Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women examines reports of Sweden

GENEVA (18 February 2016) – The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women today considered the combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Sweden on its implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. 

Presenting the reports, Pernilla Baralt, State Secretary at the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, said that the Government had initiated extensive work to ensure gender mainstreaming throughout all its policies.  The Government was presently preparing a new holistic strategy to end violence against women and was investing in violence prevention measures. The Government had undertaken activities to promote gender equality in the labour market. The Government had also emphasized that the proportion of women on boards of private companies should be at least 40 percent by 2016, and would propose legislation on quotas should that objective not be achieved.  The number of people seeking asylum, particularly unaccompanied minors, had increased dramatically.  In response, the Government had taken measures, including large financial support to the local and regional level.  The Government also recognized the challenges related to gender and women’s rights in this new situation, and was in the process of preparing relevant measures. 

During the ensuing dialogue, Experts acknowledged Sweden’s achievements in the field of gender equality, commended its commitment to foster women’s rights at the national and global levels.  Concerns were voiced regarding a series of issues, where progress still needed to be achieved.  The situation of migrant women and unaccompanied minors was an issue brought up by Committee Members, with concerns expressed in light of restrictions imposed in reaction to the migrant crisis.  Discrimination against women from minorities was a concern voiced several time throughout the day, with lack of access to services and under-representation in the public life.  Experts were also concerned about violence against women in the country and the lack of implementation of national gender mainstreaming policies at the local levels.  With regard to labour, Experts regretted that many women had part-time jobs, which resulted in fare and pension inequalities.

In concluding remarks, Ms. Baralt thanked the Members of the Committee for their insights and expertise.  The Government looked forward to receiving the concluding observations of the Committee, and would disseminate them broadly, in cooperation with the civil society. 

In her concluding remarks, Yoko Hayashi, Chairperson of the Committee, commended the State party’s efforts, and encouraged the implementation of the recommendations which were to be formulated by the Committee.  

The delegation of Sweden included representatives of the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation, the Ministry of Employment, the Ministry of Education and Research, and the Permanent Mission of Sweden to the United Nations Office at Geneva. 

The Committee will next meet in public tomorrow, 19 February at 10 a.m. to consider the combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Mongolia (CEDAW/C/MNG/8-9). 
 
 
 
Reports

The combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Sweden can be read here: CEDAW/C/SWE/8-9.

Presentation of the Reports

PERNILLA BARALT, State Secretary at the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, said that gender mainstreaming was the main tool to implement gender equality.  In addition to the Prime Minister’s commitment, each Minister had the task to deliver on gender equality.  The Government had initiated extensive work to ensure that gender equality had a broad impact in all policy areas.  Objectives and indicators had been set to monitor progress, and the budget process was, of course, crucial.  Ahead of the 2017 budget bill, the Ministry of Finance had stated that all measures provided by various Ministries had to include a gender equality analysis as a prerequisite in order to be considered.  The fight against discrimination remained one of the key human rights objectives for the Government.  A new policy on disabilities would be presented in autumn 2016, with particular attention given to discrimination against women with disabilities. Other policies would address the situation of the Roma and Sami minorities in the country.

Another priority was to combat men’s violence against women, which remained a very serious societal problem.  The Government was presently preparing a new holistic strategy to end such violence, with a set of objectives and indicators to enable improved evaluation and follow-up results.  It was also investing in violence prevention measures involving schools, counselling centres and rehabilitation programmes for offenders, and was allocating more than 10 million euros per year to women shelter organizations.  Street prostitution in Sweden had decreased by 50 percent since 1995 as a result of the sexual offenses legislation.  The Government was now focusing on preventive and protective interventions to discourage the demand for sexual services, including abroad. 

Unacceptable differences between women and men persisted in the area of health and medical care.  The Government had appointed the National Commission for Equity in Health, which included a gender perspective in its work, and had provided additional funding for school pupils.  Parental insurance, combined with an extensive system of public child care had made it possible for parents to combine work and family life.  In addition, the Government had undertaken activities to promote gender equality in the labour market, including a mandatory annual pay surveys to prevent gender-based wage discrimination.  Women under-representation remained a problem in the private sector.  The Government had emphasized that the proportion of women on corporate boards should be at least 40 percent by 2016, and would propose legislation on quotas should that objective not be achieved.  Measures had been taken to tackle gender segregation in education, and improve guidance to pupils to ensure that their career choices were not determined by their gender.  Measures were also taken to improve women’s representation in higher education and  academic positions.   

The number of people seeking asylum, particularly unaccompanied minors, had increased dramatically in Sweden.  In 2015, the country had received 160,000 asylum applicants, of which about 35,000 from unaccompanied minors, putting the Swedish reception system and responsible social services under a lot of pressure.  In response, the Government had taken measures, including large financial support to the local and regional level.  The Government also recognized the challenges related to gender and women’s rights in this new situation, and was in the process of preparing relevant measures. 

 
 
 
Questions by the Experts

Experts commended Sweden’s continuing efforts towards gender equality, both at national and international levels.  They also welcomed the fact that Sweden had taken recommendations by the Committee into account.  Certain weaknesses and inequalities, however, continued to exist. 

On the status of the Convention, an Expert noted that Sweden had a dualist system and that the Convention had still not been incorporated in the legal order, even though its provisions were largely respected in national laws.  Since joining the European Union, Sweden had adopted a monist system regarding European legislation, especially non-discrimination norms.  Would Sweden do the same for the Convention, in order to enable women to invoke it directly before Courts?   How about the status of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention)?

On the definition of discrimination against women, an Expert raised the issue of multiple discrimination and asked why the Discrimination Act restricted the prohibition against discrimination that was foreseen in the Constitution.  How did this restriction affect the protection of women, in particular those experiencing multiple discrimination? 

Experts requested information as regard to the time frame for the creation of a national human rights institution. 

On the visibility of the Convention, an Expert regretted that women from minorities and in remote areas had no awareness of the Convention and of their rights. 

Regarding the migration crisis, another Expert noted that Sweden had accepted a large number of migrants, and underlined the importance of Sweden undertaking gender-impact assessments for its migration policies, including with regard to family reunification. 

Legal proceedings relating to the protection of women from discrimination and violence seemed quite complex, an Expert noted, which made it difficult for women, particularly for migrants and asylum seekers to navigate throughout the legislation applicable to them.  Was Sweden ensuring access to justice for minorities and migrants, including through providing legal counsel in foreign languages? 

Another Expert raised a concern regarding discrimination against Muslims. 

An Expert regretted that training on gender equality for judges seemed to be voluntary. 

Replies by the Delegation

The delegation underlined the importance of disseminating information on girls and women’s rights.  Education was crucial, a delegate said, especially in light of the large number of people from different backgrounds and education arriving to the country.  Legal provisions had been translated in foreign languages. 

Training was provided for judges on gender violence issues.  Those courses were not mandatory though, which was so in order to ensure that judges’ independence was respected.  Delegates noted, however, that more and more judges were women with broad knowledge of those issues.  The Government had been monitoring the effectiveness of its legal system for a long time.  Inquiries were currently ongoing to assess the effectiveness of sexual offences policies. 

The Government had recently announced that it would deliver to the Parliament a strategy on human rights, which would include provisions for the establishment of a national human rights institution.  

Turning to the migration crisis, a delegate recalled that Sweden had taken in 160,000 asylum seekers in 2015, and had offered family reunification to a large number of people.  Sweden had had extensive dialogue with international organizations, in order to ensure that the gender aspects of the matter was taken into account.  

A draft legislation would include certain restrictions to the right of family reunification, in order to give the Government some time to better assess the current situation.  Quotas were envisaged for granting residence permits to a number of family members.  The new legislation would still guarantee the right to family reunification to those who had applied for asylum before the end of 2015.  Temporary residence permits were granted to asylum seekers for a period of three years, following which the risks and the situation in their countries of origin would be re-assessed. Decisions taken would be consistent with European and international law.

Questions by Experts

Committee Members noted the Government’s intention to adopt a new national strategy on human rights, and asked how women’s rights would be integrated in that strategy. 

Turning to the gender mainstreaming strategy, they asked what institutions were responsible for its implementation and how would the government monitor the process of implementation.  Had the indicators been set?  How was the Ministry of Finance ensuring that gender mainstreaming efforts reached the local level?   An Expert suggested the establishment of a parliamentarian commission to monitor the implementation of international conventions. 

Another Expert noted that despite its achievements for women representation, gender inequality remained, and women were under-represented on boards in the private sector and the academia.  Sweden should adopt mandatory gender quotas in order to address that situation. 

Replies by the Delegation

It was explained that the new national strategy on human rights was in the process of being drafted, and would include women’s rights provisions.  The Government would suggest that the Parliament establish a national human rights institution. 

The gender budgeting strategy was implemented by the Ministry of Finance, which ensured that gender aspects were taken into account by other Ministries when requiring funding.  The Government used indicators to assess the implementation of that strategy.  Sweden had very close dialogues with its local authorities, and had increased funding to support their efforts promote gender equality.  The Swedish Association of Local and regional Authorities had developed a programme for gender mainstreaming, funded by the Government. 

The Government would use every measure available to tackle inequalities in the private sector, including the imposition of quotas, said the delegation.  The improvement of the gender balance in private companies for 2016 would be evaluated to assess whether a legislation was needed. 

 
 
 
Questions by the Experts

Experts raised concerns regarding gender stereotypes in the media, as well as pornography.  They underlined the importance of strict control to prevent children from accessing pornography. 

One Expert inquired about the prevalence of forced marriages and female genital mutilation.  She regretted the lack of disaggregated data on violence suffered by women belonging to minorities.  Had measures been taken to prevent unaccompanied migrant minors from being subjected to trafficking?  Another Expert asked whether restraining orders and the use of electronic bracelets had been effective. 

Following its adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty, was Sweden undertaking systematic risk-assessments from a gender perspective prior to any arms trade agreement?

With regard to prostitution, an Expert welcomed the model adopted by Sweden and noted that other countries had aligned their legislation with it.  It was asked how that model could address the international dimension of human trafficking for sexual purposes.  Prevention and the protection of women required separate measures.  What specific rehabilitation programmes were available to address the needs of the victims of trafficking or to support women who wanted to quit prostitution? 

Replies by the Delegation

The self-regulatory advertising ombudsman was important and could contribute, through training, to a better advertising climate.  Equal representation in the media was indeed a matter of concern, and broadcasters were required to provide to the Broadcasting Commission yearly statistics on gender representation.  The Government had, however, to refrain from interfering in the media. 

On pornography, all broadcasters and companies were requested to ensure that such material was preceded by a warning and be broadcasted at an appropriate time.  Violent pornography and pornography involving children were, of course, banned. 

The Government was committed to combating violence against women, and to ensuring that such violence was systematically reported.  The legislation relating to forced marriage was quite new, and would be reviewed in a few years.  Statistics gathered thus far showed would be published in March. 

Turning to prostitution, a delegate said that there had been action plans at the European Union level.  France and Iceland had already implemented similar legislation.  The Government had tried to spread the model through the diffusion of information, including by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The Government was exploring the possibility of including prostitution in its plan for combatting violence against women. 

Sweden had made efforts to shorten the time of registration of unaccompanied migrant children, in order to ensure that they were systematically protected.  Those children were placed in institutions as close as possible to their acquaintances in the country.  A specific action plan would be adopted to address the situation of girls, and to limit the risks they faced.  It was crucial that those children were being communicated their rights as refugees, as children, and as girls. 

The Government was working on presenting new strategies and action plans for human rights, including the rights of women, and for the protection of children from exploitation and sexual abuse, which would also address sexual abuse on the Internet.  

Sweden had ratified the Arms Trade Treaty, and its impact assessment was in place.  A parliamentary commission, at work since 2012, had presented a report in June 2015, following which the Government would review the Military Act. 

Questions by Experts

One Expert asked whether Sweden was committed to the nomination of women in the international fora, and commended Sweden’s commitment to the implementation of the United Nations Women, Peace and Security Agenda.  To what extent did Sweden’s development cooperation and its involvement in post-conflict countries include gender aspects, including in relation to the security sector reform? 

On extraterritoriality, it was asked whether Swedish international companies were monitored in order to ensure that their activities abroad did not violate the provisions of the Convention. 

The two-year rule for residence permits to migrants could be discriminating against migrant women victims of domestic violence.  Were there any quotas on the number of women receiving refugee status?  Could residence permits be issued to women regardless of whether they were married to Swedish nationals? 

Turning to the participation of women in political and public life, an Expert welcomed the increase in women’s voting and participation in political parties.  Improvements could, however, still be achieved to expand the participation of women belonging to minorities.   Also, the situation at municipal levels could be improved. 

On education, an Expert inquired if Sweden would consider the imposition of quotas for the nomination of women at the academic level.  Research funds had been allocated to the scientific sector, leading to de facto discrimination against women, who were under-represented in that area. 

Committee Members were concerned about violence and harassment against girls in schools, which could partly be explained by the availability of free pornographic websites.  Was sexual education provided? 

With regard to the issue of access to employment, an Expert noted that Sweden was among the best ranked countries worldwide for the participation of women in the labour force.  Some challenges remained regarding remaining gender-pay gaps, men not using parental leave, and women in part-time employment.  Further, migrant women and women with disabilities suffered lesser access to employment.  What was the role of the Equality Ombudsman in ensuring gender equality in access to employment?  Would Sweden ratify the International Labour Organization’s Convention No. 189 Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers?

Turning to health-related issues, another Expert asked whether education material for health-services personnel included matters pertaining to women’s health and gender discrimination.  Experts noted that mental illnesses prevalently affected women.  Was there wide access to contraceptives or safe abortion for women living in rural areas?  38 percent of women with disabilities reportedly considered themselves in good health, an Expert noted.  What was being done to improve the health of women with disabilities?  What was being done to address the situation of women and girls with addiction problems?

A Member of the Committee asked how Sweden would ensure that women were at the forefront of new initiatives, technologies and innovations aiming at tackling climate change. 

Another Expert noted the growing phenomena of forced and early marriages, female genital mutilation and polygamy, and asked how the Government was combatting those harmful practices.  

An Expert encouraged Sweden to undergo a thorough study of the economic consequences of divorce and legislation applicable in that regard from a gender-perspective. 

Replies by the Delegation

Migrants coming to Sweden arrived mostly from Syria and Afghanistan, a delegate said.  Most of them were boys, and Sweden was looking for solutions to help girls and women who stayed behind in their countries of origin.  Sweden would host a side event on migrant women and girls during the next session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, to be held in New York in March 2016.  Residence permits could be granted if the applicant or the child had been subjected to abuse, even after the relationship ended. 

It was explained that several procedures had been put in place to increase voter turnouts, including special funding for political parties and awareness-raising campaigns. 

The Government had the necessity to achieve gender-balance in mind when appointing ambassadors and designating candidates for international organizations, the delegation stated. 

The implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 was a priority for Sweden.  Sweden had been continuously working on a network of Swedish and Nordic women mediators.  The Government was also working on its third plan for the implementation of resolution 1325, following consultations with international partners.  The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) always carried out gender-impact assessments when granting financial support.  The Agency had presented an action plan on gender mainstreaming, and would increase its support to gender-related initiatives.  Sweden was involved in security sector assessment  in Ukraine, including a gender perspective. 

The delegation informed that Sweden had developed a new and ambitious policy on corporate social responsibility, including an action plan on business and human rights (launched in August 2015), which stated that the Government was expecting companies operating in Sweden or abroad to exercise due diligence and to identify, prevent and manage human rights risks. 

The Feminist Party had not made it in the national Parliament, but it was represented at the local and European levels. 

Turning to education, a delegate said that the Government had taken measures to support schools and teachers’ response to harassment and gender inequality.  The Government had a zero tolerance policy on harassment and threats, including at school.  The criminal law legislation protecting the personal integrity would be amended to strengthen protection of personal privacy.  Sex education had been strengthened with the publication of materials available to teachers at schools and awareness-raising efforts.  Sweden had implemented a mainstreamed education system that included most children with disabilities.  Since 2006, the proportion of women professors had increased.  Targets had been set, and their realization would be assessed.  The Government was allocating yearly funds to support universities’ work on gender-mainstreaming.  The Government was aware that grants had been benefiting men more than women. 

On access to employment, it was explained that the Government ambitioned to promptly ratify the International Labour Organization’s Convention No. 189 Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers.  The labour market continued to be gender-segregated.  Employment services had been encouraged to promote gender-equality, and had to present plans on how they intended to implement the Government’s gender-mainstreaming policies.  Among persons with disabilities, women had lesser access to the labour market than men.  There was an ongoing work to prepare a new policy on persons with disabilities, which would include provisions for facilitating their access to the labour market.  That policy would also include a gender-perspective.

In relation to health issues, a delegate said that efforts to address the vulnerability of women to mental illness had been made.  A commission had been mandated to make recommendations to address inequalities in the health sector, including those affecting persons with disabilities and sexual minorities. 

The use of alcohol and tobacco was decreasing in Sweden, while the use of cannabis was on a stable level, lower than that of other European countries.  The Government would introduce a reform to provide free contraceptives for young people, as well as free breast cancer-screening for women.  Sweden was one of the countries in the world that spent the most money on elderly care, the delegation emphasized. 

The Government was committed to supporting the participation of women in promoting sustainable development and combating climate change at the international level.  A lot of local initiatives relating to sustainable agriculture were led by women. 

Polygamy was not a well-known phenomenon in Sweden, and it was, of course, prohibited. 

Concluding Remarks
 
PERNILLA BARALT, State Secretary at the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, thanked the Members of the Committee for their insights and expertise.  Since the Government of Sweden had entered office in 2014, it had made important efforts to improve the situation of women.  The Government looked forward to receiving the concluding observations of the Committee, and would disseminate them broadly, in cooperation with the civil society. 

YOKO HAYASHI, Chairperson of the Committee, commended the State party’s efforts, and encouraged the implementation of the recommendations which were to be formulated by the Committee.  

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