New CEDAW General Recommendation on Violence Against Women

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) has adopted a new General Recommendation (GR) on Violence against Women: GR35 on gender-based violence against women, updating general recommendation No. 19, available here.

GR35 updates GR 19 on this issue, which dates from 1992. CEDAW have acknowledged the landmark nature of GR 19, as well as the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, and they state in GR35 that it was decided to mark the 25th anniversary of the adoption of GR19 by providing States parties with further guidance aimed at accelerating the elimination of gender-based violence against women.

In drafting GR 35, CEDAW was assisted by an Expert Group which met at the LSE Centre for Women, Peace and Security.  Doughty Street Chambers’ Keina Yoshida was a member of this expert group.