Legal Tools
Using International Law for Gender Equality
- Introduction
- Advocacy Background
- Legal Background
- I. The Role of International Law in Domestic Courts
- II. Bringing a Claim in Domestic Court Using an International Law
- III. Bringing a Claim to an International Tribunal or Treaty Committee
A. Advocacy Background
Generally, different countries approach international law in different ways. But no matter how your country integrates international law into its domestic legal framework, every country which has signed a treaty, such as CEDAW, must by law uphold the provisions of that treaty.
Unfortunately, many countries do not uphold their treaty obligations. This is where activists groups can play an important role. Through education and public advocacy, activists can challenge their governments lack of compliance. Since governments have an obligation to uphold their treaty obligations, activists should be aware of these legal requirements and use legal rhetoric in their activities to strengthen and fortify their claims for rights and equalities.
Activists can also use their domestic and international courts to address women's rights issues. Our CEDAW Case Bank [link: http://www.globaljusticecenter.net/tools/casebank/index.html] is a great place for activists to study how women in their country and others have used international law as a means to bring meaningful change using domestic and international courts.
Citing to international obligations, such as those set out in CEDAW [link: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/] or SCR 1325 link: http://www.unfpa.org/women/1325.htm] are key to making these two treaties part of the international vocabulary with regards to women's equality rights. The more that domestic and international courts use cite to these international obligations, the more powerful they become as an advocacy tool for women in countries around the globe.
Below is an in depth legal discussion of the concepts. Activists need not know all of the details of international law in order to get an understanding on how utilize international instruments such as CEDAW. But for those who wish to learn more, the discussion below is meant to be a more in-depth primer on the issues introduced above.