Ms Chim ManavyThe 56th session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was held in Geneva from 30 September – 18 October 2013. Ms Chim Manavy, Executive Director of APC member organisation Open Institute in Cambodia jointed the meetings as a civil society observer for her country.
Her efforts to advocate on behalf of civil society and women’s rights organisations specifically has been a very successful. CEDAW’s Concluding Observation has been released in which the Committee urged the government to “Explore the use of information communication technologies, including social media, in the dissemination of information on women’s rights and gender equality” (Page 4, Article 19.c).
Manavy took on the role of moderator during a lunch briefing between Cambodian civil society and the UN CEDAW Committee where she raised specific concerns related to the use of ICT to promote women’s rights, and gender equality. She recounts, “I approached many Committee members, and spoke with the UN CEDAW Secretary about the lack of government policy to promote the use of ICT for women’s empowerment.”
It is especially significant that this is the first time that ICTs has been mentioned in the Concluding Observation for Cambodia.