COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONSIDERS REPORT OF BOLIVIA
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has considered the second, third and fourth periodic reports of Bolivia on how that country is implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Celima Torrico, Minister of Justice of Bolivia, introducing the reports, said the Bolivian Government had faced difficult times in including women in decision-making, including at local levels. The great inequality between men and women continued to be discussed in the process of reforming the Constitution. Women did not claim territory, language or culture, they did not call for a separate Nation - they only wanted equity in the social fabric, wanting to develop plural, tolerant and democratic coexistence, in which oppression, violence and discrimination had been done away with, Ms. Torrico said. With regards to the Convention, there was a lot which could be discussed, and she hoped that the meeting would help to contribute to enhancing women’s participation.
Among questions and issues raised by Committee Experts was what had the Government done to disseminate information about the Optional Protocol to the Convention to make women’s organizations aware of the international procedures; what programmes existed to over-ride poverty for women; what efforts were being made to provide systematic gender-sensitivity training to law officials and members of the judiciary; how the National Plan for Women’s Rights 2005-2007 had concluded and whether there was any new plan, as well as what reporting mechanism existed to evaluate and follow-up the Plan; what awareness-raising programmes were planned with regards to the role of women and the need for a clearer view in this regard; and what programmes existed to reduce occupational segregation, and what steps were being taken to stimulate the diversification of employment between women and men, encouraging women to take up non-traditional jobs.
In concluding remarks, Ms. Torrico said it was impressive to see the support provided by the United Nations to rights, for the indigenous, for men, and for women. All Governments had a task, to ensure that people were properly represented. A lot of work remained to be done for the children and grandchildren of the future. It was the State’s responsibility to continue working, and to take into account the Committee’s recommendations. Bolivia was prepared to work together on behalf of all those who had never had legal recognition.
The delegation from Bolivia included representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry for Gender and Gender Issues, and several consultants. As one of the 185 States parties to the Convention, Bolivia is obliged to present periodic reports to the Committee on how it is implementing the provisions of the treaty.
The next meeting of the Committee will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 16 January, when it will consider the second, third and fourth periodic reports of Burundi (CEDAW/C/BDI/4).
Report of Bolivia
The second, third and fourth periodic reports of Bolivia (CEDAW/C/BOL/2-4), presented in one document, says the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and its Optional Protocol, which Bolivia has ratified, have made it possible for the country to promote policies favourable to women. These have been strengthened by subsequent ratifications of international conventions and declarations. The years 1991 to 2005 saw important advances, together with new challenges to be faced. There can be no doubt that what has been achieved within platforms of gender equity has yielded various rights such as women’s political participation, advances in health and education, recognition of a female identity, the creation of mechanisms and instruments to combat domestic and sexual violence, and the implementation of equity-based sectoral public policies. The outlook is encouraging. For example in the political field, women’s participation in decision-making spheres has been reinforced by the Electoral Reform and Enhancement Act (Quotas Act), which aims to promote equality of opportunity for women candidates by obliging the political parties to have 30 per cent of female candidates for the seats of deputies distributed under the proportional system.
Recently the Citizens’ Associations and Indigenous Peoples Act has been passed, providing for 50 per cent of female representation in the lists of candidates. In the future this will make possible a greater level of female representation in decision-making spheres and, thereby, the desired gender equality. It is important to highlight the high participation of women, reaching almost 50 per cent of the electorate, in the 2004 gas referendum. Furthermore, the Department for Women’s Affairs is projecting and working to ensure 50 per cent representation of women in the Constituent Assembly, on a parity and alternating basis. However, indigenous, native and peasant women are hindered in their participation and in the exercise of their rights as citizens owing to their not having basic documentation (birth certificate or identity card). Consequently one of the priorities for the Department for Women’s Affairs is to promote policies that will enable women to be properly documented.
In the economic sphere, within the context of the poverty reduction strategy, there has been the National Dialogue, into which women’s demands have been incorporated. Another of the topics that has been tackled is women’s right to ownership of land. This is one of the most problematical issues in Bolivia. In the field of education, the problem of girls’ access to school has been overcome, now the challenge is to keep them there. As far as health is concerned, the advances have been significant. However, this is still focused on women of child-bearing age, and there is a need to increase the coverage to women of all ages and in areas of such serious concern as breast or cervical cancer, mental health, and care for older women. One area where there are policy measures, and work has been started but is not yet sufficient, is that of violence against women. Nine out of every ten Bolivian women suffer some kind of violence (physical, psychological or sexual), by contrast with one man in every ten. Also being implemented at the present time is the National Public Policy Plan for the Full Exercise of Women’s Rights (2004–2007), whose principal policies and areas of action give priority to economic aspects, the problem of violence, education, health, political participation, legal reforms and communication.
Introduction of Report
CELIMA TORRICO, Minister of Justice of Bolivia, introducing the report of Bolivia, said the Bolivian Government had faced difficult times in including women in decision-making, including at local levels. They had participated, but had not been legitimately represented. With regards to the Convention, there was a lot which could be discussed, and Ms. Torrico hoped that the meeting would help to contribute to enhancing women’s participation. There was discrimination even amongst women, and this was something which should be discussed. The adoption of the Convention was extremely important for Bolivia - it had been ratified in 1989. Other declarations had been made, but had not been followed up with action. Women’s participation in social, economic and political spheres had been lacking, and Bolivia should recognise that it had not been able to provide reports on time. Working class and middle-class women had all been working for an equitable distribution of the product of labour, and full distribution of rights. This had given great hope to many sectors of society.
Work was being done to restructure power to reflect cultural diversity and reflect the different peoples and identities, all of whom required full recognition of their rights, territories and culture to peacefully and harmoniously build conviviality and the ability to live together. However, the great inequality between men and women continued to be discussed in the process of reforming the Constitution. Women did not claim territory, language or culture, they did not call for a separate Nation - they only wanted equity in the social fabric, wanting to develop plural, tolerant and democratic coexistence, in which oppression, violence and discrimination had been done away with, Ms. Torrico said. The present idea that indigenous cultures include elements that determined harmonious relations between men and women also concealed the imbalance between men and women, and gave rise to a risk of deepening that inequality. It was important to share experiences.
Evelin Agreda, Vice Minister for Gender and Gender Relations of Bolivia, said that for the Bolivian State and Government, reporting on the current situation was a very important task, which also provided input for designing measures for advancing the situation of women. Gender equity policies had been limited to the social areas, mainly poverty relief situations, and had ignored other topics, such as the links between domestic work and paid work. Currently the Government was tackling the issue through pursuing opportunities to recognise the human rights of women, whilst respecting diversity. Respect for women’s rights was part of the National Plan, which recognised the different identities of the country, and tackled the building of social equality between men and women through different means, including building new forms of social inclusion, and fair programmes distributing social power.
All Bolivian legislation had to be adapted to the new Constitution, and a number of new laws had been enacted, including on the pension system. The most significant progress had been made in a law against domestic and sexual violence. There had also been significant progress in the right to education. The lowest level of attendancy was in rural areas, and a programme had been established in this regard. On women’s access to health, there were favourable legal frameworks in this regard which ensured greater access to health services, in particular in the context of maternity. The Public Health Authorities had also developed significant programmes for sexual and reproductive health, and programmes on the treatment of HIV/AIDS and for women and adolescents.
Questions by Experts
Among the questions and issues raised by the Committee Experts were the apparent deep gap between the Convention and reality, in particular with regards to access to justice, and what measures, programmes and policies was the Government considering to improve this; what had the Government done to disseminate information about the Optional Protocol to make women’s organizations aware of the international procedures; what remedies female refugees had when seeking refuge in the country; how the report had been drafted and whether all Ministers had been consulted; issues related to the national census figures; what programmes existed to over-ride poverty for women; what efforts were being made to provide systematic gender-sensitivity training to law officials and members of the judiciary; issues related to Parliamentary involvement in the reporting process and whether the concluding observations of the Committee would be passed on to the Parliament for follow-up in implementation; and the need to reinforce the State’s firm commitment to the implementation of the Convention.
Response by Delegation
Responding to these questions and others, Ms. Torrico said that the Government was aware of its responsibility for not producing the report in time. The current Government was proceeding responsibly in meeting its commitments - there was the will to respect human rights, the will to defend the rights of women and the indigenous peoples, and the President was first in the struggle for women to participate and to be represented as Councillors. There were women Parliamentarians, and five women at Ministerial level. However, there was a need to acknowledge that there was a lack of information disseminated among the general population with regards to the Convention and to other issues.
The Convention was being translated into four indigenous languages, as well as the Protocol, for purposes of dissemination, the delegation said. The concluding observations would also be translated so that further work could be done on them at the delegation’s return to the country. On legislation, and whether the proposed Constitution reflected in any way the concept of discrimination, this was part of the proposed text adopted by the Constituting Assembly. Access to justice for women was still difficult and this was one of the tasks which the Government through State policy would take on with greater energy and flexibility to ensure that all women had access to justice by removing parameters and awareness-raising through justice providers. There was still work to be done on institutionalising access to justice.
As a result of sectoral policies, the delegation said there had been progress in providing title to land for women, and this was part of the cross-cutting procedure. On the Commission on Human Rights and the Council, and their contribution to the preparation of the report, the former, which was set up in 2004, developed a work plan for its activities in coordination with the Council, and this was implemented until 2006, with the Commission contributing to the report. There had been a gender bias with regards to the health system in that women were only singled out if they were in the reproductive phase, but the plan for elder persons was also being considered and that it should incorporate a gender perspective.
On efforts made at the Ministry of Justice to eliminate all forms of discrimination, Ms. Torrico said that the Ministry was undergoing a process of change, and it had been difficult to really deal with this process, which had many different impacts for all involved. Often there were attempts to start from square one, without taking into account what had happened in the past. It should be recognised that public policy benefited from many different views. There was, however, a real hope among the Bolivian people, in particular women, to have their own laws and regulations. With regards to access to justice, there was discrimination against women in this area, and Bolivia recognised the situation. Justice was expensive in Bolivia, and this situation was prejudicial for all. The Government was dealing with the issue, reflecting and consulting, with input from civil society. With regards to community justice, for indigenous people this had to be free and expedient in terms of material, family and water issues. It needed to be given freely to the people, and be effective and swift. Some non-governmental organizations were working in the field for the positive development of women, Ms. Torrico said, but some just spent all their time and money criticising institutions.
On what was happening in the Inter-Ministerial Council and the Commission, because of the instability of legislation on the working and structure of the Government, there had been changes in the administration, and this was why the Council was no longer working, the delegation said. There was a law providing for the fundamental rights of refugee women, and, indeed, women as a whole. On overcoming discriminatory rules, there was an adaptation period of one year with regards to international and domestic legislation, which former would be subject to Bolivia’s commitments to the international community. There was a need for enormous progress with regards to women’s right to live without violence. The issue of sexual harassment was also being examined. However, at the moment, there was not enough political will to deal with the issue. There had been no progress on the topic in the Chamber of Deputies, where there was a stalemate on a draft law on the issue.
There was a Gender Committee in the Parliament which considered the situation of women, but during the last term it had unfortunately depended on the progress being made on the political Constitution of the State. A large portion of the elderly and rural population, both men and women, lacked identity cards, although there had been campaigns to raise awareness.
Questions by Experts
In further questions, Experts asked, among other things, how the main Government structure for women’s affairs, namely the Ministry for Gender and Generational Affairs, supported these issues, as well as gender-mainstreaming, in other Ministries, and how it coordinated these issues nationally; how the National Plan for Women’s Rights 2005-2007 had concluded and whether there was any new plan; what reporting mechanism existed to evaluate and follow-up the Plan; and how the departmental mechanism was structured to encourage gender equality and resources at the local governmental level; issues related to poverty, in particular that women were affected by it; whether the Convention had been translated into the main indigenous languages; whether the Rural Development Strategy for 2004 included the gender dimensions of the situation of women, and whether they were linked to the poverty-reduction strategies; whether there were special measures for indigenous groups in eradication of poverty; and whether the impact of the free-market economy on women had been studied and whether it was addressed in poverty-reduction strategies.
Response by Delegation
Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said with regards to the mechanism for the advancement of women, there had been frequent changes in the country, of Government, President and administration, and this had made implementation difficult. The National Plan for Women included an evaluation for implementation of the plan. However, there was already an idea of its success. In some areas, there had not been success, mainly where there had not been sufficient budget for implementation. Over the last six months, the Government had been developing a new National Plan for Women, with the participation of stakeholders, and this would cover many sectors of the population including elder women and prostitutes. There had been input from all sectors over the last six months. The plan was to be adopted, and it was hoped there would be a sufficient budget to guarantee implementation. The mechanism for the advancement of women was fragile, as there was a need to constantly negotiate with Governments for proper status and budget.
With regards to the Ministerial Council, there were five women Ministers out of 16, and this proportion ensured that it was possible to negotiate internally with the Executive. The Government was convinced that inter-sectorality in attending to women’s claims was important, and this was its approach to international issues as well - that gender and women’s issues should be addressed in an inter-sectoral manner. The National Plan had been formulated therefore by all Ministers. Specificities should not be ignored. With regards to disaggregating the budget, the delegation said there were budgets for gender equity issues in different Ministries, as well as in prefectures and municipalities. Since the current President took power, there had been an austerity policy, which was reflected in falling budgets and a decrease in staff.
With regards to poverty-reduction strategies, this was part and parcel of the compensation policies developed by the State 2000-2005. It did not produce redistribution of the social product, which was essential for eliminating poverty. Compensation policies had increased and feminised poverty. The poverty reduction strategy was part of those compensation plans and policies, the delegation said, and women’s claims had been taken on board, but their impact had been limited due to the economic situation in the country. The redistribution of social product had not been achieved, and thus there had been no long-term effect of the strategy.
With regards to violence against women, nine out of ten women were victims of violence, which meant it was becoming more visible, and the State had to take more aggressive measures to rectify the situation, Ms. Torrico said. With regards to dissemination of the Convention, efforts had been made to disseminate it, but there were 36 nationalities in the country. There was also the problem of illiteracy, which made publication irrelevant.
Questions by Experts
Among further questions and issues raised by Experts were the issue of quota laws for representation; what efforts were being made to eradicate illiteracy; what was being done to relate the concept of equality between men and women to the norms of the Convention in the context of ethnic and cultural diversity; what was being done to apply quality norms in the context of community justice; whether the Constitution prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity; whether prostitutes had been excluded from the Constitutional Assembly; what awareness-raising programmes were planned with regards to the role of women and the need for a clearer view in this regard; how the State was dealing or considering the possibility of including the provisions of recommendation number 19 of the Committee and adapt it as a basis for guidance in implementing public policies to ensure that women could fully enjoy their rights in conditions of equality; what the socio-economic approach in the micro- and macro-economic processes were with regards to the specific situation of women; and what support structures existed for the victims of trafficking.
Response by Delegation
With regards to trafficking, this was covered by a law which had been in force for slightly more than a year, the delegation said, and steps were being taken to punish all offences related to the trafficking and smuggling of persons. Other steps had also been taken to tackle this extremely pressing problem. There was no specific law on prostitution, but legislation established that it was not punishable as such, nor did established policies view it as work. What was punishable in Bolivia was soliciting and pimping. Equality, equity and complementarity were different concepts, and equality between men and women was different in different cultures, particularly among the different ethnic cultures in the country. The new plan for equality between men and women should take this diversity into account, and provide for general as well as sectoral policies. There were policies which could not be homogenous across the board because of specificities and diversity, and work had to be done to take this into account. Work had to be done to make inequity and violence against women visible - starting from which, work could be done to implement public policy.
Cross-cutting gender perspectives had been incorporated in the education curriculum, the delegation said. There was a lot of talk about land issues for women, Ms. Torrico said, and a lot of progress had been made in this respect, and thanks to the rural associations, things were changing. A lot of laws had been enacted, and there had been a lot of reforms. When talking about land issues in Bolivia, it was a harsh reality that vast areas of land had been owned by a very few people. The new Government was working to provide land to the landless, both men and women. There were still small groups in Bolivia that practised racism and discrimination. However, the Government was committed to eliminating these elements.
In a follow-up question, an Expert asked whether the Constitution provided for temporary special measures. Responding, the delegation said neither the current Constitution, nor the proposed text, included such measures. However, the commitments of the State would be honoured, and the national legislation would be made compatible with international legislation. Full equality had not yet been achieved between men and women, and the law was being amended regarding reducing discrimination against women, and allowing them to fully enjoy their rights.
Questions by Experts
Among questions and issues raised by Experts were whether the Government had any programmes or projects to encourage women to vote for women; whether the Government could help women candidates in electoral campaigns by providing them with services and finances; whether there had been an increase in women magistrates since the report had been drafted; the need for access to women judges and women police officers for women victims of violence; and what was the nationality of children of a Bolivian woman married to a foreigner and whether they acquired nationality on an equal footing as the children of a Bolivian father and foreign mother.
Response by Delegation
Responding, the delegation said that about 20 per cent of magistrates were women. Progress had been made in the area of indigenous peoples, who had begun to vote for their own representatives, and work needed to be done also to ensure that women voted for women, as this would deepen democracy. There could be no doubt that the police system was deeply patriarchal. There were places for women to train as police officers, but they found it difficult to move up within the hierarchy. There was a history of women being exploited and sidelined, Ms. Torrico said, with lip-service being paid to their needs, but nothing done. There was also a lack of documentation, in particular among rural women.
Questions by Experts
Among questions and issues raised by Experts were why in rural areas 37.9 per cent of women aged over 15 had little or no education, when access to free and good quality education was guaranteed by law; why there was such a big gap in literacy between urban and rural women; whether any training was provided in terms of gender equality to education providers, and whether there was any mechanism to include gender equality in the curriculum and in text books; the need to introduce special measures to deal with the horrific situation of the African Bolivian woman as well as indigenous women; and the progress in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goal with regards to narrowing the gap in education provided to boys and girls.
Response by Delegation
Responding, the delegation said since the 1950s, there had been the right to free and universal education, but after 50 years, there was still the problem of illiteracy, and no equality between men and women in this field. There had been significant progress since the last report, but it was still not satisfying. There were programmes and strategies, including in rural areas. However, the problem was that populations were widely dispersed and children’s parents did not send them to school, in particular girls, as they were concerned that they might be exposed to sexual violence on the way to the school. There were deeply rooted structural problems, and the issue of gender was deeply embedded in society. However, it was being brought to light, with issues of gender inequality being highlighted. Work was being done to identify where problems lay, and to give them due attention.
Education was obligatory until the baccalaureate, Ms. Torrico said, and was free until the secondary level, and this would be included in the new Constitution. The State would also be providing resources to disadvantaged students, providing services, texts, and transport. The failure to achieve the goals in the field of education was due to a wide range of factors, the delegation said, including the dispersion of the population in rural areas, and the lack of supply of education in those areas. The creation of differentiated training for urban and rural areas was something which was also a cause of problems. Often, insufficient value was given to rural and indigenous knowledge, and this often increased the drop-out rate. On the situation of the Afro-Bolivian population, this group had been part of the preparation of the strategy for human resources. The areas of high density of Afro-Bolivians were generally areas with high levels of poverty.
Questions by Experts
Among issues raised by Experts were what programmes existed to reduce occupational segregation, and what steps were being taken to stimulate the diversification of employment between women and men, encouraging women to take up non-traditional jobs; whether there was a mechanism in place to adjudicate matters related to pay discrimination; the need to make the informal workforce visible to policy planners in order for appropriate plans to be put in place; what concrete steps were being taken to create a favourable policy environment to increase economic opportunities, expand social protection, and formalise employment for both men and women; the need for public health authorities to focus further on the specificities of women’s health besides maternal health, and to create a national plan in this regard; and issues related to the Committee’s eventual elaboration of a general comment on the rights of migrant women.
Response by Delegation
Responding, the delegation said regarding work, gender policies over the last 20 years had been restricted to compensatory policy, and they had developed from these neo-liberal compensatory policies. This increased uncertainty in work relations, resulting in a tendency for women to work in low-earning, low-productive work. Decisions had been made that would contribute to making inroads into gender inequality and biases in the labour market. Steps included the recent establishment of a Unit for Fundamental Rights in the Ministry of Labour, which paid particular attention to differences in terms of pay and work for women. The National Development Plan included action to be taken by Ministries working for labour and pay. There had been eradication of the worst forms of labour for children and women. Abortion was still punishable by law, although there were two exceptions under which it was legal - if the pregnancy threatened the health of the mother, or if it was a result of sexual violence.
The Government had reviewed previous recommendations, and had determined which were most relevant, and could be incorporated into its work, the delegation said. They had been taken into account in preparing the new Five-Year Plan on Equality. A campaign would be held to provide information on the Convention to the population. The bill on sexual and reproductive rights had led to confrontations, and a lot of fears had been exposed based on sexual and reproductive rights. In the period covered by the report, health services had been very much focused on maternal health, while making progress towards providing health and sexual and reproductive health services. Traditional health services did not meet the needs and requirements of the Bolivian people as a whole, and did not take into account the existence of the indigenous and rural communities, and the existence of traditional medicine in this context. There was a bill on full health coverage and insurance, which covered all needs, including the right to full access to care. For the current Government, health was also linked to nutrition and the improvement of living conditions, and some priority action was being taken in this regard.
Questions by Experts
Among issues and questions raised by Experts were what steps were being taken to address the weaknesses in the regulations promoting the participation of women in the By-Bolivians campaign; issues related to the Plan for the Nutritional Development of women of child-bearing age; what was the level of female ownership of rural land; whether more land certificates would be given to women to jumpstart the situation in rural areas; whether there were customary laws in place which impeded women’s access to land and if so what measures were being taken to reform this; whether rural women had access to credit, and to training and education in how to use the credit; what rules were applied to the inheritance of agricultural land in the agricultural context and with regards to indigenous peoples; and what facilities such as sanitation and access to drinking water were being extended to the rural population, in particular women.
Response by Delegation
On poverty reduction, the delegation said in the period between 1995 and 2004-2005 after the application of the law on people’s participation an important process had been developed to encourage women’s participation in local management. Women had increasing access to the decision-making process at municipal level, and their needs were incorporated in strategies at this level. There was a draft law on public participation in the context of gender equality which defined investment levels for women’s needs and projects. A significant area of progress recently had been in the Ministries of Finance and of Planning. Resources were being transferred under the law on dialogue. The resources coming from taxes and fuel levies would be financing the programmes for gender equality in the area of municipal Government, particularly in the area of production. However, Ms. Torrico said, this was a very important programme and policy, not just to ensure that women had access to credit, but also to ensure they had economic support from the lowest level of production.
With regards to property certificates, the delegation said there were traditional practices which had discriminated against women’s ownership of land, namely the practice of primogeniture. However, the mindset was changing due to changes in the law. Education in the past was adjudged on its use - only men learnt to read or write if they would be going to urban areas. Gradually the culture was changing, with an effect on the education of women. With regards to migration, many women were remaining behind to till the land, and were therefore more and more recognising the value of a legal deed proving their ownership and right to the land, not just their tenancy. Such a legal framework certainly improved women’s lives. The process of regulating the property ownership system was underway.
Questions by Experts
Among issues raised by Experts were whether there was any legal aid, and whether it was geared in particular to women’s needs; the need to include reference to case law in the next report and the role of the judiciary in implementing the laws for the elimination of discrimination against women; whether there was a special judicial system for indigenous peoples, including courts; if the new Family Code would continue with the principle that the family was above the individuals composing it and that the integrity of the family unit was more important than the individuals making it up; what was being done to educate men and women on their rights when living in a relationship, particularly with regards to the Family Code; a request for domestic violence figures among married couples or couples living in a relationship, and for the figures on convictions for domestic violence; why the minimum age for marriage was 14 for girls and 16 for boys, and why it had not yet been raised to 18 for both; and what was done in the case of de facto unions between adolescents.
Response by Delegation
Responding, the delegation said with regards to legal aid, unfortunately at present the Government did not provide female legal aid to women victims. There was legal aid for normal cases, but no provision of specific gender-appropriate lawyers. Administratively and judicially women had free legal aid, but this required follow-up to ensure that it was effective. No progress had been made on case law, but there were judicial decisions which enabled women to proceed with more equality and equity. On community justice, this was a system which was recognised by the current political Constitution - communities applied their customs and uses, and this was reflected in the code of criminal procedure, but not in the code of family law. The changes to be introduced to the Family Code would also consider the issue of the age of marriage and raising it to the age of majority. The Constitution was silent on this issue.
The divorce rate figures were under-recorded, and there were no exact figures. There were proposals that the burden of proof be reversed, particularly in the case of declarations and investigations of paternity. The current Constitution clearly declared equality among all persons and their legal capacity under law, as well as the enjoyment of their rights. The State prohibited all forms of discrimination based on a range of factors, including race, sex, and sexual orientation. The new Constitution explicitly forbade discrimination, in particular against women, Ms. Torrico said. For indigenous people, community justice was quick and provided reparation, she said.
Concluding Remarks
CELIMA TORRICO, Minister of Justice of Bolivia, in concluding remarks, said it was impressive to see the support provided by the United Nations to rights, for the indigenous, for men, and for women. All Governments had a task, to ensure that people were properly represented. A lot of work remained to be done for the children and grandchildren of the future. It was the State’s responsibility to continue working, and to take into account the Committee’s recommendations. Bolivia was prepared to work together on behalf of all those who had never had legal recognition. Women should work together for everybody, without discriminating.
For use of the information media; not an official record
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