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

Committee on Elimination of Discrimination  
against Women  

6 July 2017

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women today considered the combined seventh and eighth periodic reports of Romania on its implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

Introducing the reports, Aurelia Graþiela Drãghici, State Secretary, National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men of Romania, said that for the past 35 years, Romania had undertaken the commitment and determination to eliminate discrimination against women and to adopt the legislative and other measures necessary to eliminate such discrimination.  Moreover, Romania had ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 2003.   The commitment to comply with the Convention had been confirmed at the level of the Government through the Vision of the 2017-2020 Governance Programme, where gender equality was a priority and a chapter was dedicated to the concept of respect and dignity for women.  Domestic violence and violence against women continued to be a priority for the country, and in 2016 Romania had ratified the Istanbul Convention – the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.  Ms. Drãghici then proceeded to underline the series of measures that been adopted with a view to advancing the situation of women in Romania.

In the ensuing discussion, Committee Experts posed a series of questions related to gender-based violence and violence against women, and were particularly concerned about the high levels of domestic violence, the high withdrawal rates for complaints of domestic violence, as well as the fact that victims required proof of abuse to obtain shelter.  Experts were seriously concerned that Romania continued to be a country of origin for trafficking in persons and inquired about the case of a farm in Ragusa province in Italy, where 5,000 Romanian women had been allegedly held and sexually exploited.  Experts were also alarmed about the sexual exploitation of children aged 14 to 16, which amounted to 30 per cent of the total population of sexually exploited.  They raised questions on labour exploitation, and in particular, the hundreds of Filipino migrant women working in Romania, and inquired about measures taken to prevent and eliminate discrimination and violence against Roma women, particularly in the rural environment.

In her concluding remarks, Ms. Drãghici agreed that much remained to be done, and that the efforts to meet the empowerment of women and achieve the de facto equality between men and women had to be systematic and continuous.  She assured the Committee of the Government’s full openness and commitment, and reiterated special appreciation for the constant support of the Committee in the strengthening of the role of women in society.

The delegation of Romania included representatives of the National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men, Ministry of Internal Affairs, National Agency against Trafficking in Persons, Ministry of Labour and Social Justice, Ministry of Business, Commerce and Entrepreneurship, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of National Education, and the Permanent Mission of Romania to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Committee will next meet in public on Friday, 7 July, at 10 a.m. to consider the seventh periodic report of Costa Rica (CEDAW/C/CRI/7).

Reports

The combined seventh and eight periodic reports of Romania can be read here: CEDAW/C/ROU/7-8.

Presentation of the Reports

AURELIA GRAÞIELA DRÃGHICI, State Secretary, National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men of Romania, introducing the reports, said that for the past 35 years, Romania had undertaken the commitment and determination to eliminate discrimination against women and to adopt the legislative and other measures to eliminate such discrimination, including by ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 2003.  The commitment to comply with the Convention was confirmed at the level of the Government through the Vision of the 2017-2020 Governance Programme, where gender equality was a priority and a chapter was dedicated to the concept of respect and dignity for women.  Romania had become a Member State of the European Union on 1 January 2007, from which it had acquired the rights and responsibilities, including in relation to women.  A series of measures had been adopted with a view to strengthening the national institutional mechanisms as well as the mechanisms for inter-institutional cooperation and partnership with the civil society.  One of those was the establishment of the National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men which acted as the national integrating body on equal opportunities and the prevention and combating domestic violence.  Additionally, the national Commission for the Equal Opportunities between Women and Men was working under the coordination of the Agency, as a mechanism for collaboration at the national level.  Other institutions in place were the Inter-Ministerial Committee for the Prevention and Combatting of Domestic Violence created in 2016 as an implementing body for the Istanbul Convention. 

On the issue of equal opportunities between women and men, a National Strategy on Gender Equality and Domestic Violence had been adopted, and in 2015, the National Day on Gender Quality, May 8 had been declared by the law.  A series of actions had been organized to this effect, including “Equal Opportunities Week for women and Men”, and the “Open Doors Week – In Dialogue with Civil Society” as well as the “HeforShe” Campaign initiated by the United Nations Women.  Domestic violence and violence against women continued to be a priority for the country, and in 2016 Romania had ratified the Istanbul Convention.  The harmonization of internal legislation with the provisions of the Istanbul Convention was under way, with the focus on amending and completing Law No. 217/2003 on the prevention and combating of domestic violence.  A number of projects had been launched with a view to providing financial support for the development of all necessary means and tools for the enforcement of this new legislation.  These included the gender-based violence project under the “Justice” Programme financed by the Kingdom of Norway, focusing on eight assisting centres for aggressors at the local level, coupled with specialized intervention programs for aggressors in order to prevent the relapse of domestic violence.  Another project to this effect was the VENUS project to combat violence against women, which would develop measures centred on the integrated and unified approach to social services, socio-professional and professional training of specialists in the field.

A series of other measures had been enacted to prevent and counter sexual violence, including the setting up of eight crisis centres for rape and partnerships with hospitals. Other measures undertaken by the Government included the adoption of the new Criminal Code in 2014, which criminalized all forms of trafficking in persons.  Romania was also taking steps to increase the access of women to decision-making posts in political and social life, protecting persons with disabilities, ensuring gender equality in the field of education, improving the health of women and girls, and ensuring social inclusion.

Questions by Experts

Underlining the principles of the Convention, an Expert stated that even though the Constitution of Romania had high standards, its implementation did not address multiple forms of discrimination.  Highlighting that issues such as age, social or economic status, racial or ethnic background, status, health, disability, poverty and sexual orientation were interlinked with gender, the Expert noted with regret that the Romanian law did not take this into account.  Additionally, the laws were often not enforced in a proper manner, and Romanian people did not have trust in the legal system. 

What legal actions were planned to combat intersecting and multiple forms of discrimination?

The Committee had not received an answer concerning the legal status of the National Human Rights Committee, which did not work according to the Paris Principles.  Would actions be taken in this regard?

What was the status of the National Human Rights Action Plan?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation said that a series of steps had been taken to implement gender equality measures.  Regarding sanctions, institutions were the Inspectorate for Labour, the National Council for Combatting Discrimination, as well as trade unions which had the capacity to represent victims as legal entities in class actions in administrative procedure cases.

Gender equality was ensured under the Article 16 of the Constitution.

A possibility to lodge a petition in the Courts to prosecute against discrimination was available both through the civil and the criminal procedure code – either via a complaint or a denouncement.  Access to justice was ensured by both criminal and civil courts, and actions could be filed in both types of courts.

Recognizing that Romania was lagging behind in the process of introducing gender perspective, a delegate noted that a series of steps had been recently taken in this respect, including initiating a regional pilot project for gender budgeting.

Romania faced a huge challenge of discrimination against women and domestic violence, however there would soon be a shift in paradigm in this respect, with the upcoming adoption of the Law introducing the Gender Perspective and the Law 217 on the Prevention and Combatting Domestic Violence.  The latter would be harmonized with the Istanbul Convention, and would appoint a legal expert with concrete attributions to promote gender perspective in the national institutions.

Regarding the promotion of gender equality at the local level, the County Committee for Equal Opportunities aimed at various local authorities with the purpose of having an integrated management of gender equality. 

In the follow-up questions, Experts asked the delegation to be more specific about the timeline, including for the pilot programme for gender budgeting in the local community, and the amendment of the Law introducing the Gender Perspective.

Could the delegation cite court cases on multiple grounds of discrimination and provide statistics on measures to detect grounds of discrimination?  What was the status of collaboration with the civil society and non-governmental organizations?

The delegation said that the Law introducing the Gender Perspective and the Law 217 on the Prevention and Combatting of Domestic Violence were a priority, and that the Government had undertaken the commitment to debate them in October 2017 at the latest.

Noting that the mayor of Bucharest was a woman, a delegate stated that she was very active on the issue of women, and that the Emergency Shelter for Women had been funded by the City Hall of Bucharest.

Regarding the possibility to lodge a petition against discrimination, the delegation said that 71 warnings had been issued, with fines totalling 300 million Romanian New Leu.  Around 21,000 controls had been undertaken with the application of 152 measures of deficiency.  These measures were aimed at informing and raising awareness on equal opportunities.  No specific gender-based discrimination cases had been registered by the Ministry of Justice and there was no data on gender discrimination in the courts.

The project on gender budgeting would be financed under the Operational Programme of the Development of Human Administrative Capacity; it had been enacted together with non-governmental organizations and its implementation would start soon.

On domestic violence measures, the Istanbul Convention was being implemented and Romania would follow the Austrian model which provided that the aggressor had to be evicted immediately from the residence.

Regarding protection orders issued until 2016, there were 6,490 such protection orders, of which 1,490 were admitted orders for protection and over 1,000 were partially admitted orders.

Questions by Experts

An Expert, focusing on Article 4 of the Convention, noted that its goal was parity, and said that, although no statistics were available, it seemed that there was no area of life in Romania where women were on an equal footing with men. 

What were the obstacles in achieving immediate gender parity in all management and decision-making levels?  How many female Roma students could enjoy studying in the university?  Could the delegation explain the 30 per cent quota in the legislative bodies?

Responses by the Delegation

Regarding the 30 per cent quota, the delegation explained that presently, two laws were being discussed in the Chamber of Deputies, obliging political parties to provide positive discrimination measures to ensure the balance of representation between men and women in the proposal of candidates for the local, parliamentarian and European Parliament elections.

Seventy companies were listed in the stock exchange, and in those, women represented only ten per cent of the board members; the Guide for Corporate Governance was encouraging greater representation of women in boards of publicly traded companies.

Regarding the representation of women in the political life, both at the local and parliament level, a shift in paradigm had been achieved.  If in 2012 there was a representation of twelve per cent of women in the parliament, currently there was an average of 21 per cent, while the number of women represented in the county councils had doubled and the number represented in the local councils had tripled.

Bucharest was a constantly growing city.  As far as the gender perspective was concerned, the mayor, who was a woman, managed four million persons, and encouraged the representation of women in the management staff of her 10,000 employees.  In the Government, nine of the twenty-seven Ministers were women, and two had the status of Vice-Prime Minister.

Regarding Roma women and education, 547 places had been allocated in 2016 and of those, 65 per cent had been taken by young women.  Initial and intensive training in Romani for potential teachers of Roma language and history were in place, with some 55 trainees per course.  Of the 590 Roma training staff, 70 per cent were women, who also represented 65 per cent of the 989 school mediators.

There were no hindrances for women to access professions such as judges or  prosecutors.  Of the 1,224 management positions in the judiciary, over 66 per cent were filled by women. 

In the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, women occupied 52 per cent of the grade 1 and 49 per cent of the grade 2 employees, meaning that there was a gender parity in the Ministry.

Following up on the replies by the delegation, Experts asked for a clarification on the quota specifications: if the requirement were only 30 per cent of the candidates, this still did not guarantee an equal representation after elections were over, unless a “zip system” was adopted (men-women-men-women).  Was this zip system adopted?

The delegation answered that the percentage level was minimum 30 per cent, and this was a condition to validate the electoral lists; however it gave the possibility for more representation.  The 30 per cent did not pertain to the eligible candidates but rather to the filled positions. 

Questions by Experts

In the next round of questions, an Expert lamented that gender roles and stereotypes were still a part of Romania, both in the family and outside of the family.  Those were influenced by the Orthodox Church which had an immense power over public opinion and reinforced patriarchal attitudes especially in the rural areas.  Had the Government tried to promote the dialogue and cooperation with the Orthodox Church to address stereotyping and patriarchal attitudes?  The Orthodox Church received financial support from the Government, and therefore could be influenced by the Government.

Racial and gender bias impacted the lives of women on a day to day basis.  What strategies did the State party use to integrate Romanian women’s role in society? Stereotypical images of women, especially Roma women were sometimes portrayed by politicians and even in textbooks, and there was a low rate of acceptance of homosexuality.  The key for changing harmful stereotypes and gender roles was education.  What concrete outcomes could be identified in this field?

Another Expert, raising the issue of violence against women, noted that the legislative package drafted to ratify the Istanbul Convention was a positive step, and asked about the time frame for its implementation.  All forms of violence against women, including domestic violence, appeared to be prevalent in Romania, however not all forms of violence, including domestic violence, were criminalized.  Did the legislative package contain provisions to include all forms of violence against women?

There was allegedly an inadequate level of training for all agencies and institutions involved in the fight to eliminate gender based violence, including security, educators, health and judiciary.  How many and what percentage of the total personnel in these sectors had undergone any training regarding violence against women specifically?  Was such training a regular part of their curricula, and was it mandatory or optional and sporadic?

On protection orders, the delegation was asked whether the new legislation covering would also cover all forms of violence against women, including stalking, or would it only cover domestic violence, and also how the new legislation would address the matter of requiring proof to obtain protection order.

Regarding shelters, the Expert was shocked that the victims were required proof of the abuse to obtain shelter and asked the delegation to comment.  Were the shelters accessible to all women including women with disabilities and Roma women, and were they present in all areas, including rural and urban, and in all regions in the country?  Were persons involved in mediation in cases of gender based violence trained on the issue?

Allegedly, there were high withdrawal rates for complaints of domestic violence.  The police department had recommended that these withdrawal rates be dealt with and that women should not withdraw complaints.  What was being done in cases of ex-officio prosecution?

Another Expert lamented that Romania continued to be a country of origin for trafficking in persons, including for both labour and sexual exploitation, and allegedly there was a new trend of trafficking of women with disabilities.  Could the delegation comment on this, and also on the case of the farm in Ragusa in Italy where 5,000 Romanian women had been allegedly held and sexually exploited?

Romanian minors represented a much higher percentage than that of the average for sexual exploitation in the world.  Girls aged 14 to 16 amounted to over 30 per cent of the sexually exploited.  An additional problem was the corruption of the police, and the absence of investigation of police officials involved in trafficking. 

There were allegedly hundreds of Filipino migrant women working in Romania, who were underpaid, responsible for multiple jobs, and who had the identity documents confiscated by employers.  How were these labour migrants’ rights protected so that they did not end up as victims of trafficking?  The delegation was also asked about the steps taken to prevent discrimination against women in prostitution, how trafficking in persons was monitored and coordinated in the country, and whether there was regional cooperation on the issue.

Responses by the Delegation

On existing stereotypes regarding the Roma women, the delegation explained that the National Agency had started a direct dialogue with the Ministry of National Education to introduce the gender perspective in the books and to counter the issue.

On public awareness campaigns, eight television debates had been shown on violence and discrimination against women and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community; there was a television show entitled “Women and Men of 10”, and Romania had also endorsed the “HeforShe” campaign launched by the United Nations Women.  The Law on Audio-visual Policy would be amended and other activities, including those aimed at preventing stereotyping against members of the lesbian gay bi-sexual and trans-sexual communities, had been launched.

Fifty percent of the population in Romania lived in rural areas, therefore, there was a high prevalence of discrimination against Roma and women in the rural environment.  Mediators were available to protect against these discriminations and to work on preventing school dropout, but they did not always have access to the Roma communities.  The local authorities relied on the support of non-governmental organizations which provided data and concrete measures.

Regarding the temporary protection orders, there was a procedure whereby the first filter was a policeman who drafted the order; the second filter was with the prosecutor, who acted as the intermediary between the policeman and the victim; and the third filter required the judge to file a decision order.  Domestic violence, including psychological, physical and sexual, was a big problem in Romania.  The Government had held training programmes with the police, meetings with the Minister of Internal Affairs and had undergone many activities  to this effect.  The police was key in drafting the protection orders.

Regarding the stereotyping in the textbooks, the common core curricula addressed stereotypes through subjects such as civic culture, while topics discussed included the principles of intercultural society, violence against women and others.  In 2016, two documents had been issued, including a Framework Order concerning segregation in schools which would reinforce the legislation in this regard.  A series of legislative and institutional measures had been enacted, including the National Strategy for Preventing and Countering Discrimination 2017-2020 which was now being endorsed.

Regarding the alleged sexual exploitation of 5,000 Romanian women in the Province of Ragusa in Italy, the delegation said that a Romanian female representative in the European Parliament had initiated a large delegation to undertake a mission of inquiry into the situation.  A report would be soon drafted at the European and national levels and be submitted to the Government for action.

Human trafficking was being monitored, and a number of institutions were working to integrate the national strategy on the issue.  There were a series of priorities, the first of which was the prevention and raising awareness, and countering stereotypes. The campaign aimed to tell men that they should no longer pay for sexual services. 

In 2016, there had been 330 definitive sentences for trafficking in human beings for all purposes, including labour, sexual exploitation and child pornography.  The police forces, apart from their experience in this field, were undergoing continuous training.  One of the special training modules was on interviewing victims on trafficking.

In the follow-up questions, Experts asked the delegation to comment on the provisional temporary protection order, which was only for 30 days, and also on the information the Committee received that allegedly the names of witnesses were provided on the internet.

The delegation said that all forms of abuse would be sanctioned under the new law, including psychological, sexual and physical.

There was a confusion regarding the provisional temporary protection order: it would be regulated under the Law 217 and would allow for the protection of the victim once the violence was identified.  The measures included evacuating the aggressor from the house, confiscating his keys, and so forth.

Regarding the publishing of the names of witnesses on the internet, there were two different concepts of witness protection, and the data on witnesses was secret, as was the usual procedure in trafficking in persons cases.  The Criminal Procedure Code stipulated the measures, including surveillance and protection of the witnesses, as well as accompanying the witness. 

Regarding the fact that 14 of 42 counties did not have a shelter, there was a plan in the pipeline for mobile emergency centers, which would relocate from one county to another.  Non-governmental organizations would be involved in this project.  The eight centres for rape were not physical centres but rather multidisciplinary focal points working in the emergency units in hospitals in the eight regions.

With regards to the expert training in the field of equal opportunities, a “Start for a Fair Life” had been launched.  Other types of training were also being carried out including for the staff of the Ministry of Justice.

Questions by Experts

In the next round of questions, an Expert asked what steps were being undertaken to encourage women’s participation in the political life, and asked for information on women in diplomatic service. 

How did the State party treat human rights defenders and activists?

Responses by the Delegation

In the central and public administration, 46 per cent of the positions were filled by men, while 53 per cent were filled by women.  There had been an increase from 12 to 21 per cent of female representation in the parliamentary elections, while in the local elections, women representation had increased by one per cent; the number of women mayors had also been increased.  The leadership programmes focused on the young generation of women. There were currently twenty female ambassadors.

Questions by Experts

Committee Expert asked the delegation to elaborate the measures, including temporary special measures, to combat intersectional discrimination.  Noting that the drop-out rate in primary education was greater for boys, while in the tertiary education it was greater for women, the Expert asked the delegation to comment and explain the measures undertaken to encourage women to enrol in more diversified subject areas in the university.

What could be done to ensure the same opportunities for women in the labour market, how the principle of equal pay for work of equal value was implemented and what was being done to ensure a more balanced life for both sexes?  What did the programme “Second Equal Chance” entail?

Another Expert, referring to the concerns and recommendations of the Committee in the previous reporting, highlighted the health-related problems of women linked to the high levels of abortion.  The Committee had recommended implementation of health and information services, including for young girls living on the street.  While there were improvements, such as the National Health Programme for Women, the Cervical Cancer Screening Programme, and other measures, the country was still lagging behind.  The maternal mortality rates and abortion were both on the rise and Romania was somewhat relaxed when it came to distribution of contraceptives.  Access to health care and insurance for some women, such as Roma and women living with HIV/AIDS was very low.  Could the Delegation provide arguments on why there was a lack of information on these important issues?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation responded by referring the Committee to the education indicators in the reports which had shown that there was no gender disparity to the detriment of girls, but that access to education was actually in favour of young women.  Those indicators were based on the monitored and assessed data processed in the national report.  In the teaching and administration staff of the tertiary education system, there were some disparities – most of the provosts were men, for example.

The measures to improve the situation in the field of education included reviewing the education framework for pre-school education; the provision of milk and croissants; and the desegregation  programme.  A programme of allowances aimed at increasing the participation of children in school was provided for children of families with a low income.

There were fourteen early education centres which had been built with the help of the European Union.  The Government would repeat this programme with its own funds.

A draft law currently under external endorsement aimed at amending the law for social assistance for the elderly.  By tradition, it was women who looked after the children and also the parents and grandparents.  The birth rate in Romania had been negative for the past ten years, and thus Romania was facing an aging of the population.  The Government was trying to address those aspects, and was focusing on building centres for the elderly.

Considering that Romania ranked first in Europe in terms of presence for cervical cancer, the Government had launched an ambitious programme for cervical and breast cancer monitoring, whereby women had to undergo annual screening.  A screening programme had also been introduced for chromosome anomalies, considering that 700 kids had been diagnosed with the Down syndrome.

Sexual offenders were sentenced for up to a period of two to seven years, and the offender was forbidden from holding a public function.

Questions by Experts

Experts congratulated the State party for the results achieved in the area of social protection and asked a series of questions related to water supply, including whether women’s needs had been considered during the development of water supply programmes, and about the percentage of people living in the rural areas with an access to safe drinking water.

What were the major strategies undertaken by the State party to combat poverty among women, for example were bank loans, state loans or other measures such as income generating activities provided? 

Another Expert, noting that over fifty percent of women lived in rural areas in Romania, asked whether the privatisation of hospitals in rural areas also affected the access to gynaecological services.  Were there public services for early childcare in the rural areas?

Was there a specific policy to foster the participation of women in the policy for local development?

Access to and control of land was fundamental to lifting the living standards of women living in the rural areas.  What was the percentage of women who owned land and were there programmes that helped women undergo activities in the rural areas?

What did Roma women and girls think about the application of programmes and policies referring to them?  Had there been any assessment?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation explained that the child-rearing leave programme could be accessed by both women and men, and that women were encouraged to return to the labour market after maternity leave.  Those who returned up to sixty days before the termination of the maternity leave would benefit from additional funds handed by the Government.  Other mechanisms of support to achieving a balance between the family and work life also were in place. 

The Social Inclusion Programme included objectives for the inclusion of vulnerable groups.

Women had the right to own property and access to justice on an equal footing as men. 

On investments in the rural areas, fifty three companies had created over 100 jobs, of which 78 were held by women and all were in the rural areas.  Over 1,000 small and medium sized companies had received funding, and of those 600 were run by women.   A project to finance 10,000 new companies was in the pipeline, with the creation of 10,000 new jobs, of which it was estimated that half of the employed would be women.

A programme aimed at all companies in the tourism, commerce and the manufacturing industries was in place, entitled “The Programme for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) at Reducing Disparities.”

Following the integration of Romania into the European Union, hundreds of physicians had left to other countries of the Union, a move encouraged by the low salary levels in Romania.  Gynaecological services were available free of charge for all women and at all levels of healthcare. 

Following up on the replies by the delegation, Experts asked whether the access to justice by the Roma and other vulnerable groups, such as persons with disabilities, was hindered by the lack of identity cards.  They asked the delegation to comment on the information that in some areas the State had neglected or reduced its public health efforts and had promoted private doctor’s offices, and to explain the reasons for the ongoing discrimination against Roma women.

The delegation replied and said that persons with disabilities could refer to justice through a legal guardian. 

The public health care services had tried to develop and diversify following an analysis by the governance programme.  There was an intention of developing public services, however private services were developing naturally and against a background of free market competition.  This said, public services would always exist and would continue to be invested in.  Romania provided public healthcare free of charge to everyone and on all three levels of care.  Up to four per cent of the gross domestic product, the largest in Europe, had been allocated for the construction of a metropolitan hospital with services aimed at the most critical sections of the society.

Questions by Experts

In the final round of questions, an Expert was concerned about the high level of child marriages, which continued to be a problem, partly due to the fact that they were unregistered.  In addition, girls married in this way did not have any rights, including the right to property.

Regarding domestic violence, would a legislative measure be introduced directing the judiciary courts to take into consideration any form of violence in the family – even if the child had not been a victim of violence but rather the mother?  This would influence the custodial sentence.

The delegation was also asked to explain the measures to safeguard women’s property rights under the matrimonial distribution of property regime.

Response by the Delegation

There was no information on Roma child marriages, said the delegation and stressed that the civil code provided that the legal age of marriage was eighteen, while the marriage at the age of 16 could be approved with the authorisation of parents or a tutor. 

In cases of divorce or separation and custody children, the Romanian legislation provided clearly that divorce could be done at the notary public when there was an agreement on who would have custody of the child.  The Civil Code provided that the child received financial support which amounted to a quarter of the salary of the husband.

Women who were victims of domestic violence and who were in court trial also received legal and psychological counselling and counselling for entering the labour market and becoming economically independent.

The Civil Code banned the same sex marriage and civil partnership however the legislation also banned discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals.

Regarding inheritance by women in marriage, there were three types of matrimonial regime and these were clearly stipulated.

Last year, 100,000 abortions had been undergone in Romania.  Campaigns were conducted on contraceptives and birth control.

Concluding Observations

AURELIA GRAÞIELA DRÃGHICI, State Secretary, National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men of Romania, in her concluding remarks, thanked the Committee, stating that she had especially appreciated the questions focused on the current situation in Romania.  The delegation had tried to present the progress made, but also to highlight the challenges and difficulties Romania continued to face.  It was certain that both the questions and the recommendations would constitute of real opportunity for the State and the Government to orient and adequately substantiate the public policies that would be developed in the future.  For the Romanian Government, it was very important that the Members of the Committee remained permanently connected to the requirements imposed by the Convention and to its spirit.  Exposing the key parts of the reports had marked a paradigm shift as proof that Romania was trying to modernize the measures and means of intervention and to adapt the national policies in line with the dynamics of the main legal instruments of international cooperation.

Much remained to be done, and efforts to meet the empowerment of women and achieve the de facto equality between men and women had to be systematic and continuous.  The Government was aware that the social movements that characterized contemporary society imposed an imperative reorientation towards enhancing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and it appreciated that, in order to overcome the growing global challenges, it was necessary to emphasize cooperation and the exchange of good practices.  Ms. Drãghici assured the Committee of the Government’s full openness and commitment, and reiterated special appreciation for the constant support of the Committee in the strengthening of the role of women in society.

DALIA LEINARTE, Committee Chairperson, commended Romania for its efforts and encouraged it to undertake all necessary measures to address the Committee’s recommendations for the benefit of all women and girls in the country.

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