended to victims of trafficking.

Expanding on that reply, the delegation noted that the Penal Code contained reference to prostitution, but it was not defined as such, and the Government was engaged in a reflection based on two views of prostitution - one that it was work, and the other that it was a deviation from societal norms. However, under the Penal Code, there were severe penalties for those encouraging young people to debauchery. As regarded trafficking, there was no internal trafficking, but Haiti shared a border with the Dominican Republic and there was a form of trafficking there. Sometimes women were forced to cross the border and were victims of sexual violence. The Ministry of Justice was taking measures to make the borders more secure and try to combat any form of trafficking, whether of children or women. Trafficking was usually due to poverty, and the Ministry of Labour had set up a national plan to protect vulnerable children, protect women and children in the countryside, and to prevent families from sending their children into domestic service, whether in Haiti or abroad.

There was no confusion on the definition of trafficking. Trafficking restricted people's liberty and forced them to do work they did not wish to do. Children had been forced into domestic work without wages, but sometimes parents gave their children to other families so that they could receive an education which their parents could not afford – and very often this concealed trafficking, as the children were sometimes obliged to do other work and sometimes even sold on the border.

The future law on equality would of course contain the words "equality", and "women" in the title. The draft law on violence against women would cover all types of violence, domestic violence and sexual harassment. There would be provisions specifying penalties, help for victims, psychosocial and legal assistance to victims, and reinsertion of the perpetrators in the Penal Code. It had become obvious to the Government that it was impossible to go any further without an overall strategy – a policy on equality was essential and had become a priority, the delegation said.

Questions by Experts

Experts next raised, among other things, the issue of whether obstacles identified to women’s empowerment had been duly taken into consideration by the Government and what measures had been taken to address them in an effective manner, in particular with regard to changing the patriarchal culture, and how the general public and women themselves perceived their position in society, public, and political life.

Response by delegation

Responding, the delegation said that in spite of tireless efforts by the Government and the Ministry on the Status of Women, and a trend by women to wish to become more involved, as well as help by civil society organisations and the Government to help them to become involved in elections, there were still obstacles in the form of traditional perceptions and political parties which did not involve women. Parties did not put forward 30 per cent of women candidates, and did not enjoy the financial advantages that they could enjoy if they did. Work had to continue in this regard, and the Ministry had decided to work with a platform of women in order to reverse that trend. Obstacles to women in that connection included violence, the fact that women were heads of household, education and religion. It was perhaps time to launch an appeal to the Committee, as Haiti was beginning to think it needed a law on quotas, as temporary measures appeared to be insufficient.

Questions by Experts

In the next round of questions, Experts put forward, among other things, a request for more information on whether nationality legislation was fully in line with the Convention and specifically whether Haitian women married to a foreigner could retain their nationality in all circumstances and could transfer her nationality to her child. It was also asked whether a child born in Haiti of a foreign mother could gain nationality.

Response by delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said that in Haiti, nationality was linked to nationality by blood, jus sanguinis. In the United States and the Dominican Republic jus solis applied, but in Haiti it was by blood. It was sufficient to have a Haitian father or mother to acquire nationality. However, in legislation, and this was being amended, there was a discriminatory clause on the matrimonial residence which said the residence of the husband was that of the wife. Women had been allowed to take on the nationality of their husbands. A foreign woman married to a Haitian did not need to go through any procedure in order to become Haitian other than taking an oath. A child born abroad or with dual nationality was given a choice of nationality at the age of majority. Haiti did not allow for dual nationality, however that would be amended within the Constitution

Questions by Experts

Experts next asked how the Government guaranteed that free primary education be truly carried out in rural areas; what was being done to reverse the dropout rate, which was particularly high in with regard to girls, and whether a complete analysis and study of that issue had been carried out; what was the proportion of girls who dropped out of school due to pregnancy and what the Government was doing to help them resume their studies; how was sex education taught; whether it was possible to increase the number of schools in rural areas; and whether there was any movement to eliminate illiteracy.

Response by delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said that textbooks that were adequate and teachers who had been trained would slowly be extended across the country. There was a programme for children to stay in schools and that included scholarships. Fifty-five per cent of scholarships given in 2008 had been granted to girls. There were more women in universities than 10 years ago, but they were still concentrated in traditional sectors, such as teaching. The Ministry of Education would ensure and monitor that textbooks produced by the private sector incorporated everything said by the Committee.

The delegation recognized that girls continued to be limited to certain areas, so it was clear that education should be a priority, not just for the Government but for the Haitian population. On the gender dimension, work was being done in the Ministry of Education, and the question of gender was included in the formal curriculum. As there were not enough public schools, efforts were being made by the Government to remedy the situation. One of the important aspects that needed emphasis was both financial and geographical access to education. It was difficult for poor families to access information, and the Government needed to reverse that trend.

Questions by Experts

Experts next raised, among other things, the issue of the high rate of unemployment among women, in particular the countryside, noting that there were discriminatory practices against women in employment, including gaps in salaries and sexual harassment, and whether the Labour Inspectorate was investigating the situation; what measures were planned by the Government to eliminate the vertical and horizontal segregation of women in the labour sphere; and why sexual harassment at work was not covered by the Labour Code.

Response by delegation

The delegation responded that the Ministry of Justice had made repeated efforts to protect women's rights at work, in particular with regard to sexual harassment. Concerning the precarious situation of women in the labour market, legislation had taken that into account, and there was provision in the Labour Code for a service which was called the Inspectorate for Women, and which worked to ensure the respect of women's rights at work. It took care of women who, for example, appeared before labour tribunals or who had been dismissed, and women who asked for labour consultations also benefited from its services.

Under the Labour Code, there was no provision for dealing with sexual harassment, but the Inspectorate was taking steps in that regard. Rape was a crime, and the penalties were from 10 years to life imprisonment. The intent was to include rape within marriage in the reformed law. On dismissals, the Labour Code included provisions on unfair dismissal, either because of colour, religion or sex, and that needed reformed and updated. Maternity insurance covered all women in the formal sector, and provided insurance. However, the vast majority of women worked in the informal sector, and did not all benefit from maternity insurance. Efforts were being made to help such women to take up voluntary insurance.

Questions by Experts

Further areas of concern for Experts included the main causes of mortality among women, given that the mortality rates for women were higher than for men, and what prospects existed for a comprehensive programme on women's health and reproductive health in general; why maternal mortality had increased and what care there was for pregnant women and women in childbirth; why the report included no mention of the effect of abortion; whether contraceptives were available in rural areas and were they affordable for the more vulnerable sections of the population; whether the higher figures of HIV/AIDS for women than men was a continuing trend and what effects that had on the population; whether there were enough condoms to deal with prevention of HIV/AIDS; and whether abortion was used for family planning purposes.

Response by delegation

In response to the query on the discrepancy in the mortality rates between men and women, the delegation observed that mortality had increased among women due to the fairly high rate of maternal mortality, in addition to an already high level of mortality of the population in general, and there were also certain taboos which explained this discrepancy. Maternal mortality in Haiti was the highest in the Western hemisphere, and was caused by haemorrhages – but one of the main causes was abortion. The increase between 2000 and 2006 were due to certain non-health factors which had not been addressed rationally, such as the state of the roads, which meant that emergency services could not reach people in time. It was very difficult to provide quality healthcare immediately.

The Ministry of Health provided healthcare to women in pre-natal clinics, and there was post-natal follow-up. On whether there was a link between abortion and the low family planning coverage, the delegation pointed out that abortion, according to Haitian law, was forbidden. However the Ministry of Health did deal with the complications arising there-from, and was trying to remove the legal barriers so that in the future women could abort pregnancies through a quality service. Contraceptives were provided free of charge, but condoms were sold and subsidised so that they were affordable.

With regards to HIV/AIDS, the delegation said that transmission was usually heterosexual in Haiti. In the beginning it was men having sex with men, but the situation had changed. There was a high rate of women with HIV/AIDS, but from 1993 to 2006 there had been a steady reduction, down to 3 per cent in pre-natal clinics. There was a trend towards stabilisation.

Questions by Experts

Experts then asked about the right to family benefits and what strategies were in place as there was de facto discrimination as 90 per cent of women were not covered; what was the reality in terms of access by women to bank loans and other forms of credit in particular with regard to married women; and whether there were financial institutions providing microfinance to women, in particular poor women, who did not have access to collateral.

Response by delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said that there was not really a social security system, as there were a lot more persons who were unemployed rather than employed. Haitian women did have access to credit without the agreement of their spouse since 1992. However, access to credit remained a problem for women as well as for all persons with very little resources. There were programmes which allowed for women entrepreneurs to have access to credit in order to be able to set up their own businesses. With regard to benefits and maternal insurance, that was included in the legislation, and efforts were being made to implement those fully. All employed women, no matter the sector, since 1967, had the right to three months paid maternity leave.

Questions by Experts

Experts next raised, among other things, whether there were any policies or programmes that targeted the specific needs of rural women; the need for more programmes in agriculture and forestry to encourage the participation of women; whether any favourable conditions encouraging the equality of women in rural areas had been created; how many women were owners of land; whether rural women enjoyed the same rights and opportunities to inherit land as men did; and whether assistance was sufficiently targeted to the gender dimension and whether it should be sufficiently apparent in international assistance.

Response by delegation

Responding, the delegation said that the gender dimension should be evident in international assistance, and Haiti commended the efforts made by all its partners in that regard. However, that could be strengthened, which would be welcomed. There was a bill voted by the Senate on domestic workers, and the lower house should decide on that in a few weeks time. There was also a law on responsible paternity that would ensure that no children would be excluded; men would be made to assume their responsibilities as fathers, and support the mothers. A law on concubinage, which affected most women in Haiti, especially in rural areas, would also be adopted.

Rural women represented a priority for the Ministry on the Status of Women, as it was strengthening regional and departmental coordination. All efforts were geared towards strengthening organizations in order to bolster rural women. The Government was working towards addressing gaps, and measures were envisaged such as training, resulting in the analysis of the gender dimension to ensure that the data could be collected at local and regional level. Gender equality should be taken into account, the Ministry had stressed, to ensure that women were involved in agricultural reform. The Government had been considering policies to avoid migration to the towns.

Questions by Experts

Taking up further issues, Experts raised, among other things, whether finance bills with regards to women would be given priority; what was the situation on the ground with regard to the age of marriage, which appeared to be 15 for women and 18 for men; what was the situation with regard to forced marriage to the perpetrator after rape and whether that practice was widespread; and what was the incidence of incest.

Response by delegation

Responding to this final round of questions, the delegation said that in the past the Haitian system, jurisdictions were autonomous. There was a hierarchy as regarded appeals to decisions. As regarded rape, as of the decree of July 2005, rape was a crime, and was no longer an attempt on morals. No cases of child incest had been noticed. The age of 15 had been kept for girls as in the case of pregnancy, the President of the Republic could allow marriage. Since 1980, the age of majority had been reduced to 18, and for all civil acts it was 18 for both sexes, and there was no discrimination. Regarding the law on sexual violence, the last decree defined sexual violence as any act of violence against the opposite sex, it did not include domestic violence, and this was why the Government was working to change that.

Judges no longer encouraged marriage after rape as they used to, the delegation said. As regarded incest, there was perhaps less of it than there had been 10 years ago, as it had been targeted and stigmatized and a lot of work took place in schools and through grassroots organizations.

Responding to brief follow-up questions, the delegation said there was a sensitization campaign to inform the population as to women's legal rights. The Government recognized there were still problems with the legislation regarding parental authority and the location of the family home. The law on equality would make it an obligation for there to be no discrimination at State level.

Concluding Remarks

In concluding remarks, Ms. Lassegue said it was with great emotion that she thanked the Committee, as the report represented years of work. She wished to thank all the team and the Experts who had worked with Haiti, as it had been a long-drawn out work, impeded by cyclones and emergencies. Haiti would rise to the challenges, and strengthen the mechanisms, counting on the Committee's support, which would help Haiti to regularly produce the reports. The absence of women from the political sphere made no sense, and was in contradiction with the responsibilities women shouldered in the familial, economic and social spheres. This was a start for Haiti, and thanks to the Convention and the Committee's support, it would move on and remove other deep-rooted obstacles.

In some preliminary concluding observations, NAELA GABR, Chairperson of the Committee, said the preparation of the report did involve a whole process that was very positive, and the Government and society had to participate in it, and this was one of the main aims of the review by the Committee. The Committee was aware of the social and political movement engendered by the report, and hoped that it would continue, and would be reflected in amendments to the legislation, in new legislation, and in measures and services that were essential to women such as education, health, family planning and others. It was hoped emphasis would be put on the situation of rural women.

Haiti was thanked for the report, and for answering the questions with enthusiasm, showing clear political will. It was hoped that Haiti would rise to meet the challenges before it, and that there would be national discussion of the work done today, Ms. Gabr said.

For use of the information media; not an official record


CEDAW09007E